The American team finished the Olympic games atop the medal standings. They received 39 gold, 25 silver, and 33 bronze medals total. Second and third place in the total medal standings were Russia and China respectively. The Olympics have concluded, with exciting competition, and controversy related to drug charges.
Track and field was the major event in the second week of the Olympics. American athletes that were expected to do very well in track and field this year include Maurice Greene and Marion Jones. Greene won gold in the 100-meters, and as part of the 4 x 100 meter relay team. Marion Jones had sought to be the first athlete to win five track and field gold medals in one Olympics. She had won gold in both the 100 and 200-meter races. But, she had to settle for a bronze medal in the long jump. She received a bronze medal in the 4x100 meter relay and a gold as part of the 4x400 meter relay team. She did become the first female track athlete to receive five medals in one Olympics.
Many of the team sports at the Games have continued into the second week. In soccer, the American men finished without a medal, losing the bronze medal game to Chile 2-0. In the gold medal Cameroon beat Spain by a score of 7-5. The women's team lost to Norway in the gold medal game, and had to settle for silver. In baseball, the American team won gold over the Cuban team 4-0. It was considered an upset for the Americans, who won their first gold medal in baseball in Olympic competition. The players on the baseball team are mostly minor-league players.
In softball, the American team won gold over Japan 2-1. Before the Olympics, the Americans had enjoyed a 49-game international winning streak. Once in Sydney the Americans dropped three games in extra innings, including a game against Japan. They barely made the final, and then came back to win gold. In basketball, both the men and women's teams advanced to the finals. The men's team reached the final after having two close calls with the Lithuanian team. The men's team beat France 85-75 for the gold medal. The women's team beat Australia 76-54 to win the gold.
During the Sydney Games, several athletes had tested positive for banned substances. The entire Bulgarian weightlifting team was thrown out of the Games after three of its athletes tested positive for a banned substance. Two high profile cases were those of American C.J. Hunter and Romanian Andreea Raducan. The International Olympic Committee (IOC) said that Hunter tested positive for a banned steroid four times this year. Hunter is the husband of Marion Jones. Hunter had dropped out of the Games, citing a knee injury. Raducan lost her gold medal in the women's individual all-around because the cold medicine she had been given contained a banned substance. The team doctor who gave the cold medicine to Raducan has been banned from the remainder of these Games, the 2002 Winter Olympics, and the 2004 Summer Olympics.
The Closing Ceremony of the 2000 Summer Olympics was held on Sunday, October 1st. The Closing Ceremony featured music performed by many Australian music stars, including Savage Garden and Men at Work. There was a parade of famous Australians including model Elle MacPherson, golfer Greg Norman, and "Crocodile Dundee" actor Paul Hogan. The highlight of the night was the river of fire with a fireworks display stretching from Stadium Australia in the suburbs of Sydney to its world-famous Harbour Bridge.