Brazil (BRA)

The Confederação Brasileira de Desportos (CBD), founded on 20 August 1914, was the first sporting body from Brazil affiliated with the Olympics. The National Olympic Committee of Brazil was formed on 20 May 1935 and recognized by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) later in that year. Brazil has competed at every Olympics since 1920, with the sole exception of 1928. It has also competed at all Olympic Winter Games since 1992. Brazil’s successes have come in a variety of sports. It has won medals in several different sports, and has always had one of the top basketball, volleyball, and football (soccer) teams. Through 2016, Brazilian athletes have won 129 Olympic medals, 30 of them gold medals, all at the Summer Olympics, the most medals by any South American country. Their best performance was 2016 Games on home soil with 19 medals in total and seven of them in gold.

Robert Scheidt, a sailor, is the most successful Brazilian Olympian with two gold-two silver-one bronze. Another sailor, Torben Grael, has also won five medals (two gold-one silver-two bronze), while swimmer Gustavo Borges and volleyballer Escadinha have won four medals each.

After been chosen at the 2009 Olympic Congress, Rio de Janeiro hosted the 2016 Olympic Games.