It goes without saying that getting to this point takes a lot of work and years of training.
What’s more there arestrict rules Olympic athletes are expected to followto see to it their conduct is fair.
He was to cycling what Simone Biles is to gymnastics: the absolute GOAT.
Armstrong even became an inspiration for those living with cancer after he was diagnosed with the disease in 1996.
No one could’ve predicted what came next.
He denied the allegations for years, but in 2013, he finally came clean.
To compete as a gymnast at the Olympic Games, athletes have to be over 16 years of age.
Their team, which Dong Fangxiao, performed so well that they won a team bronze medal.
China was subsequently stripped of its achievement and the medal was handed over to Team USA.
Her talent was breathtaking, and Jones couldn’t have been flying any higher.
Less than a decade after she made Olympic history, Jones' legacy took a major hit.
Much like Lance Armstrong, Jones had been plagued with rumors of doping for a while.
In 2007, she finally came clean about her steroid use.
Years later, Jones sat down with “Oprah: Where Are They Now?”
Unfortunately for Russian weightlifter Ibragim Samadov in 1992, he didn’t quite get the memo.
However, rather than accept his achievement, Samadov appeared incensed.
Once presented with his medal, he snatched it and chucked it to the ground.
Then, he exited the podium before the medal ceremony could even officially begin.
To say the International Olympic Committee was annoyed is an understatement.
And every once in a while, a Winter Olympian lands in hot water.
Sport, Smith was furious and reportedly yelled, “Who is the f***ing judge?
This is a joke!
This wasn’t on purpose!
My ski was on the edge.
Does this judge know how to ski?
They have no idea!”
Amazingly, Smith appealed and was awarded the bronze medal 10 months later.
In an emotional tale of ups and downs, Maier was also allowed to keep her bronze medal.
In 1998, he competed at the Nagano Olympics, winning a gold medal for his efforts.
The International Olympic Committee found that he had tested positive for marijuana, though Rebagliati denied it.
He was understandably devastated and despite appealing, never regained his medal.
Years later, Regaliati would launch his own cannabis company called Ross' Gold.
If one person messes up, then it can impact all of the athletes unfairly.
In 2015, news broke that Gay was found to have doped during the London games.
As a result of his transgressions, the team was stripped of their silver medal.
“That wasn’t the case.”
Unfortunately for Russian sprinter Mariya Savinova, she falls into the latter category.
Savinova was first suspended in 2013 after she admitted to doping on tape.
Savinova was also given a four-year ban but appealed the decision to no avail.
Back in 1904, the Olympic Games looked a little different.
The following year, it was discovered that Egan was actually called Frank Joseph Floyd.
It’s unclear as to why he changed his name.
The squad made it all the way to the top, winning gold.
Carlos Ribagorda was an undercover journalist who spent two years on the team ahead of the 2000 Paralympics.
According to the Spanish magazine Gigandes, ten members of the team apparently had no handicap at all.
In 2009, the IPC voted to welcome athletes with intellectual disabilities back to the competition.
