Olympic heroes
Discussion
Are there any other 'Olympic Heroes' you can think of, or because of the suspicion of dodgy substances alway surrounding a new world record, has it spoiled the spectacle ?
Copied from Sky sports
The motto of the Games is "Citius, Altius, Fortius", meaning "Faster, Higher, Stronger".
Below are the Olympians who have, arguably more than any others, captured the public's imagination in displaying those attributes.
Jesse Owens
The American faced down Hitler and Nazi Germany to blaze a trail for black athletes at the 1936 Games in Berlin. Owens gave ample evidence of the flaws in the Fuhrer's philosophy of Aryan supremacy by taking four golds in the 100m, 200m, sprint relay and long jump. His long jump record stood for 25 years.
Sir Steven Redgrave
Won five rowing golds in consecutive Olympics from 1984 in the coxed four, coxless pair and coxless four. The fact that he achieved such feats as a diabetic makes him all the more remarkable.
Carl Lewis
Eight gold medals are reason enough for him to feature in this list, with four coming in the 100m, 200m, long jump and sprint relay at his Games debut in 1984 - emulating Owens.
Emil Zatopek
The Czech military man is the only athlete to win the 5,000m, 10,000m and marathon in one Games, doing so in Helsinki in 1952. He also took the 10,000m gold in London four years earlier.
Mark Spitz
Claimed seven swimming golds in four days at Munich in 1972, aged 22. Even more amazingly they all came in world record times. The American had already accumulated two golds, a silver and a bronze in Mexico City in 1968.
Paavo Nurmi
The 'Flying Finn' won nine golds in the 1920s across a bewildering range of distances - 1500m, 5000m, 10,000m, steeplechase and cross-country. His Games career was curtailed when the IOC banned him as a professional. Also won three silvers.
Lord Sebastian Coe
Better known these days for masterminding London's successful bid for the 2012 Games, he is also the only man to win successive gold medals in the 1500m in 1980 and 1984. His rivalry with fellow Brits Steve Ovett and Steve Cram provided one of the most riveting chapters in this country's sporting history.
Bob Beamon
Jumped more than a foot further than anyone in history up to that point in claiming the long jump gold in Mexico City with a leap of 29 feet 2.5 inches. The record stood for 23 years before being beaten by another American, Mike Powell.
Lasse Viren
Another Finnish long-distance legend, he rarely showed his true colours away from the Games before peaking with perfect timing every four years. Two 5,000m and 10,000m doubles in 1972 and 1976 were ample testament to his ability to hit the heights at crucial times.
Abebe Bikila
Disproved the theory that top-class performances are the result of years of fine-tuning by claiming the marathon gold in 1960 in only his third race over the distance. He also did it in bare feet, but donned trainers to retain his title four years later just six weeks after having his appendix removed.
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