15 Olympic photos taken at the perfect time

Talia LakritzJul 17, 2021, 00:23 IST

Usain Bolt.Kai Pfaffenbach/Reuters

Fractions of a second can make the difference when photographing Olympic events.
These photos show the moment athletes pulled ahead to win gold, as well as perfectly-angled shots.
The Tokyo Summer Olympics will take place from July 23 to August 8.

Bob Beamon soared through the air as he broke the long jump world record at the 1968 Olympics in Mexico.

Bob Beamon. Douglas Miller/Keystone/Getty Images

Sprinter Florence Griffith Joyner celebrated her gold medal win in 1988 in South Korea.

Florence Griffith-Joyner. Russell Cheyne/Allsport/Getty Images

One vault stood between the US women's gymnastics team winning gold at the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta.

Kerri Strug. Mike Powell/Getty Images

Chinese diver Hu Jia competed at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney with a perfectly positioned dive.

Hu Jia. Yannis Behrakis/Reuters

Stephon Marbury of the US didn't look thrilled about Argentina's win in the men's basketball semifinals at the 2004 Olympics in Athens.

Stephon Marbury (right), Carlos Delfino (second from the left) and Walter Herrmann (third from the left). Kimimasa Mayama GMH/Reuters

Argentina's Federico Sztyrle and his horse Who Knows Lilly were perfectly in sync at the Athens Olympics.

Federico Sztyrle. Caren Firouz/Reuters

Photographer Shaun Best captured Belarus runner Yuliya Nesterenko's victory in the women's 100 meter final in 2004.

Yuliya Nesterenko. Shaun Best/Reuters

The US men's swimming team pulled off a shocking come-from-behind victory in the 4x100 meter freestyle relay at the 2008 Olympics.

Michael Phelps and Garrett Weber-Gale. David Gray/Reuters

In a photo worthy of a gold medal, the full moon rose through the Olympic Rings hanging beneath Tower Bridge during the London 2012 Olympics.

The London Olympics. Luke MacGregor/Reuters

Photographer Dominic Ebenbichler captured the moment Micronesia's Manuel Minginfel dropped his weights in the men's weightlifting competition at the 2012 Olympic Games in London.

Manuel Minginfel. Dominic Ebenbichler/Reuters

Photographer Dominic Ebenbichler captured the moment Micronesia's Manuel Minginfel dropped his weights in the men's weightlifting competition at the 2012 Olympic Games in London.

Britain's Mo Farah reacted as he won the men's 5000 meter final at the London 2012 Olympic Games.

Mo Farah. Lucy Nicholson/Reuters

At the 2016 Rio Olympics, Egypt and Germany faced off in women's beach volleyball in an image Reuters named one of its Pictures of the Decade.

Doaa Elghobashy and Kira Walkenhorst. Lucy Nicholson/Reuters

This photo of Usain Bolt smiling as he raced ahead to win the Men's 100-Meter Semifinals at the 2016 Rio Olympics became one of Reuters' most-liked Instagram photos of the year.

Usain Bolt. Kai Pfaffenbach/Reuters

This photo of Usain Bolt smiling as he raced ahead to win the Men's 100-Meter Semifinals at the 2016 Rio Olympics became one of Reuters' most-liked Instagram photos of the year.

At the all-around rhythmic gymnastics final of the London Olympics, Marcelo Del Pozo captured this surreal moment mid-routine.

Rhythmic gymnastics. Marcelo Del Pozo/Reuters

At the 2016 Olympics, Simone Biles flipped on the balance beam with perfect form.

Simone Biles. Alex Livesey/Getty Images

The most famous Olympian from every state

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15 Olympic photos taken at the perfect time

Bob Beamon soared through the air as he broke the long jump world record at the 1968 Olympics in Mexico.

Sprinter Florence Griffith Joyner celebrated her gold medal win in 1988 in South Korea.

One vault stood between the US women's gymnastics team winning gold at the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta.

Chinese diver Hu Jia competed at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney with a perfectly positioned dive.

Stephon Marbury of the US didn't look thrilled about Argentina's win in the men's basketball semifinals at the 2004 Olympics in Athens.

Argentina's Federico Sztyrle and his horse Who Knows Lilly were perfectly in sync at the Athens Olympics.

Photographer Shaun Best captured Belarus runner Yuliya Nesterenko's victory in the women's 100 meter final in 2004.

The US men's swimming team pulled off a shocking come-from-behind victory in the 4x100 meter freestyle relay at the 2008 Olympics.

In a photo worthy of a gold medal, the full moon rose through the Olympic Rings hanging beneath Tower Bridge during the London 2012 Olympics.

Photographer Dominic Ebenbichler captured the moment Micronesia's Manuel Minginfel dropped his weights in the men's weightlifting competition at the 2012 Olympic Games in London.

Britain's Mo Farah reacted as he won the men's 5000 meter final at the London 2012 Olympic Games.

At the 2016 Rio Olympics, Egypt and Germany faced off in women's beach volleyball in an image Reuters named one of its Pictures of the Decade.

This photo of Usain Bolt smiling as he raced ahead to win the Men's 100-Meter Semifinals at the 2016 Rio Olympics became one of Reuters' most-liked Instagram photos of the year.

At the all-around rhythmic gymnastics final of the London Olympics, Marcelo Del Pozo captured this surreal moment mid-routine.

At the 2016 Olympics, Simone Biles flipped on the balance beam with perfect form.