Controversial decisions
1. Roy Jones Jr. loses gold to South Korean, 1988 Seoul Games
Before American teenager Roy Jones Jr. went on to become arguably the world's best pound-for-pound boxer, he had to accept being robbed of his light-middleweight gold medal in Seoul. In the final bout, Jones landed more than twice as many punches as his South Korean opponent, Pak Si-hun, who took the title on points for his fifth disputed win of the tournament. Rumors later swirled that officials had been paid off and South Korea was seeking revenge for its drubbing at the previous Games in Los Angeles.
2. USSR beats US in basketball final, 1972 Munich Games
USOC still does not recognize the former Soviet Union's basketball gold medal from the 1972 Games that effectively ended America's monopoly on the Olympic sport.
In the final, which took place at the height of the Cold War, USSR was leading 49-48 with seconds left on the clock when a foul on Doug Collins enabled him to tie the game with his first free throw. Midway through his second shot, the horn went off, prematurely, but was disregarded by the referee. Collins then sank his second shot to give the United States a one-point lead. The Soviets missed their shot off the inbound to seemingly concede the game.
But the game did not end there. The clock was reset to three seconds twice (once because the Soviets claimed to have called a timeout), and the Soviets sank their final buzzer-beater to claim gold.
3. Two US sprinters stripped of medals, 1968 Mexico City Games
African-Americans Tommie Smith and John Carlos were stripped of their respective gold and bronze medals in the 200m for giving a black-gloved salute in tribute to the Black Panthers militant group. "Black America will understand what we did tonight," Smith said at the press conference later. The IOC argued that politics play no part in the Olympics and sent the pair home within hours, giving the runners just enough time to put their shoes back on (they has also stood barefoot to protest African poverty).
4. Carl Lewis cleared for 1988 Seoul Games despite testing positive for stimulants
Six years after nine-time track and field Olympic gold medalist Carl Lewis retired, documents emerged showing the American legend had tested positive for three stimulants while attempting to qualify for the 1988 Games.
He was initially suspended for six months but the ban was rescinded on appeal so he could compete in Seoul. No such luck for Canadian Ben Johnson, who tested positive for anabolic steroids and had to give his 100m gold medal to Lewis. Neither Lewis' positive tests nor the reprieve were made public until later.
5 . Decathlete Jim Thorpe stripped of gold medals due to pro sports career
Double gold medalist Jim Thorpe is still seen as one of the best athletes of the 20th century. Part Native-American and part Caucasian, he endured much racism as he went on to win both the pentathlon and decathlon at the 1912 Stockholm Games. He was later stripped of his gold medals when the IOC found out that he had played professional baseball, basketball and (American) football, thus making him ineligible for the Olympics. He went on to play for the Cleveland Tigers and New York Giants in the NFL, among other pro teams, and had his Olympic medals reinstated posthumously in 1982.
