The American is widely considered one of the greatest track and field athletes of all time.

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Lewis, who turns 54 today, won a staggering 10 Olympic medals, including nine gold, and 10 World Championships medals, eight of them gold.

His stellar career spanned nearly two decades, starting from 1979. He called it a day after the 1996 Olympics.

Lewis dominated the sprint and long jump field and topped the world rankings in 100m, 200m and long jump in the 1980s and 1990s.

He set world records in the 100m, 4×100 m and 4×200 m relays, while his indoor long jump world record has stood since 1984.

His 65 consecutive wins in long jump, achieved over a period of 10 years, is one of sport’s longest undefeated streaks.

Over the course of his career, Lewis broke the 10-second barrier in 100m 15 times and 20s mark in 200m 10 times.

1957: Hannu Kamppuri, former NHL player and one of the first Finnish goaltenders to compete in the league (59).

1976: Ruud van Nistelrooy, retired Dutch footballer and and fourth-highest goalscorer in Champions League history (39).

1976: Patrick Kluivert, former Dutch footballer who played as a striker for Ajax, Milan and Barcelona (39).

1982: Joachim Johansson, former tennis player from Sweden who reached semi-finals of the 2004 US Open (33).