Latvia’s Greatest Olympic Achievements

Athletes representing Latvia have won 33 Olympic medals — 21 in Summer and 12 in Winter Games. For a small country that has competed in just 26 Olympics, this represents an exceptional achievement.

Latvia’s Olympic story began more than a century ago in Chamonix. And throughout these years, multiple turmoils and historic turning points, Latvian athletes have remained among the nation’s most inspirational figures, bringing pride and unity to society. So let’s look back at some of Latvia’s most vivid Olympic achievements.

First Olympic Medal for a Latvian
Latvians first appeared at the Olympic Games in the early 20th century, competing as part of the Russian Empire. The first Olympic medal won by a Latvian came in 1912, when Haralds Blaus, a sportsman from Riga, earned a bronze medal in trap shooting at the Stockholm Games.

Latvians had to wait another 20 years, surviving World War I and forming an independent state, before they saw another Olympic medal, this time under the Latvian flag. Jānis Daliņš won silver in the 50 km race walk at the 1932 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles.

This achievement made him a national hero and a local sporting legend. To this day, many remember the song “Kaut man Daliņa kājas būtu” (“Oh, if only I had Daliņš’ legs”), while a stadium and a street in his hometown of Valmiera bear his name.

A World Record Holder and Olympic Legend

During the Soviet era, Latvian athletes competed in international sporting events representing the USSR. One of the most outstanding Latvian sportsmen of that period was Jānis Lūsis, widely regarded as an icon of Latvian sport and one of the greatest javelin throwers of all time.

He won Olympic gold in 1968, alongside silver and bronze medals from other Games — a feat rarely achieved by any javelin thrower. To this day, Lūsis remains the only Latvian to have won all three types of Olympic medals and to be inducted into the World Athletics Hall of Fame.

Lūsis also set the world record twice using the pre-1986 javelin design. His achievements inspired new generations of Latvian javelin throwers who went on to win Olympic medals for Latvia decades later.

Many Firsts as an Independent Nation
The beginning of the 21st century brought Latvia into the Olympic spotlight. At the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, gymnast Igors Vihrovs made history by winning Latvia’s first Olympic gold medal as an independent state in the men’s floor exercise.

Four years later, another milestone followed. Jeļena Rubļevska won silver in the modern pentathlon at the Athens Olympics, becoming the first woman representing Latvia to win an Olympic medal and expanding the country’s presence across Olympic disciplines. Fast forward to 2026, Elīna Ieva Bota achieved another historic result, becoming the first Latvian woman to win an individual Winter Olympic medal with a second-place finish in luge.

Overall, sliding sports have produced the majority of Latvia’s Winter Olympic success. Luger Mārtiņš Rubenis secured Latvia’s first Winter Olympic medal with bronze at the 2006 Turin Games, while Oskars Melbārdis and his team later won Latvia’s first and so far only Winter Olympic gold in the four-man bobsleigh event in 2014.

Latvia has also excelled in newly introduced Olympic sports. Māris Štrombergs became the first Olympic BMX champion in 2008 and successfully defended his title in 2012, establishing Latvia as a global leader in the discipline. Another historic moment came at the Tokyo 2020 Games, when the Latvian men’s team won the inaugural Olympic gold medal in 3×3 basketball, showcasing the country’s strong basketball tradition in a new format.

More than a century of Olympic achievement stands behind Team Latvia with many more successes still ahead.