Listed 8 sub titles with search on: Olympic games for wider area of: "GERMANY Country EUROPE" .
BERLIN (Town) GERMANY
The 1936 Berlin Olympics was the subject-problem of many discussions
among several national Olympic Committees as to whether they should or should
not accept Hitler's National Socialistic Government's invitation, a government
that did not hide its racistic beliefs.
Berlin is the place where at first we see the Olympic flame
inaugurated, the torch brought to Germany by a series of successive runners
from Ancient Olympia - 3000 runners, through seven countries, in ten days.
All the loud theatrics that could be thought of were used by Hitler's
PR team. The team also arranged for Spiros Louis, the Greek marathon gold winner
to be there. Louis approached Hitler's box and gave the dictator a branch of
wild olive-tree, brought from Olympia. Thousands of doves were released to the
sky the instant Adolph's hand held the olive branch, while the famous Richard
Strauss conducted the Great Berlin Philharmonic in a triumphal percussion march
and while, at the same time, the gigantic Hindemburg airship shadowed, with
her huge bulk, the sky above the stadium. And that was the cue for the German
Olympic Team to enter the stadium running in front of the 3rd Reich dignitaries
with their hands in Nazi salute.
Other teams followed and most of them gave the Nazi salute. Americans
and Britishers, stood and politely... bowed. A gesture that caused a lot of
booeing from the crowd.
The Berlin Olympiad remained known as the Jesse Owens Games. And
not unjustly. Owens's performance, the previous years, prognosed a sure winner
for, at least, two golds in Berlin. German propaganda rejected this on the grounds
that Owens was black and, therefore, inferior to the Arian Race athletes, a
theory that was repeatedly appearing in Hitler's Mein Kampf, a book that was
part of every German household.
The first German disappointment came the first day of the 100m
and 200m races. First winner: Jesse Owens. Second disappointment was the next
day with Owens winning first victory again in the long jump. All this became
an anger when Owens led the American 4x100m. relay to a dashing victory. Hitler
had, according to rules, to shake hands with a negro. On the pretext of sudden
rain, he left the stadium and never returned to watch the rest of the Games...
Text by Dimitri N. Marcopoulos
Berlin 1936
Links with various Organizations' WebPages:
The Olympic Movement
American Sport Art Museum and Archives , a division of the United States Sports Academy
International Sailing Federation
Berlin 1936
Links with various Media's WebPages:
Australian Broadcasting Corporation
British Broadcasting Corporation
1936 Berlin Olympics: Various WebPages
MUNCHEN (Town) GERMANY
Having awarded the Games since 1966, the Germans built a magnificent
complex on the rubble of World War II bombings on Munich. An ideal combination
of athletes' residential quarters and competition fields, at a cost of $ 650
million. New electronic measuring devices appeared for the first time. Among
these a new measuring method based on trigonometry for the throwing events.
Star of the Games was unanimously voted the Californian dentist
Mark Spitz, who dominated the swimming events and who smashed all records for
a single Games appearance, winning seven gold medals. With his medals from Mexico
City, Spitz held a total on nine golds, one silver, and one bronze.
Soviet Valeriy Borzov became the first European to win a men's
sprint double. However the outstanding attraction of the first days was Olga
Korbut, the Russian charming young lady whose gamine qualities stole the show.
Virtually overnight, with blanket media coverage, Olga became an international
superstar of the gymnastics.
All seem to be under happy way when, on September 5, at 4.40' in
the morning all the happiness seemed to evaporate. Five Black September men
climbed the Village fence and entered the building at No. 41 of Konnollystrasse,
where the Israeli wrestling team was residing. In a few moments and under a
general alert situation that erupted, they announced that they'd execute all
Israeli wrestlers unless some Palestinian prisoners in Israel were set free.
To prove their intention they execute one of the team's trainers and throw his
body out in the street. At 10.30', while negotiations have already began between
German and Israeli authorities, the terrorists demand and are granted a helicopter
to take them out of Munich. They end up in an abandoned airfield in West Munich.
At 12.30' the Israeli authorities send their negative and final answer. Negotiations,
now, between terrorists and German authorities are being held personally by
Hans Dietrich Genscher. The terrorists insist in their initial demand. Hours
of silence and agony will follow. The drama is being watched by millions of
TV viewers around the world. Then an abortive rescue attempt resulted in the
murder of all nine Israeli wrestlers and the death of some of their captors.
The youngest Israeli wrestler was a boy of 17... Mark Spitz left before the
games ended. Before boarding his plane: "I feel disgusted. I'm leaving the Games,
not because I am a Jew, but because I am still human..."
Text by Dimitri N. Marcopoulos
Munich 1972
Links with various Organizations' WebPages:
The Olympic Movement
American Sport Art Museum and Archives , a division of the United States Sports Academy
International Sailing Federation
Munich 1972
Links with various Media's WebPages:
Australian Broadcasting Corporation
British Broadcasting Corporation
1972 Munich Olympics: Various WebPages
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