Rulon Gardner of the USA wipes his face as he walks off the mat leaving his shoes behind to signify his retirement after winning the bronze medal with his victory over Sajad Barzi of Iran in the men's Greco-Roman wrestling 120 kg bronze medal match round Aug. 25, 2004, during the Athens 2004 Summer Olympic Games at Ano Liossia Olympic Hall in Athens, Greece.
Michael Phelps of the United States competes in the Men's 4 x 100m Medley Relay Final on Day 8 of the Rio 2016 Olympic Games at the Olympic Aquatics Stadium in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Aug. 13, 2016. Phelps is the most decorated Olympic athlete of all time, having won 28 medals in total, 23 of them being gold.
U.S. track star Jesse Owens wins the 100-meter sprint at the 1936 Summer Games. In total, he gained four gold medals at the games taking place in Berlin during the rule of Adolf Hitler in Nazi Germany. Hitler's intention was to present the "superiority" of the Aryan race to the world, which was thoroughly ruined by Owens' performance – making him a cultural icon.
Katie Ledecky of the United States leads the field in the Women's 800m Freestyle Final on Day 7 of the Rio 2016 Olympic Games at the Olympic Aquatics Stadium in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Aug. 12, 2016. Ledecky was the first athlete since 1968 to win the 200-, 400- and 800-meter freestyles at the same Olympics in swimming.
American high jumper Dick Fosbury clears the bar on his third attempt at the 1968 Summer Games in Mexico City. Fosbury won the gold medal with this jump, clearing 7 feet, 4 1/4 inches, which also set Olympic and American records. Dick Fosbury's jumping style, dubbed the "Fosbury flop," in which the jumper clears the bar headfirst and backwards, revolutionized the sport.
During the medal ceremony for the basketball competition, the second-place podium remained empty as the U.S. basketball team protested the decision to give the gold to the Soviet Union during the Olympic Games in Munich, West Germany, Sept. 10, 1972. After a controversial finish, the Soviets won the gold.
Extending gloved hands skyward in protest, U.S. athletes Tommie Smith (C) and John Carlos (R) stare downward during the national anthem after Smith received the gold and Carlos the bronze in the men's 200 meters at the Summer Olympics in Mexico City, Oct. 16, 1968. Australian silver medalist Peter Norman is at the left. In a major shift in policy, the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee committed to not sanction athletes who use their platform for social demonstrations. The USOPC stance sets up the possibility for conflict and confusion at the Tokyo Games, where the IOC will be in charge.
Australia's Cathy Freeman celebrates winning the women's 400-meter race at the Summer Olympics at Olympic Stadium in Sydney, Sept. 25, 2000. Freeman ignited the Olympic flame to open the Sydney 2000 Games and returned 10 nights later to win a gold medal in the 400 meters that had been a long time in waiting for the country. She was the first Aboriginal person from Australia to win an individual Olympic gold. And she celebrated in a bare-foot victory lap with an Australian flag and the red, black and yellow Australian Aboriginal flag together in her hand.
Swimming judges monitor the finish of Eric Moussambani, of Equatorial Guinea, as he competes alone in the first heat of the men's 100m freestyle Tuesday, Sept. 19, 2000 at the Sydney International Aquatic Center during the Summer Olympics in Sydney. Moussambani finished with a time of 1:52.72 – the slowest time in Olympic history – was left as the lone swimmer after the two other swimmers in the heat, Karim Bare of Nigeria and Farkhod Oripov of Tajikistan, were disqualified at the start of the heat.
U.S. silver medal gymnast McKayla Maroney during the podium ceremony for the artistic gymnastics women's vault finals at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, Aug. 5, 2012. Her peeved expression on the medal stand after slipping on her second vault, a miscue that cost her the gold, became an Internet sensation.
