Big Ten, SEC, ACC = Dominant Leagues
With Most Athletes At Summer Olympics
By David Glenn
North Carolina Sports Network
(Last updated July 28, 2024)
More than 1,000 National Collegiate Athletic Association athletes, representing more than 250 universities and more than 100 countries, are participating in the 2024 Summer Olympics in France, according to an NCAA Olympics Dashboard tracking current, former and incoming athletes at the organization’s member schools.
This year’s Summer Olympic Games, based mainly in Paris, technically began Wednesday, with a handful of events that required an early start for scheduling purposes. The quadrennial extravaganza launched in earnest Friday, with an elaborate Opening Ceremony that was expected to attract approximately 100,000 ticketed spectators, in additional to hundreds of thousands of non-paying observers along a lengthy parade route in Paris.
More than 50 NCAA leagues (see list of leaders below) are represented in France, with the Big Ten Conference (312 athletes), Southeastern Conference (267) and Atlantic Coast Conference (257) leading the way. The only other collegiate league with more than 100 athletes in Paris is the Big 12 (135).
“In the Summer Olympics, the best athletes from around the world come together every four years to compete at the highest level. It’s truly remarkable that nearly 300 athletes, coaches and alumni from our 18 member institutions represent over 50 countries and six continents,” ACC commissioner Jim Phillips said. “We extend our heartfelt best wishes to all our ACC family members competing in Paris this year.”
According to the NCAA, the exact numbers on its Olympics Dashboard may continue to change slightly in the coming days, as the organization continues to track late changes and coordinate with its member schools for accuracy purposes.
Two brand-new ACC members, Stanford (54 athletes) and California (41), rank among the four biggest NCAA-based producers of participants at this year’s Summer Olympics. Among ACC schools, Florida State (27), Virginia (20), Duke (19), North Carolina (18), Notre Dame (16), NC State (13), Louisville (12), Miami (11) and Virginia Tech (10) also are represented by 10 or more athletes in France.
More than 200 countries are competing at the 2024 Summer Olympics, and more than half of those have at least one NCAA athlete on their roster. The 12 nations bolstered by the most current, former and incoming NCAA athletes are the United States (385), Canada (131), Australia (44), Nigeria (38), Germany (34), Jamaica (34), Puerto Rico (32), Spain (30), Great Britain (29), New Zealand (23), France (19) and the Netherlands (16).
Among the 32 sports being contested in France, 14 include 10 or more athletes who are affiliated with NCAA universities: track and field (406), swimming (223), basketball (152), golf (65), soccer (65), water polo (60), rowing (49), volleyball (36), fencing (34), diving (27), tennis (22), gymnastics (21), wrestling (21) and field hockey (19).
In the United States, the Summer Olympic Games are being televised by NBC, the USA Network, CNBC, E!, The Golf Channel, Telemundo (Spanish language) and Universo (Spanish language). Full-scale streaming coverage is available with a Peacock Premium subscription, and other live streaming coverage, highlights and commentary are available at NBCOlympics.com and NBC.com and via the NBC Olympics and NBC apps.
The event’s Closing Ceremony will take place Aug. 11.
2024 Summer Olympics Athletes
(Top 10 NCAA Conferences)
1. Big Ten — 312
2. SEC — 267
3. ACC – 257
4. Big 12 — 135
5. Ivy League — 65
6. Big East — 25
7. Big West — 24
8. Mountain West — 21
8. West Coast — 21
10. American — 18
(Top NCAA Universities)
1. Southern Cal, Big Ten — 58
2. Stanford, ACC — 54
3. California, ACC — 41
3. Michigan, Big Ten — 41
5. Florida, SEC — 39
6. UCLA, Big Ten — 34
7. LSU, SEC — 33
7. Tennessee, SEC — 33
9. Texas, SEC — 32
10. Arkansas, SEC — 27
10. Florida State, ACC — 27
10. Penn State, Big Ten — 27
(Other ACC/NC Universities)
Virginia — 20
Duke — 19
North Carolina — 18
Notre Dame — 16
NC State — 13
Louisville — 12
Miami — 11
Virginia Tech — 10
Clemson, ACC — 6
Wake Forest, ACC — 6
Pittsburgh, ACC — 5
Syracuse, ACC — 5
Georgia Tech, ACC — 4
Queens, Atlantic Sun — 4
Boston College, ACC — 2
North Carolina A&T, CAA — 2
Davidson, Atlantic-10 — 1
Johnson C Smith, CIAA — 1
Livingstone, CIAA — 1
UNC Wilmington, CAA — 1
