by Bobby Coles

Created on: April 27, 2008   Last Updated: April 14, 2010

Every two years, a new Olympic Games invades the homes of millions, and produces rich and vibrant memories that will forever be etched in the mind of Joe Public. The Olympic Games are home to the hopes and dreams of amateur athletes everywhere (although the recent spate of professionals has jaded a few spectators). Over the history of the Olympic Games, there have been many great moments that have left a lasting impact on those that can fondly recall the events.

At the recent 2010 Olympic Games, Canada managed to lay claim to its first gold medal on home soil, which was a great moment. They soon followed that up with a record breaking performance, a cavalcade of Gold Medals, capped by Sidney Crosby's Golden Goal in Overtime against the United States in Men's Hockey. This had followed up the Canadian Women's Gold Medal performance over the United States.

The Olympic Games always offer forth a moment or two of sheer joy and excitement to behold. Some of the greatest moments have not come on the track, field, ice, or asphalt, but rather in moments of uninhibited happiness or sadness. Watching a man from Great Britain get up off of the track where he lay writhing with a torn hamstring and begin to hop on one foot the final 300m, only to be joined by his father holding him up could bring a tear to a glass eye. Even more touching was the cameras that caught security trying to prevent the man's father from entering onto the track, and realizing that the man's father would not be denied. The crowd cheered exuberantly for several moments as the pair made their way to the finish line. After training for four painstaking years, he simply was unwilling to quit without having finished his race. These are the moments that make the Olympic Games so great.

The stadium reached a feverish pitch, and the glare from the plethora of camera flashes was enough to scintillate and irritate the eyes of every patron in the stadium. The year was 1996, and the great moment in Olympic history was the Men's 200m race, featuring the charming and remarkably swift Michael Johnson of the United States of America. The world record in the Men's 200m had been set way back in 1979, in the high altitude of Mexico City. Pietro Mennea of Italy scorched down the track in a record time that seemed unbeatable. His time of 19.72 seconds was blazing, and it appeared to be destined to stand up against all comers. Until the gold shoed Johnson knelt down in his blocks, gold necklace swinging gently back and

• 1
• 2
• Next Page >>