The 1996 Olympics City was ATLANTA, Georgia. ATLANTA is the capital and most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the cultural and economic center of the ATLANTA metropolitan area, home to 5.9 million people and the ninth-largest metropolitan area in the United States. The 1996 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXVI Olympiad, were held in ATLANTA from July 19 to August 4, 1996. It was the first time that the Summer Olympic Games were held in a Southern Hemisphere city.