Olympics

The Perfect Run: Wayde Van Niekerk, Olympic Men’s 400m Final, 14th August 2016

You will never write off the outside lane again… Let me ask you a question. When watching an athletics race, how often have you seen the person who began the race in the outside lane be the one to cross the finishing line first? This scenario is possible in races ranging between 100m and 800mContinue reading “The Perfect Run: Wayde Van Niekerk, Olympic Men’s 400m Final, 14th August 2016”

The Perfect Run: Jim Hines and the First Sub-10 Second 100m Race

A 22-year-old from Dumas, Arkansas would cross the unbreakable barrier at the 1968 Olympics in Mexico City… The target for any aspiring men’s 100m sprinter is to run the distance in under 10 seconds. Running a sub-10 second time can immediately elevate a sprinter into the spotlight, putting them among the very best 100m runnersContinue reading “The Perfect Run: Jim Hines and the First Sub-10 Second 100m Race”

The Worst Olympic Performance By The USA Basketball Team

An occasion where they didn’t win the gold medal… In 1988, the USA men’s basketball team would finish in third place at the Seoul Olympic Games, losing 76-82 to the Soviet Union in the semi-finals. A bronze medal in basketball would be termed a success by most Olympic nations. However, an Olympic bronze medal wasContinue reading “The Worst Olympic Performance By The USA Basketball Team”

The Perfect Run: Men’s 4x100m Relay Final, 2004 Olympics

Gatlin, Greene and Crawford are no match for note-perfect Brits in Athens… The 4x100m relay is usually one of the highlights of any Olympic Games. On the penultimate night of the Games, the finals of the men’s and women’s sprint relays serve to close out the athletics meet in a truly compelling fashion. It isContinue reading “The Perfect Run: Men’s 4x100m Relay Final, 2004 Olympics”

Saar- Germany’s One-Time Olympic Exiles

36 competitors, 9 sports, 0 medals… The fifteenth Summer Olympic Games took place between 19th July and 3rd August 1952. Helsinki, the capital of Finland, would be the hosts for the second Olympics held post-WW2. Over 16 days of competition, 4,955 athletes from 69 nations would compete in 149 events held across 17 sports. OfContinue reading “Saar- Germany’s One-Time Olympic Exiles”

Carl Lewis’s Biggest Success

This article will not talk (that much) about his 100m exploits… Carl Lewis is one of the most famous Olympic athletes of all time. His athletic achievements are such that he is one of a few Olympians who is forever associated with a particular Games. Like Jesse Owens in 1936, Mark Spitz in 1972 andContinue reading “Carl Lewis’s Biggest Success”

Kirani James: Grenadian Hero

You never forget your country’s first Olympic gold medal… To be the first to achieve anything is something that can never be taken away from somebody. In a sporting sense, to win your country’s first Olympic gold medal is something that will always belong to a select group of competitors. 97 countries have won anContinue reading “Kirani James: Grenadian Hero”

David Rudisha: The Perfect Run

1 minute and 40.91 seconds of brilliance… Middle-distance running has had its fair share of great Olympic moments. Peter Snell completing tohe 800m and 1500m gold medal double in 1964. The legendary rivalry between Great Britain Sebastian Coe and Steve Ovett in 1980. Hicham El Guerrouj finally winning Olympic gold at the third attempt inContinue reading “David Rudisha: The Perfect Run”