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On this day in history, September 27, 1988, Carl Lewis wins gold medal at Olympics after Ben Johnson doping scandal

Ben Johnson was stripped of his gold medal after testing positive for stanozolol after which it was awarded to Carl Lewis

SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA: On September 27, 1988, Canadian sprinter Ben Johnson was disqualified from the Seoul Olympics 100 meters after the steroid stanozolol was detected in his urine sample, resulting in American Carl Lewis winning the gold medal and a world record of 9.92.

The Canadian sprinter won gold in the Summer Olympics on September 24, 1988, finishing the 100-meter dash in 9.79 seconds.

Johnson's victory was short-lived, however. Three days later, he tested positive for steroids, and the award was revoked.

American Carl Lewis was elevated to gold, with Britain's Linford Christie claiming silver and another American, Calvin Smith, receiving bronze.

What did Ben Johnson do in 1988?

Johnson won the 100-meter final at the Summer Olympics in Seoul on September 24, 1988, breaking his own world record of 9.79 seconds. He was the first Canadian sprinter to win the 100m at the Olympics since Percy Williams in 1928.

What happened to Ben Johnson's Olympic record?

On September 24, Johnson positioned up in lane 6 for the 100-meter final, Carl Lewis in lane 3, and fellow competitor Linford Christie of Great Britain in lane 4.

Lewis was known for his closing speed and established an American record—a non-wind-aided 9.92 seconds—in the event, but he simply couldn't catch up and finished many full strides behind Johnson.

After the race, Johnson told reporters, "The important thing was to beat Carl. That was my main goal, not the world record. Just to beat Carl Lewis to win," per History.

Johnson reportedly tested positive for steroids on September 27. He denied using steroids on purpose, instead alleging that a herbal drink he was given prior to the race was tainted.

The International Olympic Committee declined to accept Johnson's clarification, and the gold medal was awarded to Carl Lewis.

What did Ben Johnson test positive for?

Johnson failed the drug test when traces of the banned steroid stanozolol were discovered in his system. And then the delegation arrived in his room. Johnson returned the medal to the IOC, much to his mother's chagrin. One International Olympic Committee (IOC) official there compared the situation to a "wake."

"I can't watch it because of what happened to me, you know?" Johnson said, per CNN.

Why is the 1988 Olympic 100m final called the dirtiest race in history?

Following Johnson's disqualification, five of the other seven competitors in the race—including Lewis and Britain's Linford Christie, who was elevated to the silver medal position—tested positive or were found to have used or supplied performance-enhancing drugs.

Desai Williams, Johnson's previous training partner, who had placed sixth in that race in the capital of South Korea, was one of them. 

Williams was one of the athletes instructed by Charlie Francis who acknowledged using performance-enhancing substances as a result of Johnson's positive test. Because of this, Richard More called it "the dirtiest race in history."

Who was Ben Johnson's coach?

When Ben Johnson was a teenager, his family relocated from Jamaica to the suburbs of Toronto.

Shortly after, he started sprinting with the Scarborough Optimists track and field club, under the guidance of Canadian Charlie Francis, the national track and field coach.

Johnson made it to the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, finishing third in the 100 meters with a time of 10.22 seconds, less than three-tenths of a second behind American gold medalist Carl Lewis. 

Was Carl Lewis faster than Usain Bolt?

Carl Lewis was an amazing athlete, but his fastest recorded time in the 100m was 9.86 seconds, which he ran on August 25, 1991, at the National Stadium in Tokyo, Japan.

Usain Bolt, on the other hand, holds the current world record for the 100m with a timing of 9.58 seconds, which he recorded at the 2009 World Championships in Berlin, World Athletics.

While both athletes are extremely fast, Usain Bolt's 100m record time is faster than Carl Lewis' best time.