September 11, 2000
Chasing five gold medals, Marion Jones was a media darling poised for glory in Sydney. She was confident but maintained a coolness about her, and it paid off. She was handsomely rewarded with three golds and two bronzes, an unprecedented feat for a female track star. TIME’s cover story highlighted her sprinting talent, while poking fun at earlier scandal:
“When Jones is slow out of the blocks, she wins. When she’s fast, there’s no contest. Her rivals are left without solutions, short of finding a Tonya Harding among them to execute some kneecapping.”
Perhaps it was a self-fulfilling prophecy, though? During the games, as Jones shot to glory, her shot-putter husband C.J. Hunter failed a drug test, showing elevated steroid levels. Jones’ tests were clean, and she denied ever using steroids. But as the investigation deepened, her history of enhancement use emerged. She admitted her wrongdoings, including a perjury charge, and served six months in jail. Most tellingly, though, her medals were repossessed by the U.S. Olympic Committee, as her actions constituted cheating, though they weren’t proven at the time.