The world was humming "Don't Worry, Be Happy" to the tune of Bobby McFerrin's hit, and after 16 years and three boycotts the world was treated with a worry-free Olympic games. For those still not enlightened by this new world order, the anti-depressant drug Prozac appeared on the shelves. Unfortunately, different drugs, Ben Johnson's steroids made news in Seoul.
Things were changing in the Eastern Block with the aid of the Soviet Union leader Michael Gorbachov's famous perestroika. Soviet athletes were now being awarded rubles for gold medals, the equivalent of $19,000 for every Olympic title. This was news, and for the first time excited journalists could fax it to back to their homeland.