List of IOC country codes

The flag of the international Olympic movement
The flag of the international Paralympic movement

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) uses three-letter abbreviation country codes[1] to refer to each group of athletes that participate in the Olympic Games. Each code usually identifies a National Olympic Committee (NOC), but there are several codes that have been used for other instances in past Games, such as teams composed of athletes from multiple nations, or groups of athletes not formally representing any nation.

Several of the IOC codes are different from the standard ISO 3166-1 alpha-3 codes. Other sporting organisations, such as FIFA, use similar country codes to refer to their respective teams, but with some differences. Still others, such as the Commonwealth Games Federation or Association of Tennis Professionals, use the IOC list verbatim.

History

The 1956 Winter Olympics and 1960 Summer Olympics were the first Games to feature Initials of Nations to refer to each NOC in the published official reports.[2] However, the codes used at the next few Games were often based on the host nation's language (e.g., GIA for Japan at the 1956 Winter Olympics and 1960 Summer Olympics, both held in Italy, from Italian Giappone) or based on the French name for the nation (e.g., COR for Korea, from Corée). By the 1972 Winter Olympics, most codes were standardized on the current usage, but several have changed in recent years. Additionally, the dissolution of the Soviet Union, division and unification of Germany, breakup of Yugoslavia, dissolution of Czechoslovakia, and several other instances of geographical renaming have all resulted in code changes.

In addition to this list of over 200 NOCs, the participation of National Paralympic Committees (NPCs) at the Paralympic Games requires standardised IOC codes, such as Macau and the Faroe Islands, coded MAC and FRO respectively.[3][4]

Current NOCs

There are 206 current NOCs (National Olympic Committees) within the Olympic Movement. The following tables show the currently used code for each NOC and any different codes used in past Games, per the official reports from those Games. Some of the past code usage is further explained in the following sections. Codes used specifically for a Summer Games only or a Winter Games only, within the same year, are indicated by "S" and "W" respectively.

Code Link Nation (NOC) Other codes used
AFG Afghanistan
ALB Albania
ALG Algeria AGR (1964), AGL (1968 S)
AND Andorra
ANG Angola
ANT Antigua and Barbuda
ARG Argentina
ARM Armenia
ARU Aruba
ASA American Samoa
AUS Australia
AUT Austria
AZE Azerbaijan
BAH Bahamas
BAN Bangladesh
BAR Barbados BAD (1964)
BDI Burundi
BEL Belgium
BEN Benin DAY (1964), DAH (1968–1976)
BER Bermuda
BHU Bhutan
BIH Bosnia and Herzegovina BSH (1992 S)
BIZ Belize HBR (1968–1972)
BLR Belarus
BOL Bolivia
BOT Botswana
BRA Brazil
BRN Bahrain
BRU Brunei
BUL Bulgaria
BUR Burkina Faso VOL (1972–1984)
CAF Central African Republic AFC (1968)
CAM Cambodia CAB (1964), KHM (1972–1976)
CAN Canada
CAY Cayman Islands
CGO Congo
CHA Chad CHD (1964)
CHI Chile CIL (1956 W, 1960 S)
CHN China
CIV Ivory Coast IVC (1964), CML (1968)
CMR Cameroon
COD DR Congo COK (1968), ZAI (1972–1996)
COK Cook Islands
COL Colombia
COM Comoros
CPV Cape Verde
CRC Costa Rica COS (1964)
CRO Croatia
CUB Cuba
CYP Cyprus
CZE Czech Republic TCH (1984)
DEN Denmark DAN (1960 S, 1968 W), DIN (1968 S)
DJI Djibouti
DMA Dominica
DOM Dominican Republic
ECU Ecuador
EGY Egypt RAU (1960, 1968), UAR (1964)
ERI Eritrea
ESA El Salvador SAL (1964–1976)
ESP Spain SPA (1956–1964, 1968 W)
EST Estonia
ETH Ethiopia ETI (1960, 1968)
FIJ Fiji FIG (1960)
FIN Finland
FRA France
FSM Federated States of Micronesia
GAB Gabon
GAM The Gambia
GBR Great Britain GRB (1956 W–1960), GBI (1964)
GBS Guinea-Bissau
GEO Georgia
GEQ Equatorial Guinea
GER Germany ALL (1968 W), ALE (1968 S)
GHA Ghana
GRE Greece
GRN Grenada
GUA Guatemala GUT (1964)
GUI Guinea
GUM Guam
GUY Guyana GUA (1960), GUI (1964)
HAI Haiti
HKG Hong Kong HOK (1960–1968)
HON Honduras
HUN Hungary UNG (1956 W, 1960 S)
INA Indonesia INS (1960)
IND India
IRI Iran IRN (1956–1988), IRA (1968 W)
IRL Ireland
IRQ Iraq IRK (1960, 1968)
ISL Iceland ICE (1960 W, 1964 S)
ISR Israel ISL
ISV Virgin Islands
ITA Italy
IVB British Virgin Islands
JAM Jamaica
JOR Jordan
JPN Japan GIA (1956 W, 1960 S), JAP (1960 W)
KAZ Kazakhstan
KEN Kenya
KGZ Kyrgyzstan
KIR Kiribati
KOR South Korea COR (1956 W, 1960 S, 1968 S, 1972 S)
KOS Kosovo
KSA Saudi Arabia ARS (1968–1976), SAU (1980–1984)
KUW Kuwait
LAO Laos
LAT Latvia
LBA Libya LYA (1964), LBY (1968 W)
LBR Liberia
LCA Saint Lucia
LES Lesotho
LIB Lebanon LEB (1960 W, 1964 S)
LIE Liechtenstein LIC (1956 W, 1964 S, 1968 W)
LTU Lithuania LIT (1992 W)
LUX Luxembourg
MAD Madagascar MAG (1964)
MAR Morocco MRC (1964)
MAS Malaysia MAL (1964–1988)
MAW Malawi
MDA Moldova MLD (1994)
MDV Maldives
MEX Mexico
MGL Mongolia MON (1968 W)
MHL Marshall Islands
MKD Macedonia
MLI Mali
MLT Malta MAT (1960–1964)
MNE Montenegro
MON Monaco
MOZ Mozambique
MRI Mauritius
MTN Mauritania
MYA Myanmar BIR (1960, 1968–1988), BUR (1964)
NAM Namibia
NCA Nicaragua NCG (1964), NIC (1968)
NED Netherlands OLA (1956 W), NET (1960 W), PBA (1960 S), NLD (1964 S), HOL (1968–1988)
NEP Nepal
NGR Nigeria NIG (1960 S), NGA (1964)
NIG Niger NGR (1964)
NOR Norway
NRU Nauru
NZL New Zealand NZE (1960, 1968 W)
OMA Oman
PAK Pakistan
PAN Panama
PAR Paraguay
PER Peru
PHI Philippines FIL (1960, 1968)
PLE Palestine
PLW Palau
PNG Papua New Guinea NGY (1976–1980), NGU (1984–1988)
POL Poland
POR Portugal
PRK North Korea NKO (1964 S, 1968 W), CDN (1968)
PUR Puerto Rico PRI (1960), PRO (1968)
QAT Qatar
ROU Romania ROM (1956–1960, 1972–2006), RUM (1964–1968)
RSA South Africa SAF (1960–1972)
RUS Russia
RWA Rwanda
SAM Samoa
SEN Senegal SGL (1964)
SEY Seychelles
SIN Singapore
SKN Saint Kitts and Nevis
SLE Sierra Leone SLA (1968)
SLO Slovenia
SMR San Marino SMA (1960–1964)
SOL Solomon Islands
SOM Somalia
SRB Serbia
SRI Sri Lanka CEY (1960-1964, 1972), CEI (1968 S)
SSD South Sudan
STP São Tomé and Príncipe
SUD Sudan
SUI Switzerland SVI (1956 W, 1960 S), SWI (1960 W, 1964 S)
SUR Suriname
SVK Slovakia
SWE Sweden SVE (1956 W, 1960 S), SUE (1968 S)
SWZ Swaziland
SYR Syria RAU (1960), SIR (1968)
TAN Tanzania
TGA Tonga TON (1984)
THA Thailand
TJK Tajikistan
TKM Turkmenistan
TLS Timor-Leste IOA (Individual Olympic Athletes, 2000)
TOG Togo
TPE Chinese Taipei[5] RCF (1960), TWN (1964–1968), ROC (1972–1976)
TTO Trinidad and Tobago TRT (1964–1968) TRI (1972–2012)
TUN Tunisia
TUR Turkey
TUV Tuvalu
UAE United Arab Emirates
UGA Uganda
UKR Ukraine
URU Uruguay URG (1968)
USA United States SUA (1960 S), EUA (1968 S)
UZB Uzbekistan
VAN Vanuatu
VEN Venezuela
VIE Vietnam VET (1964), VNM (1968–1976)
VIN Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
YEM Yemen
ZAM Zambia NRH (1964)
ZIM Zimbabwe RHO (1960–1972)

Historic NOCs and teams

Codes still in use

Fourteen historical NOCs or teams have codes that are still used in the IOC results database[6] to refer to past medal winners from these teams.

Code Nation/Team Other codes used
AHO Netherlands Antilles
ANZ Australasia
BOH Bohemia
BWI British West Indies ANT (1960, 1968), WID (1964)
EUA Germany United Team of Germany GER (1956–1964)
EUN International Olympic Committee Unified Team
FRG West Germany ALL (1968 W), ALE (1968 S), GER (1972–1976)
GDR East Germany ADE (1968)
RU1 Russian Empire
SCG Serbia and Montenegro YUG (1996 S-2002 W)
TCH Czechoslovakia CSL (1956 W), CZE (1960 W), CSV (1960 S), CZS (1964 S), CHE (1968 S)
URS Soviet Union SOV (1968 W)
YUG Yugoslavia JUG (1956–1960, 1968 W), YUS (1964 S)
ZZX International Olympic Committee Mixed teams

Obsolete codes

Code Nation (NOC) Years Notes
BIR Burma 1948–1988 Now  Myanmar (MYA)
CEY Ceylon 1948–1972 Now  Sri Lanka (SRI)
DAH Dahomey 1964–1976 Now  Benin (BEN)
GUI  British Guiana 1948–1964 Now  Guyana (GUY)
HBR British Honduras 1968–1972 Now  Belize (BIZ)
KHM Khmer Republic 1972–1976 Now  Cambodia (CAM)
MAL Malaya 1956–1960 Competed independently prior to the formation of Malaysia in 1963.
Now  Malaysia (MAS)
NBO North Borneo 1956
NRH Northern Rhodesia 1964 Now  Zambia (ZAM)
RAU  United Arab Republic 1960 Now  Egypt (EGY)
and  Syria (SYR)
RHO Rhodesia 1960–1972 Now  Zimbabwe (ZIM)
ROC Republic of China 1932–1976 Now competing under the name ' Chinese Taipei (TPE)'
SAA Saar 1952 Competed independently prior to rejoining  West Germany (FRG) in 1957.
UAR United Arab Republic 1964–1968 Now  Egypt (EGY)
VOL Upper Volta 1972–1984 Now  Burkina Faso (BUR)
YAR North Yemen 1984–1988 Competed independently prior to Yemeni unification in 1990.
Now  Yemen (YEM)
YMD South Yemen 1988
ZAI Zaire 1972–1996 Now  DR Congo (COD)
——  Gold Coast 1952 Now  Ghana (GHA)

Two other significant code changes have occurred, both because of a change in the nation's designation as used by the IOC:

Special codes

See also

References

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