5 greatest athletes to never win an Olympic Gold Medal ft. Floyd Mayweather Pete Sampras 

By Animesh Pandey

Modified Jul 17, 2024 21:26 GMT

Who doesn't want an Olympic gold medal? That's like the cherry on the icing for any sportsperson around the world. Being on the coveted podium is an achievement in itself for some, and if you win the Olympic gold, you have unlocked the greatest achievement in any sport.

However, there are some sporting legends, especially from USA, who have almost every luxury in the world, except for an Olympic gold medal. No matter how many records they have broken, no matter how many World Championships they have won, an Olympic gold medal has always evaded them.

Here are some of the greatest sporting legends, who have never managed to win an Olympic gold medal, despite the best of their efforts:

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5 greatest athletes who could never win an Olympic gold medal ft. Floyd Mayweather Jr., Pete Sampras:

#5) Mike Tyson:

Mike Tyson, the legend who could never qualify for the Olympics [Image Source: Getty]

This World Boxing Champion has seen it all, from dizzying heights, to absolute lows.

However, did you know that Mike Tyson also aimed to compete at the Olympics? In 1984, when Tyson was just 17, he was the junior national champion, all set to represent USA at the Los Angeles Olympics. However, he lost to Henry Tillman during the trials.

Tillman later went on to win the Olympic gold medal in the heavyweight category that year.

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#4) Martina Navratilova:

Martina Navratilova of USA competing in the quarterfinals of Athens Olympics, 2004 [Image Source: Getty]

This tennis player is as great, if not better than the likes of Billie Jean King and Steffi Graf in the history of American tennis.

However, Martina Navratilova participated just once at the Olympics, at Athens in 2004. She paired up with Lisa Raymond, and the duo reached the quarterfinals. However, they ultimately lost to Shinobu Asagoe and Ai Sugiyama in a closely fought match.

#3) Tyson Gay:

Tyson Gay, one of the unluckiest Olympians [Image Source: Getty]

If there was a competition for being the unluckiest athlete in the Olympic history, Tyson Gay would have won the gold medal hands down.

In 2007, the American sprinter had won the 100 m, 200 m, and the 4x 100 m relay at the World Championships held in Osaka. This made him a strong candidate for the 100 m event at the Beijing Olympics.

However, little did Tyson Gay realize that there was a storm brewing in the form of Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt. The rest, as they say, is history.

Despite the best of his efforts, Tyson Gay could just never make it to the Olympic podium, let alone win the Olympic gold medal. The only medal he could manage was a silver medal in the 4 x 100 m relay event at London Olympics in 2012. However, when he was accused of doping, he was stripped of this only luxury as well.

#2) Pete Sampras:

Pete Sampras, the tennis legend who was never lucky at the Olympics [Image Source: Getty]

Can you imagine Usain Bolt not winning an Olympic gold medal at his peak, or even someone like Le Bron James failing to win the NBA/ World Championship for his team?

Well, Pete Sampras is that rare case. The tennis champion from Lake Sherwood, California has won a record 14 Grand Slam titles in his career, a record at the time of his retirement.

However, when it comes to Olympic glory, he has nothing to be proud of. Pete Sampras participated just once at Barcelona Olympics in 1992, and he never progressed beyond the third round. He was to participate at Atlanta Olympics in 1996, but he withdrew before the first round itself, later replaced by Richey Reneberg.

Guess who his opponent was? It was Leander Paes, who had entered the Atlanta edition as a wild card entry! Paes later went to win the bronze medal, the first individual medal for India in any Olympic event since Helsinki 1952.

#1) Floyd Mayweather Jr. :

Floyd Mayweather Jr. as an amateur boxer at the Atlanta Olympics [Image Source: Getty]

Not everyone is as lucky as Cassius Marcellus Clay, who won an Olympic gold medal on debut, and later became famous as Muhammad Ali, the professional boxing legend.

Some turn out to be like Floyd Mayweather Jr. as well. Before his iconic career as a professional, the boxer from Grand Rapids, Michigan, was a featherweight boxer, who competed at the Atlanta Olympics in 1996. In the quarterfinals, Floyd Mayweather Jr. had defeated Lorenzo Aragon of Cuba, the first American boxer to do so in the last 20 years. He was well on the course for a gold medal.

However, in the semifinals, he was defeated by Serafim Todorov in a controversial decision by the jury. This caused a huge uproar, but Floyd Mayweather Jr. was forced to settle for a bronze medal. It was after this loss that Floyd Mayweather Jr. switched to professional boxing.