1996 Summer Olympics

The 1996 Summer Olympics, formally known as the Games of the XXVI Olympiad and informally known as the Centennial Olympics, were held in 1996 in Atlanta, Georgia, United States. Atlanta was selected in 1990 above Athens, Belgrade, Manchester, Melbourne and Toronto. Athens had hoped to organise the 100th anniversary of the modern Olympic Games. The IOC's vote for Atlanta was therefore slightly surprising; however, the reasoning behind this decision was that Athens' infrastructure could not be improved enough in time to successfully host the Games. It was later claimed (but never substantiated) that several of the IOC's key voters had been bribed by Atlanta executives in order to quash the other candidate cities' chances for the hosting bid. Other winning bids have since been similarly scrutinized.

Highlights

• Atlanta was chosen as the host city by the International Olympic Committee on September 18,1990. The final round vote was 51-35. Atlanta beat out other host candidates Athens, Toronto, Melbourne, Australia, Manchester, and Belgrade.
• Slovene gymnast Leon ?tukelj arises at the open ceremony as one of the oldest living sportsmen in the world.
• Naim Süleymanoğlu becomes the first weightlifter to win three gold medals.
• Michael Johnson wins gold in both the 200 m and 400 m, setting an amazing new World Record of 19.32 seconds in the 200 m.
• Donovan Bailey of Canada wins the men's 100 m, setting a new World Record of 9.84 seconds at that time.
• Marie-José Perec equals Johnson's performance, although without a world record, by winning the rare 200 m/400 m double.
• Softball, beach volleyball and mountainbiking debut on the Olympic programme, together with women's football (soccer) and lightweight rowing.
• Cycling professionals were admitted to the Olympics, with five-time Tour de France winner Miguel Induráin winning the inaugural individual time trial event.
• Michelle Smith of Ireland wins three gold medals and a bronze, but her victories are overshadowed by doping allegations, which are later reinforced as she is banned after failing a test in 1999.
• Amy Van Dyken wins four gold medals in the Olympic swimming pool, the first American woman to win four titles in a single Olympics.
• A record 197 nations, all current IOC member nations, take part, with a record 79 of them winning at least one medal.
• Five athletes were disqualified for using banned drugs. A few more were reinstated since the drug they took had been declared illegal only a week before the Olympics.
• Kerri Strug becomes an American heroine after bringing victory to the American female gymnastics team in spite of having to perform with an injury in the final event. Her gymnastics team, popularly known as the "Magnificent Seven", also includes Shannon Miller, Amy Chow, Jaycie Phelps, Amanda Borden, Dominique Dawes and Dominique Moceanu.
• Andre Agassi wins the gold medal in the tennis event. This helps him become the first male player to ever win the career Golden Slam.
• Kurt Angle of the United States won the gold medal in 100 kg (220 lb) freestyle wrestling while suffering from a neck injury. Angle would later go on to fame in Vince McMahon's World Wrestling Entertainment, winning the WWE Championship on four different occasions as one of the company's top villains.