'The next morning,' Lakatos says, 'swear to God, the entire women's 4x100 relay team of some Scandinavian-looking country walks out of the house, followed by boys from our side.

The first to claim space that night were some Team USA track and field fellas.

So while Lakatos claimed a first-floor suite for himself, the remaining rooms were there for the taking. The only thing missing is privacy - nearly everyone is stuck with a roommate. Popping up once every two years, the Olympic Village is a boisterous city within a city: chock-full of condos, midrises and houses as well as cafés, barbershops, arcades, discos and TV lounges. Within hours, word of the nearly vacant property had spread. So he asked the maid at the emptied-out dwelling if she'd kindly look the other way as he jimmied the lock. He knew from his experience four years earlier in Atlanta, where he'd won silver, that the Olympic Village was just about to erupt into a raucous party, and there was no way he was going to miss it. Olympic Committee and team officials had ordered them to turn in the keys to their three-story house and head back to the States. Halfway through the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, he and his rifle-toting teammates were finished with their events, and the U.S. You have reached a degraded version of because you're using an unsupported version of Internet Explorer.įor a complete experience, please upgrade or use a supported browserĪMERICAN TARGET SHOOTER Josh Lakatos faced a conundrum.

Bonfires by Amy Lane