Basketball at the Olympics

 

Basketball at the Olympics
Image: olympic.org

Dr. William David Hill earned his doctor of dental surgery from the University of Maryland School of Dentistry in 1969 and has since built a career in real estate development with a focus on healthcare facilities and hotels. A lettered athlete at Maryland’s Easton High School prior to his post-secondary studies, Dr. William David Hill was the captain of the school’s basketball team.

Invented by Canadian James Naismith in 1891, basketball made its official Olympic debut in 1936 and the sport has since been dominated by the United States. The Americans beat Canada in the first gold medal game and won the next six consecutive gold medals before being defeated by the Soviet Union in 1972. Since then, however, US teams have won eight of the last 11 gold medals. The most decorated male basketball Olympian is Carmelo Anthony, who has participated in the last four Olympics for the United States, winning three gold medals and one bronze.

Women’s basketball was not added to the official Olympic program until the 1976 Montreal Games. The American women finished second behind the Soviet Union that year and failed to medal four years later in Moscow, but have since won eight of the last nine gold medals. Teresa Edwards leads all American women with four gold medals and one bronze.