'96 Atlanta Olympics: Artist Recounts The Birth Of 'Izzy'

Caption

One of the earliest sketches of Izzy, known as Hi-Rez at the time, by John Ryan.

One of the strangest aspects of Atlanta's 1996 Olympics was the mascot chosen to represent the games. Izzy, the controversial mascot, was met with a wave of criticism during the games and is still remembered as a large disappointment. John Ryan is credited as the creator of the mascot, but he tells us what happened to Izzy is not his fault.