Despite pressure from Great Britain’s Adam Peaty, the US team set a new world record in the men’s 4x100m medley relay to defend their gold medal, a medal they had won at every Olympic Games except Moscow in 1980, when the US boycotted the Games following Russia’s invasion of Afghanistan. But what’s perhaps most interesting about this image is what you can’t see: Due to restrictions imposed by the pandemic, the stadium was empty of spectators, with only masked staff and athletes on the sidelines. Postponed for a year and enjoyed from the safe distance of our living rooms, the Tokyo 2020 Olympic torch brought a welcome light to a dark period in our history.
The Last Heroes: 100 Legendary Olympic Moments The work by Olivier Margaux and Etienne Bonamy is published by Assouline.
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