Worst With a Gold Medal

[bambam]

The converse of my earlier post. Anyway want to nominate the "worst" Olympic gold medal winners by event? By worst, they would otherwise have the least distinguished career.

[paulthefan]

as much as I hate to do this... it just doesnt seem right ... please take this with a grain of salt but the 1980 400H gold medalist has to rank as an also ran in any fully attended fantasy championship that year.

[Daisy]

as much as I hate to do this... it just doesnt seem right ... please take this with a grain of salt but the 1980 400H gold medalist has to rank as an also ran in any fully attended fantasy championship that year.

i hesitate to label someone as the least impressive gold medalist since on the day they obviously beat all comeers. So how bad can they really be?

If I had to think of one it would be Peter Rono in the 1500m, in the sense that he had no longevity. What happened to him?

[tandfman]

i hesitate to label someone as the least impressive gold medalist since on the day they obviously beat all comeers.

Yes, but let's not forget that in 1980 and 1984 many of the comers couldn't come because of boycotts. Some of those gold medals really did not represent a victory over the best in the world at the time.

[gh]

Rono came to my mind right away. Lindy Remigino, perhaps.

[Daisy]

i hesitate to label someone as the least impressive gold medalist since on the day they obviously beat all comers.

Yes, but let's not forget that in 1980 and 1984 many of the comers couldn't come because of boycotts. Some of those gold medals really did not represent a victory over the best in the world at the time.

No doubt about this tandfman. Actually for the sake of this question i was not really considering those Olympics since they were obviously weakened in many of the events.

[Per Andersen]

Klyugin 2000 HJ. Saved by the rainstorm.

[Mikael]

Agreed - not quite fair to include the boycotted years.

Rono is a great choice - it was actually the only RACE he ever won on the international circuit, let alone title!

Patoulidou in 1992 should also feature - she never even ran another sprint hurdles race, switching to long jum instead. Shisigina (2000) does not seem a worthy gold medallist either.

[peach]

Shishigina ? She had a long and distinguished (if drug assisted) career

I think this topic is wrong- you did your best on the day against everyone facing the same conditions who COULD be there. I don't think its fair to say that.

Id rather pick the worst Olympic champions out of the numerous drug cheats who have spent their time cheating other athletes out of what is rightfully theirs...

[bambam]

... the 1980 400H gold medalist has to rank as an also ran in any fully attended fantasy championship that year.

Although agreed that the boycotted Olympics count a bit less, I would agree that Volker Beck has what I would call the most de-valued gold medal in Olympic history. I think Moses could have beaten him wearing a lead vest.

[knockout]

Certainly not the worst by any stretch of the imagination but surely the luckiest gold medallist i can remember was at the 2002 winter olympics in speed skating. I think all but one of the field fell over and the guy in last place came through to win? Bradbury was his name, Australian chap.

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/olympi ... retire_ap/

Sticking to T&F Rono is a great call... ironically beating Cram who many say was the best at the event not to win gold.

[knockout]

... the 1980 400H gold medalist has to rank as an also ran in any fully attended fantasy championship that year.

Although agreed that the boycotted Olympics count a bit less, I would agree that Volker Beck has what I would call the most de-valued gold medal in Olympic history. I think Moses could have beaten him wearing a lead vest.

Surely the Gold in the hammer in 1984 with Sedykh and Litvinov missing has a similar level of "de-value" as the 1980 400mH :-)

[Jon]

Nouriah Menah-Benida

[Daisy]

Nouria Mérah-Benida

Good call, I had to look her up with google.

[EPelle]

I believe Rono went back to the farms after retiring following the 1992 season (3.35,69). He never ran faster than #11 in the world (3.34,54 the year after Seoul), and broke 3.35 only one season. Yet he won OG in 1988.