Carl Lewis 1996, Lewis qualified for the Olympic team in the long jump for the fifth time, the first time an American man has done so. At the Atlanta Olympics, injuries to world-record holder Mike Powell and the leading long-jumper in the world, Iván Pedroso, affected their performances. Lewis, on the other hand, was in good form. Though he did not match past performances, his third-round leap of won gold by over second-place finisher James Beckford of Jamaica. He became the third Olympian to win the same individual event four times (and one of only four), joining Danish sailor Paul Elvstrøm and
Carl Lewis was noted that he could become the athlete with the most Olympic gold medals if he entered the 4 × 100 m relay team. Any member of the American Olympic men's track and field team could be used, even if they had not qualified for the relay event. Lewis said, "If they asked me, I'd run it in a second. But they haven't asked me to run it." He further suggested on "Larry King Live" that viewers phone the United States Olympic Committee to weigh in on the situation. Lewis had skipped the mandatory relay training camp and demanded to