The 2022 decision required what 1982 had not achieved: the consent of the Norwegian and Swedish families of the elevated athletes.

When those families provided that consent — indeed, when they actively affirmed that their predecessors had always considered Thorpe the true champion — the last obstacle to full reinstatement was removed.

The IOC framed the 2022 decision as the result of “an extraordinary gesture of fair play” by the national Olympic committees of Norway and Sweden and by the Wieslander and Bie families.

This framing is accurate, as far as it goes.