- Page
- / 3
The Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, the 23rd Games, were boycotted by 15 Communist countries. Nonetheless, 6,829 athletes took part in 221 competitions in 21 different sports. The American sprinter Carl Lewis was one of the heroes of the day, winning four gold medals.
See Theme-based collectionThe Seoul Summer Olympics in 1988 were marked by the drug scandal linked to the Canadian sprinter Ben Johnson just two days after he won the 100 metres race. Meanwhile, the American swimmer Matt Biondi won seven medals, including five gold, and the American sprinter Florence Griffith-Jones took three gold medals.
See Theme-based collectionAt the Barcelona Olympics, basketball was opened to professionals and the United States sent a "dream team" led by Michael Jordan. The gymnast Vitaly Scherbo won a record number of six gold medals. Meanwhile, the Ethiopian Derartu Tulu won the 10,000 metres, becoming the first Black African woman Olympic champion.
See Theme-based collectionChosen over Athens to host the centenary of the first Olympic Games in 1896, the city of Atlanta did its utmost to make the Games a success. The 1996 heroes included athletes Michael Johnson and Marie-José Perec and swimmers Smith and Popov. These Games were also marked by the explosion of a bomb in the Centenary park.
See Theme-based collectionThe 27th Olympic Games in Sydney in 2000 were the biggest in history, with 10,651 athletes competing in 300 events. These Games produced some great champions such as the young swimmer Ian Thorpe.
See Theme-based collectionIn 2004, the first Olympic Games of the new millennium were staged in Greece, with a record number of 301 events. The American swimmer Michael Phelps took six gold medals, setting a record for a total of eight medals during the same Olympics. Considerable progress was made during these Olympics in the fight against doping.
See Theme-based collectionThe 2008 Olympic Games, held in Beijing, were marked by the performances of two athletes: the Jamaican Usain Bolt and the US swimmer Michael Phelps. Usain Bolt won three gold medals and set three world records for the 100 metres, 200 metres and 4 x 100 metre relay, while Phelps took eight gold medals.
See Theme-based collection