9 Countries Still Waiting for Their First Olympic Medal

Winning even one Olympic medal can change a country's sports history overnight. Paris 2024 was a perfect example. Several nations finally broke through after decades of trying, including Saint Lucia, Dominica, and Cabo Verde.

That also means lists like this can get outdated pretty quickly. Fiji, for example, won its first Olympic medal all the way back in 2016 and has since become a regular threat in rugby sevens. Cabo Verde joined the medal table for the first time in Paris when boxer David de Pina won bronze.

The nine countries below, however, are still waiting. As of October 2026, after both the Paris Summer Games and Milano Cortina Winter Games, none has won a medal at the senior Olympic Games. Youth Olympic medals are not included here.

Tucked between France and Spain in the Pyrenees, Andorra looks like a country that should eventually produce a Winter Olympic medalist. Skiing is part of everyday life there, and the country has been sending athletes to both the Summer and Winter Olympics since 1976.

That first medal still has not arrived. Alpine skier Joan Verdú came particularly close, finishing ninth in the men's giant slalom at Beijing 2022. He returned for Milano Cortina 2026 and finished 10th in the same event. Andorra has also competed in cycling, judo, shooting, swimming, athletics, and several other sports, but through the 2026 Winter Games its senior Olympic medal count remains zero.

Honduras made its Summer Olympic debut in 1968 and has competed at every Summer Games since 1984. Most of its Olympic athletes have come from soccer, swimming, athletics, judo, and other individual sports. The country even made one Winter Olympic appearance in 1992, when cross-country skier Jenny Palacios-Stillo represented Honduras at Albertville.

The closest Honduras has come to the podium was not especially long ago. Its men's soccer team reached the bronze-medal game at Rio 2016 and finished fourth after losing to Nigeria. Four Honduran athletes competed in Paris in 2024 across athletics, swimming, and wrestling, but the country's first senior Olympic medal remains elusive.

Aruba became a separate constituent country within the Kingdom of the Netherlands in 1986, and its Olympic committee was recognized by the IOC that same year. Before then, some Aruban athletes competed as part of the Netherlands Antilles. Aruba made its own Olympic debut at Seoul in 1988 and has appeared at every Summer Games since.

The island has sent competitors in swimming, sailing, judo, cycling, boxing, weightlifting, taekwondo, and other sports, but nobody representing Aruba has reached a senior Olympic podium. Judoka Jayme Mata produced one of the country's best results when he finished tied for ninth in the men's 66-kilogram division at Rio 2016.

Bolivia's Olympic history stretches much farther back than most countries on this list. It first appeared at the Summer Olympics in 1936 and has competed regularly since the 1960s. Bolivia has also made several trips to the Winter Games, beginning in 1956 and most recently at Milano Cortina 2026.

Yet the senior Olympic medal case is still empty. Bolivia has sent athletes in everything from athletics and swimming to cycling, shooting, judo, weightlifting, and skiing. There is one wrinkle worth noting: Bolivia's under-15 soccer team won gold at the inaugural Youth Olympic Games in 2010. It was a major international achievement, but Youth Olympic medals are separate from the senior Olympic Games and do not count toward the country's Olympic medal total.

Lesotho made its Olympic debut in 1972 and has appeared at every Summer Games since then except Montreal 1976, which it skipped as part of the African boycott. The small country completely surrounded by South Africa has traditionally sent athletes in sports such as track and field, boxing, and taekwondo.

Paris 2024 produced one of Lesotho's strongest Olympic performances yet. Tebello Ramakongoana finished seventh in the men's marathon in a national-record 2:07:58. That matched the kind of top-10 finish Lesotho had previously achieved in taekwondo, but it was still just outside medal territory. Lesotho has never competed at the Winter Olympics and is still looking for its first senior Olympic medal.

Antigua and Barbuda first competed at the Summer Olympics in 1976 and has returned for every edition except the boycotted Moscow Games in 1980. Track and field has produced many of the country's strongest Olympic performances, although Antigua and Barbuda has also competed in swimming, sailing, cycling, boxing, and canoe sprint.

Sprinters have repeatedly pushed the country within sight of the final rounds. Brendan Christian reached the Olympic 200-meter semifinals in both 2008 and 2012, while Daniel Bailey and Cejhae Greene have reached 100-meter semifinals. Antigua and Barbuda sent five athletes to Paris 2024 in athletics, swimming, and sailing, but none reached the podium. The country has never competed at a Winter Olympics.

El Salvador sent its first full athletic delegation to the Olympics at Mexico City in 1968, when 60 athletes competed. The country returned in 1972, missed the 1976 and 1980 Games, and has participated at every Summer Olympics since 1984. It has never competed at the Winter Games.

Its best senior Olympic result did not come in soccer, swimming, or track. Cyclist Maureen Kaila finished fifth in the women's points race at Atlanta 1996, still the country's highest Olympic placement. El Salvador sent eight athletes to Paris 2024 across seven sports, including badminton, archery, swimming, sailing, and shooting, but its first Olympic medal is still waiting.

Cambodia's Olympic history has been anything but continuous. The country first appeared at the special equestrian events held in Stockholm during the 1956 Olympics, then competed in 1964 and 1972. Decades of war and political upheaval interrupted that history before Cambodia returned to the Summer Games in 1996. It has participated in every Summer Olympics since.

Combat sports have produced some of Cambodia's more notable Olympic performances. At Tokyo 1964, boxers Khiru Soeun and Touch Nol each won a bout and finished tied for ninth in their weight classes. Cambodia has since competed in sports including athletics, swimming, judo, taekwondo, and gymnastics, but no Cambodian athlete has won a senior Olympic medal. The country has also never competed at a Winter Olympics.

Laos made its Olympic debut at Moscow in 1980. After sitting out the 1984 Games, it returned in 1988 and has competed at every Summer Olympics since. The country's athletes have appeared in track and field, swimming, boxing, shooting, cycling, judo, archery, and rhythmic gymnastics.

The country's best senior Olympic result dates all the way back to its debut. Race walker Thipsamay Chanthaphone finished 25th in the men's 20-kilometer walk in 1980. Four athletes represented Laos at Paris 2024, but the medal drought continued. Laos has never competed at the Winter Olympics, so Los Angeles 2028 will provide the next opportunity to finally reach the podium.

There is no reason to assume any country on this list will stay here forever. Saint Lucia entered Paris 2024 having never won a senior Olympic medal. Then Julien Alfred needed about 10.7 seconds to change the country's Olympic history.

Alfred won the women's 100 meters in a national-record 10.72 seconds, giving Saint Lucia its first Olympic medal and making that first medal a gold. Three days later, she added silver in the 200 meters. Cabo Verde also earned its first Olympic medal in Paris through boxer David de Pina. For the nine countries still waiting, Los Angeles 2028 could produce the next name to disappear from this list.

The next Summer Olympics will run from July 14 through July 30, 2028, with Los Angeles hosting the Games for the third time after 1932 and 1984. Most events will take place across Southern California, although softball and canoe slalom will be held in Oklahoma City. LA28 will also add some fresh wrinkles to the program. Baseball and softball return, cricket and lacrosse make comebacks, and flag football and squash will make their Olympic debuts.

It is far too early to predict an exact medal table, but the United States looks like the obvious early favorite to win the most medals overall. Team USA led Paris 2024 with 126 medals and tied China with 40 golds, and competing at home should only help. The addition of flag football, lacrosse, baseball, and softball could create even more American medal opportunities. China should once again be the biggest threat for the gold-medal lead, while Australia, Great Britain, Japan, and France are among the countries likely to remain near the top of the overall standings.

The next Winter Olympics will take place in France from Feb. 1 through Feb. 17, 2030. Rather than centering the Games around one city, French Alps 2030 will spread events across several Alpine regions, with competition clusters planned in the Aravis mountains, the Tarentaise Valley, the Briançonnais region, and the Lyon metropolitan area. France previously hosted the Winter Olympics in Chamonix in 1924, Grenoble in 1968, and Albertville in 1992.

If recent results are any guide, Norway will enter 2030 as the country to beat. Norway dominated Milano Cortina 2026 with 41 medals, including 18 golds, while the United States finished with 33 medals and 12 golds. France should also be dangerous on home snow after winning 23 medals in 2026, including eight golds. Germany, the Netherlands, Sweden, Switzerland, Japan, and Canada should remain in the conversation as well. Four years is an eternity in elite sports, but right now Norway has earned the title of early favorite.