This is true, but it's hard to argue against Lewis as the greatest and/or at least make a strong case for him.
Doper, and proven. Haile, Usain, Johnson not proven dopers.
Maybe. Still doesn't eliminate the reality he was the most well known and popular athlete in track and field when track and field was at it's most relevant as a global sport.
With respect to HG, UB and MJ - "not proven" dopers? You really want to die on that hill?
Didn’t Lewis have a positive test result hushed up?
ephedrine and pseudoephedrine.
It was more than that. That was just from one test before the ‘88 games. Read all the material and interviews available with Dr. Hexum. Lewis was a walking chemical factory, steroids, stimulants, you name it. At one of the Pepsi meets back in the 80s at UCLA I was right next to Lewis for a few minutes and the amount of acne covering his body was actually disturbing. I was definitely not the only one who noticed either.
People, it's LITERALLY just a tabulation of all-time rankings points, year by year, event by event. There's no judgment (in the big picture), no GOAT assumptions. Obviously, longevity and multiple events helps ... Lewis and Geb are always going to have more rankings points than Bubka or Mondo. Doesn't necessarily mean they're greater.
I love lists like that ... just don't make it mean more than it means.
I saw Carl run the 100 at the Pre meet in 1982. Early season, pedestrian time, but still he was magnificent. The crowd went APESHlT -- OK, so he was a better long jumper than a sprinter. But the dude had charisma. What a performance.
I guess Salazar paced Centro Sr. to an AR 5000 in the same meet. Not a bad day.