ígnes Keleti (1921–2025), oldest living Olympic champion

Ágnes Keleti was a Holocaust survivor and the oldest living Olympic champion, having won five gold medals in gymnastics in the 1950s.

Bela Karolyi (1942–2024), coach who transformed U.S. gymnastics

Bela Karolyi was a gymnastics coach whose sometimes-controversial methods helped transform U.S. gymnastics and bring home gold medals, techniques that also stirred up criticism for alleged abuse.

Jim Donovan (1956–2024), voice of the Cleveland Browns 

Jim Donovan was a sportscaster best known for his long tenure as the radio play-by-play announcer for the Cleveland Browns.

Otis Davis (1932–2024), two-time gold medal-winning runner

Otis Davis was a track and field athlete who won two Olympic gold medals for the United States in the 1960 Rome games.

James Earl Jones (1931–2024), the voice of Darth Vader and Mufasa

James Earl Jones was the acclaimed actor whose deep, rich voice was featured as Darth Vader in several “Star Wars” films and as Mufasa in “The Lion King.”

Bob Schul (1937–2024), America’s sole 5,000m Olympic champion

Bob Schul was a renowned long-distance runner who was the U.S.’ only ever 5,000m Olympic champion, winning the gold in 1964.

Sean Burroughs (1980–2024), Olympic gold-winning MLB third baseman

Sean Burroughs was an Olympic gold medal-winning MLB third baseman who spent four years with the San Diego Padres.

Olga Fikotová (1932–2024), Olympic gold medalist discus thrower

Olga Fikotová was an Olympic gold medal-winning and record-setting discus thrower whose romance with American athlete Hal Connolly made waves in her home country of Czechoslovakia.

Lance Larson (1940–2024), Olympic champ and record-holding swimmer

Lance Larson was an Olympic champion swimmer who was ultimately awarded a silver medal instead of gold in what is considered one of the most controversial calls in modern swimming history.

Terry Dischinger (1940–2023), Hall of Fame basketball player 

Terry Dischinger was a College Basketball Hall of Fame player, three-time NBA All Star, and Olympic gold medal winner who became a patent-holding orthodontist.

Tom Courtney (1933–2023), Olympic gold medal-winning sprinter 

Tom Courtney was an Olympic sprinter known for a last-second victory in the 800-meter race at the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne, Australia.

Nikki McCray-Penson (1971–2023), WNBA star and coach 

Nikki McCray-Penson was a star of the WNBA who won Olympic gold on the U.S. women’s basketball team in 1996 and 2000.  

Jimmy Kim (1967–2023), Olympic taekwondo gold medalist

Jimmy Kim was a gold medalist in the first year that taekwondo was included in the Olympics.

Dean Smith (1932–2023), Olympic sprinter and Hollywood stuntman

Dean Smith was a gold medal-winning Olympic sprinter and notable Hollywood stuntman. He doubled for stars like John Wayne, Roy Rogers, and Paul Newman in films like “Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid” and “The Towering Inferno.”

Harvey Glance (1957–2023), Olympic track and field champion 

Harvey Glance was a track star who won a gold medal at the 1976 Olympics.

Jim Hines (1946–2023), Olympic track and field champion 

Jim Hines was an Olympic champion in track and field who became the first person to run the 100-meter dash in under 10 seconds.

Tori Bowie (1990–2023), Olympic track & field medalist

Tori Bowie was a track and field star who won three medals in the 2016 Olympics and was a gold medalist in the 2017 World Athletic Championships.

Ralph Boston (1939–2023), record-breaking Olympic gold medalist 

Ralph Boston was a long jumper who won Olympic gold in 1960 and broke Jesse Owens’ longstanding record.

Dick Fosbury (1947–2023), groundbreaking high jump star

Olympic gold medalist Dick Fosbury was an influential high jumper who changed the event forever, pioneering the technique now used by almost every competitive high jumper: the Fosbury Flop. He would be inducted into the National Track and Field Hall of Fame as a result. His gold in 1968 proved to be his only appearance in the Olympics, but the maneuver he invented is now a mainstay.

Pat McCormick (1930–2023), Olympic gold medal-winning diver

Four-time Olympic gold-winning diver Pat McCormick was so dominant, she won two medals in the 1956 games just five months after giving birth to her son, Tim. She was among the most dominant competitors in her field, winning 26 titles in an 11-year span, including two undefeated seasons. When not competing, she pursued adventure where she could, including mountain climbing, traveling the Amazon, and piloting planes.

Bob Richards (1926–2023), first athlete featured on Wheaties boxes

Bob Richards was an Olympic gold medalist in pole vaulting who became the first athlete featured on the front of Wheaties cereal boxes.

Greta Andersen (1927–2023), Olympic swimming champion 

Greta Andersen was a Danish professional swimmer. She broke 18 world marathon records and was the largest money winner in women’s professional swimming history.0e280af

Billie Moore (1943–2022), first U.S. Olympic women’s basketball head coach

Billie Moore was a women’s basketball coach who coached the first U.S. Olympic women’s basketball team to a silver medal in 1976.

Jim Redmond (2022), dad who helped his son cross the Olympic finish line

Jim Redmond was an English man who became part of one of the most inspiring moments in Olympic history when he helped his sprinter son cross the finish line at the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona.

Jacques Rogge (1942–2021), former IOC president

Jacques Rogge was the president of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) from 2001 to 2013.

Joan Ullyot (1940–2021), convinced Olympics to add women’s marathon

Joan Ullyot was a physician and runner whose research and advocacy helped persuade the International Olympics Committee (IOC) to add a women’s marathon to the Summer Olympics.

Angela Bailey (1962–2021), record-holding Olympic sprinter

Angela Bailey was a Canadian sprinter who won a silver medal at the 1984 Olympics.

Lee Evans (1947–2021), Olympic gold medalist who protested racism

Lee Evans won two sprinting gold medals at the 1968 Olympics and protested on the podium against racism.

K.C. Jones (1932–2020), Celtics legend

K.C. Jones was the steady point guard for the Boston Celtics who helped lead the team to eight NBA titles as a player and then two more as the head coach.

Rafer Johnson (1934–2020), Olympic decathlon legend

Rafer Johnson won the decathlon gold medal at the 1960 Olympic games in Rome and was the first Black American to be the flag bearer for the U.S. Olympic team.

Nancy Darsch (1951–2020), one of the original WNBA coaches

Nancy Darsch was a women’s basketball coach who helped take USA Basketball to gold at the 1984 and 1996 Olympics and was one of the original WNBA coaches.

Kurt Thomas (1956–2020), first U.S. male gymnast to win gold at World Championships

Kurt Thomas was the first American male gymnast to win gold at the World Artistic Gymnastics Championships.

Jesse Owens

Jesse Owens was one of the greatest track stars—and one of the most beloved Olympians—of all time. In a year when hate threatened to overshadow the Olympic Games being held in Nazi Germany, Owens delighted the free world by winning four gold medals and destroying Adolf Hitler's notion that his Aryan athletes were superior to black competitors. The photos taken of Owens at those 1936 games, and in the years before and after, depict an amazing athlete who has inspired generations of people of all races. In honor of Owens, we present a photo celebration of his life and legacy.

David Stern (1942–2020), longtime NBA commissioner

David Stern was the commissioner of the NBA for 30 years, from 1984 to 2014. During that time, he helped transform the league, bringing it out of a slump into a period of greatness. Under Stern’s leadership, NBA stars achieved international stardom as he sent recordings of games to China for broadcast there and championed superstar players like Larry Bird, Michael Jordan, and Charles Barkley. It was Stern who lobbied for professional basketball to be allowed in the 1992 Summer Olympics, creating the unstoppable Dream Team. And during his tenure, the average NBA player salary rose steeply to today’s multimillion-dollar levels. Stern famously supported Magic Johnson after the star player was diagnosed with HIV in 1991, and his highly public support helped change the debate about the then-misunderstood disease.

Harrison Dillard (1923–2019), four-time Olympic gold medal winner

Harrison Dillard was a four-time Olympic gold medal winner in track and field. He was the top hurdler throughout much of the 1940s, though his first Olympic gold came in a dramatic photo-finish in the 100-meter sprint at the 1948 London Olympic games. He won his signature event, the 110-meter hurdles, at the 1952 Helsinki Olympic games. He was part of the gold medal-winning 4x100-meter relay teams at both Olympics.

Enriqueta Basilio (1948–2019), first woman to light the Olympic flame

Mexican sprinter lit the flame to open the 1968 games in Mexico City.

Pernell Whitaker (1964–2019), boxing legend

Pernell “Sweet Pea” Whitaker was a boxing legend who was considered one of the best boxers pound for pound in the history of the sport. Whitaker won world championships in four weight divisions, lightweight, light welterweight, welterweight, and light middleweight. He won a boxing Olympic gold medal in the 1984 games in Los Angeles. One of the great defensive boxers in the sport, he had a memorable title bout in 1997 against Oscar De La Hoya, losing a close decision. He had a career record of 40 wins, 4 losses, and one draw.

Johnny “Lam” Jones (1958–2019), track star played in NFL

Johnny “Lam” Jones won an Olympic gold medal in the 4x100 relay at the 1976 Olympics in Montreal. A star wide receiver at the University of Texas, he went on to play in the NFL for the New York Jets. Jones was a legendary athlete in Texas, a star sprinter who set records in high school and college, winning a gold medal at the age of 18. He was drafted in the first round by the Jets in 1980 but never lived up to expectations, becoming known for dropping passes. He admitted to drug and alcohol issues but later turned his life around.

Anne Donovan (1961 – 2018), Hall of Fame basketball player and coach

Anne Donovan, the Basketball Hall of Famer who won a national championship at Old Dominion, two Olympic gold medals as a player and another as a coach, died Wednesday of heart failure, according to the Associated Press. She was 56.

They Carried the Olympic Torch — Now We Say Goodbye

These Olympic torch bearers died recently — but they lived remarkable lives.

Horace Ashenfelter III (1923–2018), steeplechase gold medalist at the 1952 Olympics

The Olympic race was considered to be an early cold war confrontation.

Sammy Lee (1920–2016), Olympic diving champion

Sammy Lee, a two-time Olympic diving champion, died Friday, Dec. 2, 2016, of pneumonia in Newport Beach, California, according to The Associated Press. He was 96.

Pat Summitt (1952 - 2016), legendary college basketball coach

Pat Summitt, the legendary former coach of the University of Tennessee women’s basketball team, has died of Alzheimer’s disease, according to multiple news sources. She was 64. Summitt coached the Lady Vols basketball team to eight NCAA championships. That was the record at the time of her retirement in 2012. That record has now been passed by Geno Auriemma and the University of Connecticut. She was the first NCAA coach to reach 1,000 victories and she has the most wins of any female basketball coach in NCAA history. Summitt was born in Clarksville, Tennessee in 1952. She played college basketball at the University of Tennessee at Martin and was an All-American. She won a silver medal playing for the USA team in the 1976 Olympics.

Frank Chapot (1932 - 2016), Olympic equestrian

Frank Chapot, an equestrian who won two silver medals in six Olympics, died June 20, 2016, at an assisted living center in New Jersey. He was 84. The Show Jumping Hall of Fame announced the death, noting that he was under care for Alzheimer's disease. Chapot was born Feb. 24, 1932, in Camden, New Jersey. He married the former Mary Mairs, a fellow equestrian, in 1965. They performed together at the 1964 and 1968 Olympics as a mixed jumping team, though never winning a medal. Chapot, who competed in the Olympics from 1956 to 1976, won two Olympic silver medals riding Gem Twist. In 1990, the horse was named world’s best horse at the World Equestrian Games in Stockholm, Sweden. He also coached the U.S. equestrian team when it won its first gold medal at the 1984 Olympics. Chapot’s team won a silver medal four years later.

Muhammad Ali (1942–2016), boxing legend & cultural icon

Muhammad Ali, the heavyweight boxing champion named Sportsman of the Century by Sports Illustrated magazine, died June 3, 2016. He was 74.

Sandor Tarics (1913 - 2016), Olympic water polo gold medalist

Sandor Tarics, the oldest living Olympic champion, died May 21, according to the Hungarian Olympic Committee. He was 102.

Tommy Kono (1930–2016), Olympic champion weightlifter

Tommy Kono, an Olympic champion weightlifter, died April 24 of liver disease in Honolulu, Hawaii, according to multiple news sources. He was 85.

Wilma Rudolph, La Gazzella

She was La Gazzella Negra , the "Black Gazelle," the fastest woman on Earth...

Joe Frazier Still Swinging in Philadelphia

won a gold medal in the 1964 Olympics.