11-24-2004

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Tom Surber

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USA Track & Field

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Carl Lewis winning four gold medals at the 1984 Olympic Games in Los Angeles was honored by USA Track & Field on Wednesday as the fourth-greatest moment in U.S. track and field history in the last 25 years.

To help mark the 25th anniversary of USA Track & Field, fans joined USATF in selecting the Top 25 Moments in American Track & Field during the past quarter century. Fans voted for what they consider to be the top moments in the sports of track & field, long-distance running, and race walking by voting online at USATF's website, www.usatf.org.

Carl Lewis entered the 1984 Olympic Games in Los Angeles with the goal of duplicating the quadruple gold medal-winning performance by the great Jesse Owens at the 1936 Olympics in Berlin.

Lewis began his quest in the 100 meters, where he easily beat a tremendous field to the finish with his time of 9.99 seconds. Lewis' teammate, Sam Graddy, was the distant runner-up and silver medalist in 10.19.

Lewis ran two heats in the 200 meters on the morning of the long jump final. It was an abbreviated long jump competition for Lewis, who posted the gold medal winning jump of 8.54 meters/28 feet, 0.25 inches, on his first attempt. He stopped jumping after a foul on his second attempt, already knowing that the gold medal was his.

After a good start in the 200m final, Lewis entered the straight with a two-meter lead that held the rest of the way. Lewis won the gold in 19.80 seconds, with his U.S. teammate and training partner, Kirk Baptiste, taking the silver medal in 19.96.

Lewis captured his fourth gold medal of the L.A. games in style by anchoring Team USA's 4x100m relay that won gold in the world-record time of 37.83 seconds. Lewis' unofficial split from a flying start was timed at 8.94 seconds, and he more than doubled his team's lead to eight meters down the final stretch.

To win four gold medals at the 1984 Olympic Games, Lewis competed in 13 qualifying rounds and final events over the course of eight days.

Suggestions for USATF's Top 25 Moments were taken through February 22, 2004. Fans voted for their favorite moments beginning February 28 and ending on June 20. The Top 25 Moments will be announced in reverse order leading up to the USATF Annual Meeting in December, where the top three moments will be revealed.

For more information on USATF's Top 25 Moments, visit www.usatf.org.

USATF Top 25 Moments

25. Jackie Joyner-Kersee breaks 7,000-point barrier in the heptathlon.

24. Khalid Khannouchi sets men's world marathon record in 2002.

23. Alan Webb sets U.S. boys' high school mile record.

22. Kevin Young breaks Edwin Moses' world record.

21. Lynn Jennings wins third World Cross Country title.

20. Alberto Salazar wins third consecutive New York City Marathon.

19. Flo-Jo sets women's 200m world record.

18. Gail Devers successfully defends Olympic 100m women's title.

17. Evelyn Ashford defeats two world record holders at 1979 World Cup.

16. Michael Carter sets national prep shot put record.

15. Valerie Brisco wins three gold medals at 1984 Olympic Games.

14. Stacy Dragila wins first ever women's Olympic pole vault.

13. Maurice Greene wins double sprint gold at 1999 World Outdoors

12. Decker wins two gold medals at 1983 World Outdoor Championships

11. Batten, Buford better world record at 1995 World Outdoor Championships

10. Flo-Jo shatters 100m world record

9. JJK breaks heptathlon world record at 1988 Olympic Games

8. Lewis wins fourth consecutive Olympic long jump gold medal

7. Jones wins five medals, three of them gold, at 2000 Olympic Games

6. Johnson breaks 400m world record

5. Powell breaks long jump world record

4. Lewis wins four gold medals at 1984 Olympics