Olympics

Learn about how hosting the 1996 Summer Olympics shaped the city of Atlanta.

Muhammad Ali’s 1970 comeback fight in Atlanta against Jerry Quarry at the Atlanta Municipal Auditorium on October 26, 1970, is often relegated to the footnotes of Ali’s legacy despite its crucial role in the growth of Atlanta and the rebirth of his boxing career.

The Olympic & Paralympic display explored the legacy and spirit of the Games through Atlanta History Center’s distinctive Olympics collection, including artifacts from the Atlanta Games, a world-wide selection of Olympic torches, and artifacts and mascots from Paralympic Games around the globe.

Olympic Venue Tour Stop 1

Atlanta’s Paralympic Games represent many significant benchmarks for Paralympic and disability history.

In advance of the 1996 Olympic Games, organizers in Atlanta worked to harness the power of new technologies to showcase the city as cutting edge and progressive—just as many host cities before them had done.

Atlanta’s Games included legendary athletes, intense rivalries, and exciting underdogs. We’ve collected a few of our favorites from the summer of ‘96.

In 1987, Atlanta attorney William Porter Payne founded the Georgia Amateur Athletic Foundation with a quest to win the bid for the Centennial Olympic Games for Atlanta.

Stories of Atlanta History Center’s exhibition: Atlanta ’96. Shaping an Olympic and Paralympic City.

Learning Objectives of Atlanta History Center’s exhibition: Atlanta ’96. Shaping an Olympic and Paralympic City.

After the Games ended, Atlanta History Center was designated as the repository for the collections of the Georgia Amateur Athletic Foundation, the non-profit behind the organizing committee of the 1996 Olympic bid and Games

Atlanta ’96 tells new stories and expands on memories of the city’s Olympic and Paralympic history.

The story of any Olympic Games includes the efforts of civic activism on the part of residents of the host city. Atlanta was no different.

Though today’s Olympic Games promote excellence in sport, that hasn’t always been the case. In the early 20th century, participants could win gold medals for art and literature alongside their athletic counterparts.