Sporting Nation: Argentina

ARGENTINA: THE STATS

Population: 38,592,000 UK Population: 60,068,000 Capital: Buenos Aires; 13,349,000 Area: 2,780,400 km2 UK Area: 242,910 km2 Language: Spanish, English, Italian, German, French Religion: Roman Catholic Currency: Argentine peso Life Expectancy: 74

ARGENTINIAN SPORTING

STARS

Lionel Messi Messi is one of the most famous

football players in Argentina. Some say he is one of the best football players in the world he has been European Footballer of the Year, and FIFA World Player of the year

and has won an Olympic gold medal.

Diego Maradona

With Pelé, Maradona shares the FIFA Player of the Century award

for the twentieth century's greatest

football player.

Carlos Tevez Tevez is a longtime

member of the Argentina national

football team. Sergio Aguero Aguero is a world

famous striker from Argentina and has

played for the Argentine Olympic team as well as in

the World Cup.

ARGENTINIAN SPORTING

STARS

Juan Martin del Potro. A famous current tennis player -

ATP World Ranking No 9. Nickname is Delpo.

Guillermo Vilas Argentinian tennis superstar won four Grand Slam titles in the 1970s, including

back to back Wimbledon victories

in 1975 and 1976.

Gabriela Sabatini She won the US Open

tennis title in 1990 and was put into the International

Tennis Hall of Fame in 1996.

ARGENTINIAN FOOTBALL Argentina has one of the most successful national football teams in the

world.

The team has twice won the FIFA World Cup in 1978 and 1986. Argentina has won the Copa América 15 times, won the Confederations Cup in 1992 and the Olympic Football Tournament in 2004 and 2008.

Argentina has the world record for most international titles won by any

national team.

Football is the most popular sport in Argentina, The percentage of Argentines that follow an Argentine football club is about 90%

ARGENTINIAN HOCKEY – WOMEN’S

The Argentine Women’s Hockey team is currently ranked at the top of the FIH World Ranking

The team’s nickname is Las Leonas

At the past three Olympics, they have achieved these

medals: Sydney 2000 – 2nd Greece 2004 – 3rd

Beijing 2008 – 3rd

They have also won the Champions trophy the most times of any country – won in 2001, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2012

Luciana Aymar, the team’s captain, named "Player of the

Year" seven times!

ARGENTINIAN POLO

Some of the best polo in the world can be found in Argentina.

The main tournaments are the Hurlingham Open and the Argentine Open on the

picturesque polo fields in Palermo. Polo was included in the 1924 Olympic Games for the first time, with Argentina

winning the gold medal. When polo was included for the last time in

1936, Argentina also won the title, so are the reigning Olympic champions.

The open world championship was only held once in Argentina in Buenos Aires in 1949 with Argentina winning that as well.

ARGENTINIAN BASKETBALL The Argentinean national basketball team is the first team to win the world title in 1950.

The team also won the Olympic Tournament in 2004 and they also won the 1934, 1935,

1941, 1942, 1943, 1966, 1976, 1979, 1987, 2001, 2004 and 2008 South American

Championships. Argentina reached the first position in the FIBA men's ranking at the end of the 2008

Olympic Games Manu Ginóbili is an Argentine professional basketball player. He is the only player in

basketball history to win the Euroleague, an Olympic gold medal, and an NBA

Championship ring. In Argentina, he is considered the ‘Maradona’ of the basketball.

ARGENTINA AND THE OLYMPICS

Gold

17

Silver

23

Bronze

26

Main sports where Argentina have won medals in the Olympics: -Track and Field Gold 2, Silver 3 -Boxing Gold 7, Silver 7, Bronze 10 -Hockey Silver 1, Bronze 2 - Rowing Gold 1, Silver 1, Bronze 2 - Football Gold 2, Silver 2 - Sailing Silver 4, Bronze 4

MEDALS SINCE 1896 (start of the modern Olympics):