Australia and Olympic Basketball

It has been the Australian women who have produced the best results for Australia at the Olympic Games. Australia’s women’s team made its first appearance in Los Angeles 1984 and has qualified for every Olympics since, except for Barcelona 1992. The placings gained have been 5th in Los Angeles, 4th in Seoul. Bronze in Atlanta in 1996 was the first Olympic medal won by an Australian basketball team. In Sydney 2000 and Athens 2004 they improved their performances to gain silver, losing to the United States on both occasions.

Australia’s men first played in Melbourne 1956 and have qualified for every Olympics since with the exception of Rome 1960 and Mexico City 1968. The best finish for the Boomers has been fourths in Seoul (1988), Barcelona (1992) and Sydney (2000). Every one of those teams, except the first and in Athens 2004, had a member of the Gaze family associated with it. Lindsay was a player in 1964 and a coach from 1972 until 1984. Lindsay's son Andrew played in every team from 1984 until 2000. Lindsay was also a player in the 1960 and 1968 teams that were eliminated in the pre-Olympic qualifying tournaments. Andrew carried the Australian flag at the Opening Ceremony in Sydney. The Gaze family had a link with the Melbourne Olympics with Lindsay’s brother playing in the demonstration match of Australian Rules football and Lindsay himself being in the squad from which the players for that match were selected.

In Montreal, Ed Palubinskas, a shooting wizard, was the leading scorer in the Olympic basketball tournament, after being runner-up in Munich. Palubinskas was Australia’s first internationally rated basketballer.

Andrew Gaze is the second highest scorer in the history of the men's Olympic basketball competition with 789 points.

Olympic History

Basketball was a demonstration sport in St Louis 1904 and did not achieve full medal status until Berlin 1936. At each of the Olympics that were staged from Berlin until Mexico City 1968, the United States did not lose a match and consequently won seven straight gold medals. The USSR inflicted the first defeat on the United States in the final in Munich 1972. It was the sixty-third game of Olympic basketball that the United States had played. Because of the controversial nature of the finish to that game the members of the United States team refused to collect their silver medals. The women’s competition was introduced four years later in Montreal.

Professional players were permitted to play at the Barcelona Games in 1992 and as a result, the Dream Team from the United States made its all-conquering debut. The next two ‘Dream Teams’ won in Atlanta 1996 and Sydney 2000. In Athens however the American team missing some of their NBA stars were upstaged by Argentina who won the gold with the Americans only good enough for bronze.

Gold Medal Winners from the Past Three Olympic Games

Men's Tournament
Atlanta 1996 - USA
Sydney 2000 - USA
Athens 2004 - ARGENTINA

Women's Tournament
Atlanta 1996 - USA
Sydney 2000 - USA
Athens 2004 - USA