Carl Lewis named C.L.E.G., which markets and brands products and services including his own. Frederick Carlton Lewis was born in Birmingham, Alabama, on July 1, 1961, the son of William Lewis (1927–1987) and Evelyn née Lawler Lewis. His sister was a hurdler on the 1951 Pan-Am team. His parents ran a local athletics club that provided a crucial influence on both Carl and his sister Carol. She became an elite long jumper, finishing 9th at the 1984 Olympics and taking bronze at the 1983 World Championships. Lewis was initially coached by his father, who also coached other local athletes to elite status.
Carl Lewis run the anchor leg, which added to the debate. The final decision was to exclude Lewis from the team. Olympic team coach Erv Hunt said, "The basis of their [the relay team's] opinion was 'We want to run, we worked our butts off and we deserve to be here.'" The American relay team finished second behind Canada. Lewis retired from track and field in 1997. In 2003, Wade Exum, the United States Olympic Committee's director of drug control administration from 1991 to 2000, gave copies of documents to "Sports Illustrated" that revealed that some 100 American athletes failed drug tests