ATHENS - Team USA put on an impressive display Thursday night at Olympic Stadium, winning five medals in two events and having two awe-inspiring qualifying-round performances.

Shawn Crawford, Bernard Williams and Justin Gatlin went 1-2-3 in the men's 200 meters, and Dwight Phillips and John Moffitt took the top two spots in the men's long jump to tack five medals onto the U.S. total. With two days of competition remaining, Team USA already has won 18 medals. Upcoming finals in events such as the men's pole vault, women's long jump, men's 110m hurdles, men's javelin and all four relays bodes well for the possibility of surpassing the 20 medals won in 2000 at Sydney.

Phillips (Mesa, Ariz.) added an Olympic gold medal to his 2003 world title in the long jump, winning the competition on his first attempt. Soaring 8.59m/28-2.5 mere moments after the competition began at 8:15 p.m., he was just .01 off his personal best set earlier this month. Fouls on his next two jumps and two passes due to a slight ankle injury did nothing to keep Phillips from the top of the medal podium.

Moffitt (Baton, Rouge, La.) had a career-best, and career-making, day. He jumped 8.28m/27-2 on his second attempt to come within 1 cm of his personal best, moving him into second for a short time before he was bumped down to fourth. Undaunted, the 23-year-old LSU student soared 8.47m/27-9.5 on his fifth jump for a huge improvement and a second-place finish. Joan Lino Martinez of Span placed third with 8.32m/27-3-7.5.

The 1-2 performance was especially sweet for Phillips, who in Sydney was Team USA's lone finalist in the long jump, placing eighth. Four years later, it was all USA, all the time in the long jump pit.

It likewise was all USA in the men's 200 meters. Crawford (Raleigh, N.C.), Gatlin (Raleigh, N.C.) and Williams (Gainesville, Fla.) all had looked strong in the rounds and poised for a sweep. But a 10-15 minute delay in the start of the race due to excessive crowd noise added an element of the unknown.

The Americans were unaffected. Crawford entered the straight in first place and never relinquished the lead, winning in a career best and world-leading time of 19.79. Williams, a 2000 gold medalist in the 4x100m relay, moved from third to second in the final meters to nip Gatlin in 20.01. 100 meter gold medalist Gatlin, like Crawford running his eighth race of the meet, was third in 20.02.

It was the sixth sweep for Team USA in the men's 200m in Olympic history, and the first since 1984. It also marked the first time since 1904 that the U.S. swept both the 200 and 400 meters at the Olympic Games.

In Thursday's other final, James Carter (Hampton, Va.) led the 400 meters with 80 meters to go but finished fourth in 48.58 seconds. World champion Felix Sanchez of the Dominican Republic lived up to his favorite's role with a 47.63 win. Danny McFarlane of Jamaica was second in 48.11, and Naman Keita of France was third in 48.26. American Bennie Brazell was eighth in 49.51.

Greer, women's 4x100m impress

It was one and done for American record holder Breaux Greer (Athens, Ga.) in men's javelin qualifying. The two-time Olympic Trials champion chucked the spear 87.25m/286-3 on his first throw to post the best mark in qualifying and easily surpass the automatic standard of 81.00m/265- 09. His throw was just 14 cm off his American record - a remarkable feat for a single qualifying throw, done on a torn ACL ligament in his knee - and was the #2 American performance of all time.

The women's 4x100m relay was even more dominant. Running out of lane 1 in the first semifinal race, Angela Williams, Marion Jones, Lauryn Williams and LaTasha Colander tied their own 2004 world-leading mark of 41.67 seconds. Bahamas, the 2000 Olympic gold medalists, were second in the race in 43.02 - a startling 1.3 seconds back. Russia won heat 2 in 42.12 seconds, still nearly a half-second behind the Americans.

Angela Williams (Ontario, Calif.) got out to the quick start she is known for and executed a perfect handoff to Jones (Cary, N.C.). In fact, smooth handoffs were the rule on all four legs. On the second leg, Jones served notice that her sub-par sprint performance of the Olympic Trials is long past, streaking past her competitors. More smooth sailing by Lauryn Williams (Miami, Fla.) put the U.S. out so far ahead that Colander (Garner, N.C.) couldn't see, feel or hear the teams behind her.

The men's 110m hurdles semifinal was a 50-50 affair as 2000 Olympic silver medalist and 2004 Olympic Trials champion Terrence Trammell placed second in his heat in 13.17 to advance to Saturday's final. Duane Ross (Garner, N.C.) was fourth in the first heat in 13.30, missing the final by one place.

Amy Acuff (Austin, Texas) will jump in the women's high jump final, thanks to an automatic-qualifying clearance of 1.95m/6-4.75 on her second attempt. Tisha Waller (Atlanta, Ga.) cleared 1.89m/6-2.25 and Chaunte Howard (Atlanta, Ga.) cleared 1.85/6-0.75 as neither woman advanced.

Carrie Tollefson (Minneapolis, Minn.) was ninth in the second women's 1,500m semifinal heat in 4:08.55. She did not advance to the final. Jonathan Johnson (Lubbock, Tex.) was eighth in his semifinal of the men's 800m in 1:50.10 and did not adv ance.