In one of the most unusual decisions in the history of Olympic boxing Edward Sanders of the United States was awarded the heavyweight gold after his final opponent, Ingemar Johansson refrained from throwing a single punch and was disqualified. Evidently Johansson was trying to avoid contact with the massive Sanders. Initially his disqualification denied him the honor of receiving the silver medal. This decision was overturned 30 years later. It was however Johansson, not Sanders who in 1959 became professional heavyweight champion of the world.

	Ademar Ferreira da Silva of Brazil put on an amazing display of jumping skill, breaking his world record four times in six attempts on route to his first of two consecutive triple-jump gold medals. He later became a movie star in Brazil. His best-known movie was Black Orpheus in which he played "Death".

Viktor Chukarin, a Ukrainian Soviet, overcame four years of hardship as a prisoner of war during World War II, to become one of the greatest Olympic gymnasts ever. In 1952 and 1956 he won back-to-back all-around individual championships, and collected a total of 11 Olympic medals.