50 greatest Summer Olympians in history
By John Buhler
6. Ray Ewry, Track and Field.
Ray Ewry’s impressive run at three Summer Games — at Paris in 1900, St. Louis in 1904, and London in 1908 — stands the test of time even today.
Why? Ewry held the Olympic record for most individual Olympic gold medals for over a century.
Ewry won all eight of his Olympic golds in either the high jump or the long jump for the U.S. Track & Field team. During the 1900 Paris Games, Ewry took home gold in the standing long jump, the standing high jump, and the standing triple jump.
He would go on to win three more golds in the same three events four years later, and another two — in the standing long jump and the standing high jump — in London in 1908.
To have an Olympic medals record stand for over 100 years — despite improvements in overall athlete health and training, despite the uptick in the number of events — is truly taggering. To do it as a track-and-field leaper after overcoming being wheelchair bound as a child? Practically unthinkable.
Next: 5. Nikolai Andrianov.