Explore The History

The student-athlete experience in college has always played an invaluable role in Team USA athlete development. Sports on campus and on the world’s stage provide a unique opportunity for athletes to learn, grow and compete as they shape their goals and dreams, in both sport and life.

The USOPC defines student-athlete as any individual on Team USA who is or was a member of a collegiate roster – varsity, club or other – and/or who competed in outside competition for a college or university. Student-athletes impacted by transfer circumstances are credited for attending each institution.

Learn more about Team USA’s collegiate footprint in Tokyo and Beijing by visiting the 2020 U.S. Olympic & Paralympic collegiate microsite and the 2022 U.S. Olympic & Paralympic collegiate microsite.

82% Nearly 82 percent of
American medalists at the 2020 Games
in Tokyo had ties to collegiate programs

50% More than 50% of the 2020 U.S. Paralympic Team competed collegiately

170 More than 170 U.S.
colleges / universities were
represented on Team USA in Tokyo

55% Nearly 55% of Team USA Paralympic medalists in Tokyo competed collegiately

U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Team Historic Databases

Please use the below interactive database to search the all-time list of U.S. Olympians and filter to identify Olympians who attended and/or competed in college. The collegiate ties noted within the database were validated by at least two sources, and we are continuing to verify our data. We welcome information on collegiate ties that is missing or needs updating - please email OlympiansMadeHere@usopc.org

Competitive collegiate pipelines are also very present in our U.S. Paralympic Team compositions. More than 50 percent of U.S. Paralympians in Tokyo and 25% of U.S. Paralympians in Beijing competed collegiately before achieving their Paralympic dreams. Please use the below links to learn more about Team USA’s current and historic collegiate footprint.

View the current national team collegiate affiliations database

^Indicates collegiate data was confirmed by less than two sources. *Indicates athlete was named to the 1980 Olympic Team; please note the U.S. did not go on to compete in the 1980 Games.

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