In October 2009 Rio de Janeiro, the 2nd largest city in Brazil, was named to be the host of the 2016 Olympic Games, following London in 2012. The Games were held from 5 to 21 August 2016. Rio was the first South American city to host the Olympic Games. The American team were dominant, leading the medal tally with 121 medals, ahead of China (70 medals) and Great Britain (67 medals). Team GB were second in the race for gold, winning 27 compared to USA's 46 gold medals.

the rings on display in Rio the rings on display in Rio

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Trivia

  • The IAAF banned many Russian athletes from the 2016 Rio games, following revelations of state-sponsored doping.
  • One of the highlights of the Games was seeing swimmer Michael Phelps finishing his career with a staggering 28 medals, 23 of them gold. It was also the last time we would see sprinter Usain Bolt at the Olympic Games. His feats are equally great, he won an unprecedented third consecutive gold medal in the 100m, 200m sprints and 4x100m relay.