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
Carlos Tevez
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.
Tevez is a longtime member of the Argentina national football team.
Diego Maradona With PelĂŠ, Maradona shares the FIFA Player of the Century award for the twentieth century's greatest football player.
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
Gabriela Sabatini
She won the US Open tennis title in 1990 and was put into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 1996.
Guillermo Vilas
Argentinian tennis superstar won four Grand Slam titles in the 1970s, including back to back Wimbledon victories in 1975 and 1976. Juan Martin del Potro. A famous current tennis player ATP World Ranking No 9. Nickname is Delpo.
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 AmĂŠrica 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 MEDALS SINCE 1896 (start of the modern Olympics):
Gold
17
Main sports where Argentina have won medals in the Olympics: -Track and Field Gold 2, Silver 3 -Boxing Gold 7, Silver 7, Bronze 10
Silver Bronze
23 26
-Hockey Silver 1, Bronze 2 - Rowing Gold 1, Silver 1, Bronze 2 - Football Gold 2, Silver 2
- Sailing Silver 4, Bronze 4