On July 28, 1984, the XXIII Summer Olympic Games opened at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum with one of the most spectacular ceremonies in Olympic history — a $5 million, three-hour production featuring 84 grand pianos, a man flying a jetpack over 92,516 spectators, and Ronald Reagan officially declaring the Games open. Nineteen countries including…
The 1996 Atlanta Summer Olympics were supposed to be America’s triumphant centennial Games — the hundredth anniversary of the modern Olympics, held on home soil, a celebration broadcast to the entire world. For twelve days it was exactly that. Then, in the early hours of July 27, a backpack changed everything. America’s Olympics Atlanta had…
On July 23, 1996, the U.S. women’s gymnastics team — nicknamed the Magnificent Seven — won America’s first-ever Olympic team gold in women’s gymnastics at the Atlanta Games. The victory came down to Kerri Strug’s final vault, which she landed on a badly sprained ankle, before being carried to the medal podium by coach Bela…
On July 19, 1996, a trembling Muhammad Ali lit the Olympic cauldron in Atlanta — the best-kept secret in Games history and its greatest moment.
