Judging by their record in the Olympics, Spain seems to excel most at water sports, especially sailing and canoeing.
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Spain is usually a country with which the world of sport associates football the most. It is no surprise as the country is home to a few of the biggest football clubs in the world, and their record in the beautiful game, especially in recent history, speaks for itself. Thus, when one talks about the great nations that have competed at the Olympics, Spain is not a name that usually comes up. The country made its debut at The Games in 1900. The nation has participated in almost every edition of the Olympics since 1920. The ones they did not partake in were due to political reasons. The nation has bagged a total of 155 medals. This includes 46 gold medals, 64 silver medals, and 45 bronze medals.
Judging by their record at The Games, the European nation seems to excel most at water sports, especially sailing and canoeing. They have won a total of 19 medals in sailing, 13 of which are gold. It is closely followed by 16 medals in canoeing, including five gold medals. The nation also has 15 medals each in cycling and athletics. At the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Games, they had a decent overall performance as the nation bagged a total of 17 medals, seven of which were gold. Most of the gold medals came from canoeing. Maialen Chourraut, Marcus Walz, and the team of Saul Craviotto and Cristian Toro bagged the gold in the sport. In the 2021 Games, the Spaniards will be looking to make the most of their abilities, especially those involved in canoeing, as they will look to surpass their 2016 medals tally.
The nation has hosted one edition of the Olympics so far in its history. That turned out to be its best year in the competition so far. The 1992 Barcelona Olympics saw Spain bag a total of 22 medals, and be ranked sixth at the end of the competition. The 22 included 13 gold medals, seven silver medals, and a couple of bronze medals. The hosts won medals in Cycling, Swimming, Athletics, Judo, Sailing, Archery, Field Hockey, Football, Gymnastics, Tennis, Boxing, and Water Polo. It was indeed an incredible feat the team achieved, spurred on by their fans in Barcelona.
Winning the gold medal in football at the time was a big deal for the Spanish. Yes, they won medals in Swimming and Sailing as well, but those were expected. They have always been good in sports that involve water, and it remains perhaps one of their biggest strengths even today. However, football is the one sport that is treated as a religion in the country. Thus, when the team was awarded the gold medal in Barcelona on August 8, 1992, the entire nation burst into an immense sense of joy and pride. Funnily enough, the team that won the gold medal in football had two players who would go on to become legends of FC Barcelona. They were Luis Enrique and Pep Guardiola.
If we are looking to find the country’s best performer at the Olympics, then, by medal count, there are a couple. Track cyclist Joan Llarenas and sprint kayaker Saul Craviotto. Both have won a total of four medals and two gold medals each. However, the latter will have the opportunity to surpass Llarenas and become Spain’s highest ever Olympic medal winner this year. He will be taking part in two canoeing events, the men’s singles K-200m sprint and the men’s team K-500m sprint. Llarenas, on the other hand, will not be a part. The 52-year-old won two gold medals in track cycling, one in the 2000 Olympics and the other in the 2008 Olympics.
Craviotto’s successes, on the other hand, have come a lot more recently. He won the gold medal in the Men’s doubles K-500m sprint at the 2008 Olympics with Carlos Perez. Eight years later, he won his second gold medal in the 2016 Olympics in the Men’s doubles K-200m sprint event alongside Cristian Toro. This year might be the last Olympics for Craviotto, so the 36-year-old will look to do his best to become the first Spanish athlete in history to win three Olympic gold medals and become Spain’s greatest Olympian.
Historically, sailing and canoeing have always been strong points for the Spaniards. However, recent history has shown that the country has been going up the ladder in sports like swimming and athletics. In 2016, Mireia Belmonte won two medals, including a gold, for the country in swimming. Spain also did quite well in athletics as they won two medals in the sport in 2016, including a gold and a silver.
The country will be sending a total of 54 athletes for athletics, and 11 for swimming. However, their best bet still lies in sailing and canoeing. In both sports, Spain is sending 15 participants each, and some of them have years of experience on the biggest stage having already secured medals for the country in the past.
