by Chris Pearce

Created on: April 30, 2008   Last Updated: May 07, 2012

There have been numerous great moments in Olympic history. I love the Summer Olympics and look forward to them every time, especially the track and field and the swimming. To see the athletes at the peak of their careers, all the hard training behind them, line up to see who is the best in the world and if they can beat the world record is simply awe-inspiring.

Jesse Owens 1936

My all-time favourite moment in the Olympics is when black American Jesse Owens won four gold medals at the 1936 games in Berlin. Hitler and the Nazis had been carrying on about how the Aryan race was superior. Owens won individual gold medals in the 100 yards, 200 yards, and long jump, and a team gold medal in the 4 x 100 yards relay. His four gold medals was the first time an American had done this at the one Olympics.

I've seen an old documentary a number of times that highlights Owens' Olympic achievements. It includes footage of Hitler turning away as Owens crossed the finish line in one event. Hitler didn't hang around for the medal presentation either. Earlier, when he shook the hands of German victors only, officials said he should either greet all medal winners or none. He chose none. But the great thing was that even his own people didn't see eye to eye with him. Some 110,000 people who had packed into the stadium cheered Owens on, and many ordinary German people later sought his autograph.

US hockey team 1980

In second place would arguably be a moment from the 1980 Winter Olympics at Lake Placid when the US hockey team won a gold medal against the mighty USSR team. The moment became known as the "Miracle on Ice." There was a fair bit of niggle between America and Russia in those days, so the victory was more than just a hockey win. It was a Cold War showdown, and a win for free America against communist Russia. The USSR was the dominant hockey team going into the 1980 Games. It had beaten everyone in the 1979 World Championship. The Americans were the clear underdogs, lacking the skill levels of their more favored opponents, and were beaten 10-3 by the Soviets in an exhibition match just before the Games.

The US team made it to the medal round but had to play the USSR. Although outpointed in most aspects of play, the US held their own on the scoreboard, matching the Soviet team goal for goal. With 10 minutes left, the US led 4-3. The US somehow held off a relentless Russian attack. The crowd counted down the last seconds as ABC commentator Al Michaels joined in the count

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