Aside from winning six championships in the NBA, Michael Jordan is also the proud owner of two Olympic gold medals.
Jordan played on two U.S. Olympic teams. He was part of the last amateur team to win the gold medal in 1984 and was also a member of the first NBA-led American team to conquer the Olympics in 1992.
While every American basketball player wants to represent the United States at the Olympics , Jordan had an extra motivation to bring home the gold for his country, one that he had carried with him since he was a little kid.
"I remember Michael walking into the kitchen at age nine and saying that Russia had won," recalled Mike's mom, Deloris. "He said, 'I'm going to be in the Olympics one day, and I'm going to make sure we win.' I smiled to myself and said, 'Honey, that takes a lot to win the gold medal.' But he never lost that dream."
Mike fulfilled his promise to his mom
Like every American watching the 1972 Olympics, young Michael was disappointed to see his country lose the gold medal matchup against the Soviet Union.
Entering that championship game, the Americans won seven consecutive gold medals and were undefeated 63-0 in the Olympic competition. But in a controversial ending, the Soviets won.
However, after the Americans boycotted the 1980 Moscow games, Jordan knew they had to reclaim basketball supremacy in the 1984 Summer Games in Los Angeles. As a 19-year-old college basketball superstar, he led the Americans to the promised land and fulfilled his promise to his mother.
"Mr. Jordan kept sending notes to the security guard to let Michael know we made it," Mrs. Jordan added. "But we weren't sure he knew. Then, after the game, he ran up, picked me up off the floor, put me up on a chair, put the gold medal around my neck, and said, 'Mama, this is a dream come true.'"
Related: "You can play just 10 minutes a game" - How Magic Johnson convinced Larry Bird and Michael Jordan to play in the 1992 Olympics
Jordan suited up again in 1992
However, the Americans' reign at the top was short-lived. With Jordan moving to the NBA, another set of college stars represented Team USA in the 1988 Seoul Olympics. Unfortunately, that team lost to the Soviet Union 82-76 in the semifinals and had to settle for the bronze medal.
Needing to get the U.S. back to the top, Jordan suited up for Team USA again. Dubbed the Dream Team , the 1992 U.S. men's basketball squad is still considered the best squad ever assembled. Led by Jordan, then the best basketball player on the planet, they swept their eight Olympic games and won by a stunning margin of 43.8 points, the highest ever in the history of the games.
MJ declined to suit up again in 1996, but by leading two Olympic teams in reclaiming gold for the Americans, he is considered by many as basketball's Captain America. Unfortunately, he never got a chance to avenge the 1972 and 1988 teams' losses to the Soviet Union because the country was dissolved in 1991.
Related: Michael Jordan on playing point guard for the Dream Team: "I told the players before the game I'm not Magic Johnson"
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