States With The Most Olympic Athletes: Colorado Tops The List

Fact Checked by Thomas Leary

Given the state’s connection to the U.S. Olympic Committee (headquartered in Colorado Springs) and the Centennial State’s can-do mentality when it comes to being outdoors, it’s likely of little surprise to learn that Colorado is a top state at producing Olympic athletes.  

It may come as a surprise to learn though that Colorado has the most Olympians per capita of any state in America, with 29 residents of the Rocky Mountain State taking part in either the Olympics or Paralympics in Paris.  

Consider the fact that Colorado has 5,838,738 residents (per the 2022 Census projection) and you get that per capita figure, which puts the state atop the national standings when it comes the how many athletes will take part in this summer’s festivities in France’s capital city.  

At BetColorado.com, we’re getting ready to cheer on Team USA at the Paris Summer Olympics - and across Colorado betting apps. To celebrate the upcoming events, we wanted to know which states produced the most Olympic athletes per capita. Referencing TeamUSA.com, we calculated the per capita number of qualified USA athletes for each state, ranking states based on high to low Olympians per capita.  

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States With The Most Paris Olympians

Rank 

State 

Olympians per Capita 

 1 

Colorado 

.503 

 2 

Vermont 

.467 

 3 

Maryland 

.372 

 4 

Hawaii 

.344 

 5 

California 

.336 

 6 

Indiana 

.324 

 7 

Minnesota 

.315 

 T8 

Wisconsin 

.305 

 T8 

Connecticut 

.305 

 10 

Massachusetts 

.285 

 11 

Illinois 

.281 

 12 

Utah 

.275 

 13 

Alaska 

.273 

 14 

Pennsylvania 

.269 

 15 

Nevada 

.258 

MORE: Best Colorado sportsbook promos.

Colorado Leads Nation in Olympic Athletes

Overall, Colorado’s per capita figure of .503 athletes at the Summer Games ranks No. 1 nationally, ahead of Vermont (.467), Maryland (.372), Hawaii (.344) and California (.336).  

Among the Coloradans that will compete for Team USA in Paris are track stars Valarie Allman, Anna Hall, Elise Cranny and Valerie Constien, bicyclists Chloe Dygert, Riley Amos, Olivia Cummins, Christopher Blevins and Savilia Blunk, USWNT members Janine Beckie and Lindsey Horan and golfer Wyndham Clark — to name a few.  

Those athletes and more make up the backbone of Team USA’s Paris contingent, illustrating why Colorado is the top state at this summer’s Games in Paris and just how active the state’s populace is as a whole. 

Also of interest: Colorado Amongst States Most Into Outdoor Activities.

USA Today photo by Christopher Creveling.

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Author

Christopher Boan

Christopher Boan has been covering sports and sports betting for more than seven years, including stops at ArizonaSports.com, the Tucson Weekly and the Green Valley News.

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