British Columbia at the Summer Olympics

British Columbians have been taking part in the Summer Olympic Games since 1908, when three athletes - Sydney Brown in shooting, John Fortescue Foulkes DSO and Robert Powell in tennis - competed, but no medals were won. The first medal won by a British Columbian came in 1908, a silver won by Duncan Gillis in discus; the first gold medals wer won at the 1928 Games by Percy Williams, who won both the 100 and 200 metre sprints. The first woman to medal for BC were Lillian Palmer, Mary Frizzell, Mildred Thompson, and Agnes Szabo in the women's 4×100 metre relay at the 1932 Summer Games.

At the Summer Games, BC athletes have won 50 medals - 10 gold, 20 silver, and 21 bronze, with the greatest success coming from rowing, with 15 medals - 5 gold, 8 silver, and 2 bronze, followed by 12 from swimming (6 silver, 6 bronze), and 10 from athletics (2 gold, 3 silver, 5 bronze).

Medal tables here show the top three plus BC; asterisk indicates the host nation.

= London 1908 = The Games of the IV Olympiad held in London, UK, in 1908 marked the first time athletes represented British Columbia at the Olympics. No medals were won.


 * Competitors
 * Sydney Brown, shooting, men's 1,000 yard free rifle (11th)
 * John Fortescue Foulkes DSO, tennis, men's singles (round of 16, 9th)
 * Robert Powell, tennis, men's singles (round of 16, 9th)
 * Foulkes & Powell, tennis, men's doubles (round of 16, 7th)


 * Medal table

= Stockholm 1912 =
 * Medals
 * S - Duncan Gillis (athletics, discus)


 * Medal table

= Antwerp 1920 = No medals.

= Paris 1924 = The coxless four team finished second, beginning the successful history of British Columbian rowers at the Olympic Games.


 * Medals
 * S - Archibald Black, Colin Finlayson, George MacKay, William Wood (rowing, men's coxless four)


 * Medal table

= Amsterdam 1928 = Percy Williams became the first British Columbian athlete to win Olympic gold, winning both the 100 and 200 metre sprints.


 * Medals
 * G - Percy Williams (athletics, men's 100m)
 * G - Percy Williams (athletics, men's 200m)
 * B - Jimmy Ball (athletics, men's 400m)


 * Medal table

1932 Summer S - Lillian Palmer, Mary Frizzell, Mildred Thompson, Agnes Szabo - Athletics, women's 4x100m S - Ernest Cribb, Harry Jones, Peter Gordon, Hubert Wallace, Ronald Maitland, George Gyles "Santa Maria" - Sailing, 8 m Class B - Philip Rogers, Gerald Wilson, Gardner Boultbee, Kenneth Glass "Caprice" - Sailing, 6 m Class

1948 Summer B - Violet Simpson, Nancy MacKay, Diane Foster, Patricia Jones - Athletics, women's 4x100m

1956 Summer G - Archibald MacKinnon, Kenneth Loomer, Walter D'Hondt, Donald Arnold - Rowing, Men's Coxless Four S - Philip Kueber, Richard McClure, Robert Wilson, David Helliwell, Wayne Pretty, Bill McKerlich, Douglas McDonald, Lawrence West, Carlton Ogawa - Rowing, Men's Eight with Coxswain

1960 Summer S - Donald Arnold, Walter D'Hondt, Nelson Kuhn, John Lecky, Kenneth Loomer, Bill McKerlich, Archibald MacKinnon, Glenn Mervyn, Sohen Biln - Rowing, Men's Eight with Coxswain

1964 Summer G - Roger Jackson, George Hungerford - Rowing, Men's Coxless Pair S - Doug Rogers - Judo, Men's Over 80 kg B - Harry Jerome - Athletics, Men's 100 m

1968 Summer S - Elaine Tanner OBC - Swimming, Women's 100 m backstroke S - Elaine Tanner OBC - Swimming, Women's 200 m backstroke S - Ralph Hutton OBC - Swimming, Men's 400 m freestyle B - Angela Connors MBC, Marilyn Wilkins MBC, Elaine Tanner MBC, and Marion Lay MBC - Swimming, Women's 4x100 m freestyle relay