LONDON CALLING – Countdown to the 2012 Olympics: 41

41 - 41 NOCs have won gold medals in both Shooting & Boxing. Only Athletics has more NOCs winning gold (63). Click ‘Read More’ to see the complete countdown from 100 until today.

42 days to go  - To give the royal family a better view on the race, the course of the 1908 marathon became exactly 42.195km, the standard ever since. 

43 days to go - There were 43 medal events at the first modern Olympic Games in Athens in 1896. There will be 302 at London 2012. 

44 - Great Britain have scored a total of 44 Olympic goals in women’s hockey.

45 - Number of fencing gold medals won by Italy in Olympic history, making it their most successful Olympic discipline.

46 - Naim Suleymanoglu (TUR) set 46 WRs and won 3 gold medals in weightlifting earning him the nickname ‘The Pocket Hercules’. 

47 - Medals won by GBR at Beijing 2008, their 2nd most ever but 90 short of their haul of 137 at London 1908. 

48 - Age of Tebbs Johnson (GBR) when he won bronze at the ‘48 London Olympic Games in the 50km Walk. 

49 - Seconds it took (49.11) for Cathy Freeman to win Australia’s most famous Olympic gold - 400m at Sydney 2000. 

50 - One country has won 50+ golds at a single Games 7 times, most recently China in 2008 (51). 

51 - Number of Olympic gold medals won by Bulgaria in their history, ranking them 23rd among all nations.

52 - Exact time (52.00) it took for Sweden’s Lars Frölander to win the Men’s 100m Butterfly at Sydney 2000.

53 - Number of athletes who have won at least 5 summer Olympic gold medals, led by Michael Phelps’ 14.

54 - Number of votes for London in the 4th and final round of the host city election in 2005, 4 votes more than Paris.

55 - Record number of gold medals won by an NOC at a single Olympic Games that they did NOT host - Soviet Union at Seoul 1988.

56 - Australia have won 56 Olympic gold medals in swimming, making it their best sport. Next is athletics with 19.

57 - Emil Zatopek (TCH) ran 57 km, 195m combined to win 3 gold medals in 1952 in the 5000m, 10000m and Marathon. 

58 - Great Britain won 58 gold medals combined at the two previous London Olympic Games in 1908 and 1948. 

59 - France have won 59 Olympic medals in Track Cycling, more than any other country.

60 - There are 60 different fencers to have won at least 1 Gold 1 Silver, 1 Bronze at the Olympic Games.

61 - The 61st and final part of the latest Olympic Charter (July 2011, www.olympic.org) is about Dispute Resolution.

62 - Dawn Fraser (AUS) needed 62 seconds (1:02) to win her first of a record 3 golds in W 100m Freestyle.

63 - The URS ended USA’s 63-match-unbeaten streak in Olympic basketball with a controversial win in the 1972 final.

64 - The Olympic Games return to London after 64 years since the city last held the event in 1948.

65 - With a height of 1.65m Laszlo Papp (HUN) was first to win Boxing gold at 3 Olympics in a row (1948, 52, 56).

66 - Netherlands scored 66 points in the 1996 Men’s Volleyball Final thriller vs Italy to win gold: 15-12, 9-15, 16-14, 9-15, 17-15.

67 - Hiroshi Hoketsu (JPN - Dressage) was the oldest competitor in Beijing at the age of 67. He has also qualified for London 2012.

68 - The oldest standing Olympic Record in any of the current sports is Bob Beamon’s 8.90m long jump in Mexico 1968.

69 - Korea are favourites to win their 69th Olympic Gold in one of the first medal events London 2012, Archery Men’s Team.

70 - Nadia Comaneci (ROU) scored 7 perfect 10s at the 1976 Olympics, including the first ever at the uneven bar discipline.

71 - Hungary has won 71 Olympic canoe-sprint medals, the only current instance of any NOC winning 70-79 medals in any sport.

72 - Age of the oldest Olympic medallist: Oscar Swahn (SWE), who won silver in the 100m Running Deer Double Shoot in 1920.

73 - Number of Olympic gold medals amassed by the Soviet Union in all Gymnastics disciplines. The next most is just 29 (USA).

74 - In men’s 74kg freestyle wrestling, Bouvaisa Saitiev (RUS) won 3 Olympic golds (1996, 2004-08). No one else has more than 1.

75 - Record number of gold medals won at a single non-boycotted Olympic Games, by the USA in 1904 in St. Louis.

76 - Number of men who finished the 2008 Olympic Marathon. All 76 had times that would have won at the first four modern Olympic Marathons.

77 - France’s record Olympic medal total in both forms of Cycling Track & Road combined. Their 35 track and road golds are also a record.

78 - In women’s 78kg judo at the #Olympic Games, 4 of the 5 gold medals have been won by Asian countries - China 2, Japan, Korea

79 -79 men have won gold in rugby union which returns at Rio 2016. USA won last edition in 1924.

80 - Number of NOCs to have won at least 2 Olympic gold medals in their history.

81 - The 81kg event in Judo has never been won more than once by the same athlete in all 10 editions.

82 - There will be 82 athletes at London 2012 trying to win medals in 4 Canoe-Slalom events.

83 - Rafael Nadal (ESP) won a total of 83 games en route to his Olympic gold medal in Beijing in 2008.

84 - The 84 matches in Men’s+Women’s handball in Beijing produced record 4545 goals (54.1 avg/match).

85 - Number of Olympic records broken at the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

86 - A record 86 NOCs won at least 1 medal in Beijing as opposed to a record few 11 NOCs in 1904.

87 - USA have won 87 golds in women’s swimming events, the most by any NOC in women’s events in any sport.

88 - Double 8: Michael Phelps (USA) won 8 medals in 2004 before embarking on his record 8 GOLDS in Beijing.

89 - GER won 89 medals at the Berlin Games in 1936, more than double the medals they won in Beijing (41).

90 - Amunike scored a 90th minute winner to give Nigeria the first football gold for Africa in the 1996 final vs Argentina (3-2).

91 - Number of all-time Olympic medals won by Brazil, including 20 gold. Sailing is their best sport with 6 golds & 16 medals.

92 - Japan have won 92 Olympic medals in Artistic Gymnastics, two behind the USA for most among current NOCs (USSR have 182).

93 - Number of countries who participated in the first Olympic Games held in Asia, Tokyo 1964, a record at the time.

94 - The USA have won exactly 94 medals at three different Olympic Games 1972, 1976 & 2000. No other country has ever done it. #countdown

95 - Brazil have scored a record 95 goals in the men’s Olympic Games football tournament, though they have never won the gold.

96 - Success of the Games: 176 athletes competed in 1896 to more than 10,000 in 1996.

97 - 97 years ago, in 1915, the International Olympic Committee headquarters moved to Lausanne, Switzerland, where it is still located. 

98 - There will be 98 male and 98 female participants in Artistic Gymnastics at the 2012 Olympic Games.

99 - Carl Lewis was the first man to win the Olympic 100m title in under 10 seconds at sea level, finishing in 9.99 seconds at Los Angeles 1984.

100 - Total medals won by China at Beijing 2008, the most ever by an Asian country at one Olympic Games.