1996 Ad

Jet, August 19, 1996

Winning gold, silver and bronze medals during the 1996 Atlanta Games, Blacks' triumphant performances were an inspiration to all America.

Michael Johnson, Carl Lewis, Gail Devers, Dominique Dawes and Dan O'Brien were among the major inspirations for the U.S. as they competed in the 100th anniversary of the world's biggest sporting event.

Johnson, 28, from Dallas became the first man ever to win both the 200- and 400-meter races in the same Olympic Games.

Johnson accomplished the feat in stylish and record-breaking fashion. Sporting gold running shoes, Johnson exploded out of the starting blocks and into history.

His record time of 19.32 seconds in the 200 thrilled the sold-out crowd at Olympic Stadium which erupted in earth-shattering applause and cheers.

"This crowd was incredible," Johnson said after accomplishing his goal. "I have to say, anywhere else, I would have run 19.6 or 19.5 but this crowd is unbelievable. I've never run in front of a home crowd like that."

What's more amazing is that he shattered his record of 19.66 that he set when he won the 200-meter trials in Atlanta a month before the Games (JET, July 8).

Frank Fredericks of Namibia and of Brigham Young University was second with an impressive time of 19.68. Ato Boldon of Trinidad and UCLA clocked in at 19.80 for the bronze.

The first leg of the historic win was accomplished when Johnson set an Olympic record in the 400-meter final, with a time of 43.49 seconds to win his first individual gold medal. The win enabled him to extend his win streak in the event to 55 finals. The victory streak dates all the way back to 1989.

Carl Lewis, appearing in his last Olympics, resurrected his status as "King Carl"--America's greatest track and field athlete--when he captured gold in the long jump competition.

For Lewis, 35, it was his record-tying ninth career gold medal and his fourth consecutive gold medal in the long jump, which ties him with discus thrower Al Oerter, who won gold from 1956 to 1968. Lewis leaped 27 feet, 10 3/4 inches.

James Beckford of Jamaica took silver and U.S. teammate Joe Greene was the bronze medalist.

There was a swarm of Lewis fans that wanted him on the 400-meter relay team. But the team, which finished second behind Canada, did it without Lewis.

Decathlete Dan O'Brien rebounded from his disappointment of not qualifying for the 1992 Olympic Games by winning gold in the grueling decathlon event.

After crossing the finish line in the final event, the 1,500-meter run, O'Brien fell to his knees and sobbed tears of joy.

Although the pack chased O'Brien throughout the 10 components of the event, he was not to be denied this time. O'Brien accumulated 8,824 points, just shy of his record (8,891).

"I turned back all challenges and challengers today," said O'Brien, who becomes the first American to win the decathlon in 20 years.

O'Brien, the product of a White mother and a Black father, was adopted by a White family when he was 2 years old. His family was leading the cheers for his victory.

Another Johnson, Allen Johnson, sprinted to an Olympic record in the 110 hurdles with a time of 12.95 seconds.

After the finish, Johnson, 25, picked up his 3-year-old daughter Tristine and ran a victory lap around the sold-out Olympic Stadium. Mark Crear, the silver medalist in the hurdles, finished with a time of 13.09.

Atlanta resident and former Georgia Tech student Derrick Adkins captured gold in the 400-meter hurdles.

Inspired by the great Atlantan Edwin Moses, who dominated the 400 hurdles for more than a decade, Adkins--a bio mechanical engineer--ran an aggressive race from start to finish and was clocked at 47.54 seconds.

Teammate Calvin Davis, who only began running the event in April, captured bronze. Sam Matete of Zambia, who competed at nearby Auburn University in Alabama, won the silver medal.

Gail Devers won gold in the 100-meter race, defeating her chief opponent and teammate Gwen Torrence, who placed third for a bronze medal. Jamaican sprinter Merlene Ottey won the silver medal.

Devers was able to repeat as the 100 champ, but she could not capture double-individual gold by winning the 100 hurdles--she finished fourth. She did get the winning 400-meter relay team of herself, Chryste Gaines, Gwen Torrence and Inger Miller off to a good start for a gold medal in that event. The quartet was clocked at 41.95 seconds.

Another inspiration and long-time Olympic competitor Jackie Joyner-Kersee went out in style.

After pulling out in tears during the heptathlon competition due to a hamstring injury, Joyner-Kersee won a long jump bronze in what is believed to be her final Olympics.

The gymnastic dynamo from Silver Spring, MD, Dominique Dawes helped the U.S. women to Olympic gold and then helped herself to a bronze medal in the floor exercise competition.

In addition, Jair (rhymes with Zaire) Lynch became the first Black male gymnast to medal in the Olympic Games when he won silver on the parallel bars.

Lynch, 24, from Washington, D.C., told JET that being one of the few Blacks competing in the sport motivates him to be better than White opponents.