06 January 2012 18:30 | By Lee Harvey
Iconic Olympic moments

A selection of the most unforgettable images in the history of the summer Games

Iconic Olympics moments (© Getty Images)
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  • Iconic Olympics moments (© Getty Images)
  • Usain Bolt starts his celebration before the finish of the 100m final in Beijing (© Pedro Ugarte - AFP/Getty Images)
  • Cyclist Sir Chris Hoy sprints his way to three gold medals in the 2008 Games (© Quinn Rooney - Getty Images)
  • Dame Kelly Holmes celebrates as she crosses the finish line to win the women's 1,500m final in Athens in 2004 (© Andy Lyons - Getty Images)
  • Australian Cathy Freeman takes gold in the the women's 400m final at the Sydney Games (© The Sydney Morning Herald/Fairfax Media/Getty Images)
  • Matthew Pinsent hugs Sir Steven Redgrave after winning the men's coxless four final at the Sydney Games (© Mike Hewitt-Getty Images Sport-Getty Images)
  • Muhammad Ali holds the torch aloft before lighting the Olympic flame during the opening ceremony of the 1996 Olympic Games (© Michael Cooper-Getty Images Sport-Getty Images)
  • Michael Johnson celebrates as he runs by the stadium clock (showing his time of 19.32 seconds) after shattering the world record and winning the men's 200m final at the Atlanta Games (© Mike Blake - Reuters)
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Throughout the history of the Olympics, photos of victorious, defeated, injured and sometimes even disgraced athletes have come to represent the definitive imagery of a given Olympiad.

From Usain Bolt's pre-finish celebration in Beijing to Jesse Owens sprinting and leaping his way to an historic haul of four gold medals in Berlin in 1936, we present a selection of iconic Olympics images.

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