Spotlight on History
The Olympics
As we eagerly await the start of the Summer Olympics in Tokyo (July 23 – August 8, 2021), the LDMA is highlighting the stories of past Louisiana Olympians in July. Explore the stories of Louisiana athletes and coaches who have competed for Team USA and made us cheer!
Willie Davenport (1964 - 1980)
Watch a 1983 Louisiana Legends interview with the 5-time Olympian, who won a gold medal in 1968 and a bronze medal in 1976 in the 110m hurdles.
Special Olympics (1983)
Watch Louisiana: The State We’re In’s coverage of the 1983 Special Olympics held on the Louisiana State University (LSU) campus in Baton Rouge.
Hollis Conway (1988, 1992)
View a 2017 Louisiana Legends interview with the 2-time Olympian who won a silver medal in 1988 and a bronze medal in 1992 in the high jump.
Skip Bertman (1996)
See a 2011 Louisiana Legends interview with the former LSU baseball coach who led Team USA to a bronze medal in the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta.
Warren Morris (1996)
Watch a 2011 interview from Louisiana: The State We’re In with the former LSU baseball player who won a bronze medal as a member of the Team USA baseball team in 1996.
Gayle Hatch (2004)
View a 2012 Louisiana Legends interview with the head coach of Team USA’s men’s weightlifting team at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens.
Carly Patterson (2004)
See an interview with the 2004 women’s gymnastics all-around gold medalist as a young gymnast at Elite Gymnastics in Baton Rouge in this 1999 episode of Enviro-Tacklebox.