Best olympic moments

1. Retton vaults to fame
Sixteen-year-old gymnast Mary Lou Retton entered the 1984 Olympics with no major international experience. She became the first American, woman or man, to win the all-around after earning perfect 10s for the floor exercise and vault.

2. Ali and the flame
Muhammad Ali, trembling from Parkinson's disease, lit the cauldron to open the 1996 Games in Atlanta. Ali received a gold medal to replace the one he tossed into a river after being refused service at a whites-only restaurant.

3. Gritty Strug takes one for team
In the 1996 women's gymnastics team competition, little-known Kerri Strug injured her left ankle on her first vault but gamely attempted a second and stuck the landing to ensure the U.S. women got their first team gold.

4. Icebreaker for Jansen
Speedskater Dan Jansen won the 1,000-meter race in 1994, ending a 10-year Olympic medal drought lowlighted by two falls at the 1988 Olympics while mourning the death of his sister. He took a victory lap holding his infant daughter.

5. Tonya vs. Nancy drama
Nancy Kerrigan rebounded from the knee whacking heard 'round the world to win the 1994 Olympic silver. Tonya Harding, whose ex-husband masterminded the attack, stopped her long program to cry about a boot lace.

6. Johnson blazes to 200-400 double
Michael Johnson broke his own world record in the 200 meters by .34 seconds in 1996 en route to becoming the first man to win the 200 and 400 at the same games. Johnson blazed through the last 100 in 9.20 seconds to finish in 19.32.

7. Lewis runs alongside Owens
Carl Lewis ran an 8.94-second anchor leg to lead the U.S. men to victory in the 4x100-meter freestyle relay in 1984, winning his fourth gold medal of those games to match Jesse Owens' total from 1936.

8. Gardner turns Greco-Roman world upside down
Rulon Gardner, a Wyoming dairy farmer's son competing in only his second major international tournament, upset three-time Olympic champion Aleksandr Karelin in the 2000 super-heavyweight Greco-Roman wrestling competition. It was the RussianÕs first defeat in 13 years.

9. Louganis takes a hit, dives back in
On his ninth dive of the 1988 preliminary round for springboard, Greg Louganis hit his head on the board and fell into the water. He got temporary stitches before completing his 10th dive, which earned the highest score awarded in the preliminaries. The next day he won gold.

10. Dream Team dominant
The original Dream Team, with Magic Johnson and Larry Bird as captains and other NBA superstars such as Michael Jordan and David Robinson on the 1992 roster, was perhaps the greatest assembly of talent ever. They dominated as expected, beating Croatia 117-85 in the gold-medal game.

11. Steroids catch up with Johnson
Three days after Canadian Ben Johnson won the 100 meters in 1988 in 9.79 seconds, the International Olympic Committee announced he had tested positive for steroids. Johnson was the first big-name athlete to be caught. The gold went to Carl Lewis.

12. Torvill and Dean heat up ice
Britain's Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean earned 6.0s in 12 of their 18 marks for their free-dance interpretation of "Bolero" in 1984. They received unanimous perfect scores for artistic impression and were the first non-Soviet or Russians to win ice dancing gold.

13. Flag day for Freeman
Cathy Freeman, an Australian with Aboriginal heritage who days earlier lit the cauldron to open the 2000 Sydney Olympics, won the 400 meters under a searing spotlight. She took a victory lap carrying the Australian and Aboriginal flags,

14. Blair skates into history
Speedskater Bonnie Blair defended her Olympic title at 1,000 meters in 1994, winning by the largest margin in event history (1.38 seconds) and becoming the first U.S. female Olympian, winter or summer, to win five gold medals. She also was the first American to win six Winter Olympic medals.

15. Hughes in a stunner
In fourth after the short program at the 2002 Olympics, 16-year-old Sarah Hughes upset favorites Michelle Kwan and Irina Slutskaya with a technically superior long program.