The Opals fell short against Team USA,the Indomitable Lions won an unforgettable football final and more gold for the world's fastest man on this day 20 years ago.
The good feeling of the Olympics dissipated faster than sprinters hurtling down the track.
Former Herald photographer Steve Christo was part of a brilliant Fairfax team at the Sydney Olympics. Here he selects his six favourite pictures.
Day 13:The Hockeyroos take gold,the Opals set up their shot at the Americans,and a champion is beaten in an upset at the track and field.
There were a few highs for Australia but it's one heartbreaking low that has got the nation talking.
"Who the hell is Kon?"the chief reporter asked,as if what we had just seen was somehow my fault. The first white man in a generation had just won an Olympic sprint final. And it was my job to find out who this mystery man was.
Day 11:They may have been dubbed the'tainted'Games but nothing can take the shine off Lauren Burns'gold medal after victory in the taekwondo tournament.
Dallas Kilponen,part of the photographic team at Fairfax covering the Sydney Olympic Games,looks back on his favourite images from the event.
Day 11:The American track star presented a united front with her husband,the Kookaburras reach the semis,and illness strikes the Opals
Craig Golding is a multi-award winning sports photographer who covered the Sydney Olympics for Fairfax. Here he selects his six favourite photos from the 2000 Games and explains the story behind them.
For once,the great American sprinter Michael Johnson would have to vacate centre stage as a nation focused on one athlete as never before.