Olympic Series

Olympics – 1972 Munich

Twenty six years after the Berlin Games – remembered with such horror – Germany became the setting for a hostage situation. Once more the Games showed that, despite themselves, they were the perfect reflection of their time.

These Games were to be the greatest ever; Germany was determined to erase the shadow cast by the Berlin Games. Yet the nightmare that unfolded on the night of Tuesday 5 September made the Munich Olympics synonymous with fear. Masked Palestinian gunmen forced their way into the building in the Olympic Village housing the Israeli delegation, taking athletes and officials hostage and murdering two in cold blood.

For the first time in the history of the Olympics, the Olympic truce had been violated. The tragedy culminated in a shootout at the airport where the Palestinians had planned to escape with their Israeli hostages. Nine more Israelis, five Palestinians and a police officer perished. By comparison, Mark Spitz’s seven Gold medals seemed meaningless and so too did the performances of two remarkable sixteen – year – olds, high jumper Ulrike Meyfarth and gymnast Olga Korbut. The 640 kg lifted by the indomitable Soviet weightlifter Vassily Alekseyev, the cap worn by the exuberant David Wottle in the 800 meters, and the laughter of the magical Ugandan Akii Bua, 400 meters hurdle Gold medalist, could do nothing to relieve the sense of shock.

In the words of IOC President Avery Brundage, “Peace must prevail over violence”. So the Games went on. East Germany and the USSR pushed Americans to the limit and the Finns challenged the dominance of their African counterparts. Yet sport paled into insignificance in the face of tragedy, described as a tragedy in paradise by 1956 Olympic discus champion Olga Connolly, an intimate witness to the terror. September 1972 was a black month indeed.

2.16 am: It’s Gone Badly Wrong 

On the morning of 05 September, gunmen belonging to the Palestinian faction Black September burst into the Israeli pavilion in the Olympic Village. Never before had murder been committed in the Olympic Village. Palestinian terrorists stormed the Israeli apartment building at 31 Connoly Strasse, killing wrestling trainer Moshe Weinberger and weightlifter Yossef Romano. By the next morning nine more Israelis had died. The Fedayeen had taken hostage members of the Israeli delegation and made a demand for the release of Palestinian detainees in Israel, with a threat to shoot the hostages if their demand was not met. At 9.39 am the kayak – canoe heats were held and at 10.39 am Avery Brundage, the President of the IOC announced that the ‘Games must go on’. At 3.39 pm the Egyptian basketball team refused to play their match against the Phillipines and the Games were suspended until 10 am the following day. The rescue operation mounted by the German police went horribly wrong and all the nine hostages were killed along with four Palestinians.

An Emotional Ceremony at The Olympic Stadium

The delegations slowly entered the Olympic stadium, which should have rung with the sounds of athletic competition. Only sorrow filled it then. The faces of the Israelis were terse. The Munich Philharmonic performed the Funeral March from Beethoven’s symphony. It was overwhelming. The head of the Israeli delegation addressed the crowd in Hebrew: “Those who have died were true sportsmen, cut down in their prime”. He then listed the names of the victims. The crowd of 80,000 spectators all rose to their feet. “In spite of this abominable crime, we have decided to continue competing in these Olympic Games, in a spirit of harmony and integrity.”

Spitz in All Humility

Seven Gold medals, seven world records in swimming. Yet these outstanding achievements on the part of the American seemed almost derisory, in light of the tragic events of the past few days – as Spitz himself was all too aware. Spitz truly was a phenomenon. No man had ever come as close to embodying the majesty of dolphins as him. Every atom of his being was efficient. Mark Spitz had dominated the butterfly stroke since 1969. Since 1968, he had favored the 100 and 200 meters double in both free style and butterfly. This turned out to be the best possible combination for picking up titles and medals by opening the doors to the relays. Spitz’s exceptional flexibility and power of recuperation were instrumental in giving his outstanding performances.

Shane Gould – Superstar at Fifteen

The Australian swimmer finished the Games with three titles, five medals and three individual world records. From the time she began to compete at the Games, her timings were without precedent. So it was that the Americans had to play second fiddle to this Australian, in terms of both their motivation and their results – in spite, too, of their momentary conviction that they had escaped her iron rule.

The Fall of The American Empire

For the first time in the history of Olympic sport the American basketball team had been beaten. However, the eagerly anticipated final between the USA and USSR ended in confusion, and in the closing seconds the Americans lost a game they thought they had won. A score of 50 – 51 meant victory for the Russians and the Americans outraged, protested against what they considered as daylight robbery! The main feature of the protest by the Americans was the granting of three extra seconds as, according to the FIBA rules the match was over.

Finland Dominates The Middle Distance Races

Nearly half a century later, after the Finns had won the middle distance races of 1500, 5,000 and 10,000 meters and Paavo Nurmi and Ville Ritola had achieved success; did they once again dominate the events in Munich, and Pekka Vasala and Lassie Viren emerged winners. While Pekka won the 1500 meters beating Kip Keino in the finals, but the race lacked the flavor which it would have had, had Jim Ryun the winner in 1968 Mexico Games, also been there. Unfortunately, Jim was eliminated in the fourth qualifying heat as he had fallen on the curb and injured himself. Lassie Viren achieved the double of winning the 5,000 and 10,000 meters and joined the greats like Hannes Kolehmainen (Finland) in 1912, Emil Zatopek (Czechoslavakia) 1952 and Volodomyr Kuts (USSR) 1956.

Darling of The Games

Tiny Olga Korbut of USSR gave everything to her sport, enchanting the public and the media with her charm and the vulnerability that would cost her the overall victory. Olga, who was leading the pack after the floor and vault and with two more disciplines to go, fell during her routine in the assymetrical bars and missed her remount, due more to nerves than lack of skill. When she was scored 7.5, she burst into tears. A spectator who had evaded the stewards, handed her a bouquet of dried flowers and she with tears streaming down her face, stood up, flowers in hand. She received a roaring ovation.

The Games in Brief

Opening Date                                                         26 August 1972

Closing Date                                                          10 September 1972

Host Town                                                              Munich

Nations Represented                                              121

Athletes                                                                   7,123 (1,058 women, 6,065 men)

Sports                                                                      21 (8 open to women)

Events                                                                     172

Games Opened By                                                  Gustav Heinemann, President of West

                                                                                 Germany

Olympic Flame Lit By                                            Gunther Zahn (athletics)

Olympic Oath Read By                                           Heidi Schueller (athletics)

IOC President                                                          Avery Brundage (USA)

Officials swore the Olympic oath and a woman athlete took the oath for the first time, and Archery returned to the Olympic programme after a 52 year absence.

PS -: Matter researched from the archives of the Olympic museum in Lausanne.

Brigadier (retd) S D Dangwal

+919410900051

                                            

Olympic Series

Olympics - 1968 Mexico

The world was in rebellion. In China, the Cultural Revolution was at its height. In the United States, activists were demanding an end to the intervention in Vietnam, and the black community was campaigning for civil rights. Student demonstrations had paralyzed France, Germany and Brazil. Czechoslovakia saw the Prague Spring crushed by the Soviet Union. Then, in Mexico, just ten days before the opening of the Games, government troops opened fire on students, leaving more than 250 lying dead in Mexico City’s celebrated Plaza of the Three Cultures.

The prospect of holding the Games at an altitude of 7,000 feet struck fear into the hearts of doctors, trainers and athletes alike. Other environmental factors characterized the Games: the track – synthetic – the wind, which remained strangely constant at 2 m/sec during the major finals. Other innovations combined to incite another revolution: in athletics, every record was broken up to 400 m, including the relays. Africans monopolized the distance events from 1500 m to the marathon. Dick Fosbury re – invented the high jump and Bob Beamon achieved the feat of the century with his giant long jump of 8.90 m. Never had the Games been so affected by their setting. These exploits, and the emotion they aroused, made Mexico a global stage, on which Black Americans made peaceful protests, just six months after the assassination of Martin Luther King. Tommie Smith and John Carlos handed out badges marked ‘Olympic Projects for Human Rights’ and raised black- gloved fists on the podium.

Tommie Smith and John Carlos, Expelled from the American Camp

After the 200 meters final, two Black American athletes took advantage of the Olympic stage to express anger at the ‘victimization’ of their community. Tommie Smith and John Carlos mounted the podium to receive their 200 meters medals. Both wore the famous button bearing the slogan ‘Olympic Projects for Human Rights’, a black glove, a black silk scarf and leotard under open jackets, black socks and no shoes. During the US national anthem they raised their gloved fists to the sky and looked down instead of up at the American flag. This was to protest against the shameful conditions Black people endured in the USA and elsewhere. Following this, the American Olympic Committee decided to suspend Smith and Carlos and asked them to leave the Olympic Village with the least fuss possible.

Beamon Out Of ThisWorld    

By pulling off 8.90 meters in the long jump, Bob achieved a jump from another time. And it is, without doubt, the achievement of the century. As the sky rolled overhead with heavy, thunderous clouds and the horizon passed vibrantly from blue to burgundy to purple; Beamon perfected his run – up and hit the take – off board with the precision of a laser guided missile. His take – off, the result of the perfect coincidence of power and speed, propelled him high into the air, and he performed an astonishing scissor movement with his unfeasibly long legs. Leaning over his lower limbs, he remained suspended between the sky and the earth, rocket like, for longer than seemed possible. Bob delayed his landing like a ski – jumper, and finally came down well beyond the range of the optical measuring device. Several verifications were necessary before Beamon, who had bounced twice after his terrific jump, performed a wild jig and finished up in the arms of fellow American Boston.

A shriek went up in the stand as the most fantastic result of these Games, and perhaps in athletics history, was displayed in fiery letters: 8.90 meters! Was there a mistake? No: with a legal tailwind of 2 meters/sec, Beamon had broken the world record by 55 cms.

Al Oerter Victorious On four Continents  

This American achieved an unprecedented four consecutive Olympic victories in Melbourne, Rome, Tokyo and now Mexico. He resembled a gladiator, with his blond locks plastered to his forehead and a bulging chest. The discuss throwers battled with the elements for over half an hour. Oerter nursed his own discuss in a white cloth like a new born child. Finally, the twelve competitors gave up and headed for the shelter of the stands, as the storm grew increasingly violent. When the contest resumed, the 6 ft 3 inch and 277 pounds Oerter, an electric engineer in an aeronautical company, threw the discuss to 64.78 meters and snatched victory.

Fosbury, Revolutionizes The High Jump

Four years after Valerie Brumel’s belly – roll, Dick Fosbury pioneered a new technique – to great success. Fosbury stood perfectly still, at a forty – five degree angle to the bar. He then carried out a number of bizarre series of movements to aid concentration, involving mysterious hand signals and a bending of his torso, almost to the point of losing balance. He then took off, racing towards the bar at top speed in a wide arc. He reached the bar as if to perform a scissors jump. But as he launched himself into the air, he twisted and flung his body backwards, passing over the bar in an almost horizontal position, before he brought his legs up towards his body as he landed on the other side. This had been a remarkable international debut for Dick Fosbury. It was none the less strange to witness this new technique which departed so abruptly from the Soviet ‘belly – roll’.

Jim Hines of USA won the 100 meters final, which had eight black athletes competing against each other for the first time and the race lived up to expectations. In women’s swimming, Debbie Meyer was a cut above the rest, as the young American’s explosive performance in the pool won her the Gold in 200, 400 and 800 meters freestyle. Vera Caslavska of Czechoslavakia, a woman gymnast who had won Gold in the all-round competition in Tokyo, repeated her victory in Mexico and followed it by marrying a fellow Czech athlete in the Olympic village. George Foreman of USA won the Gold in the Heavyweight boxing title fight and demonstrated his solidarity for the ‘Black Power’ movement – without forgetting to show that he was also competing as a US athlete.

The Games In Brief

Opening Ceremony                                              12 October 1968

Closing Ceremony                                                27 October 1968

Host Nation                                                          Mexico

Nations Participated                                            113

Athletes                                                                 5,531 (761 women, 4,750 men)

Sports                                                                   18 (7 open to women)

Events                                                                  172 (39 open to women)

Games Officially Opened By                              Diaz, President of Mexico

Olympic Flame Lit By                                        Enriqueta Basilio de Sotel (athletics)

Olympic Oath By                                                Pablo Garrido (athletics)

IOC President                                                    Avery Brundage (USA)

At 2,240 meters, the Olympic Games had never been held at such high altitude. The German Democratic Republic team competed under the name of East Germany. Winners had to undergo drugs testing for the first time ever and Swede Hans Gunther Liljenwall, an entrant in modern pentathlon was disqualified for testing positive for excessive alcohol.

In athletics, cycling, rowing, canoeing, swimming and equestrian sports, official timings were taken both manually and electronically, although the electronic readings were considered to be the true times.

PS -: Matter researched from the archives of the Olympic Museum in Lausanne.

Brigadier (retd) S D Dangwal

+919410900051

Olympic Series

Olympic Games – 1964 Tokyo

Nineteen years after hundreds of thousands had died, Emperor Hirohito of Japan had surrendered and sixty percent of Tokyo was destroyed; that Yoshinori Sakai, an athlete born not far from Hiroshima on 06 August 1945 put the torch to the Olympic Flame. Now in 1964, Japan had put its past behind it and the country was no more bellicose. It had rebuilt, and was back on its feet. It spent lavishly on the Games: a sum of two billion dollars, a colossal sum. The organization was flawless in every aspect and the first television broadcasts via satellite assured a global public.

The Games were a convincing display of Japanese efficiency, but lacked emotion: the public was calm, polite, respectful and disciplined, but to the Western eyes seeing Asia for the first time, seemed cold. It may be easier to forget the catastrophes of recent history than to change the intimate habits of centuries of tradition. Nonetheless, tensions persisted between China and the USSR, the United States and Cuba, and in Vietnam. During the Games, China, a conspicuous absentee, conducted its first nuclear tests.

Geesink Puts Japan In Shock

Antonius Geesink, a judo instructor from Utrecht, Holland reduced Japan to tears by immobilizing Akio Kaminaga in the open division. Kaminaga had the look of a trout, exhausted by its own efforts. Geesink, his 253 pounds comfortably installed on Kaminaga’s broad chest, his butcher’s arms firmly around his rival’s neck, having passed one of them under the shoulder of the Japanese, looked his rival ferociously in the eyes. He could have spent the whole evening in this position. It was over before the bell announced the end, and for Japan, watching on television, it was a moment of terrible anguish. Students wept in the restaurant, their hopes shattered with one blow. Japan’s total judo supremacy had been surrendered to a Westerner. The cameras, aimed at the Tatami – the rectangular matting – didn’t allow viewer’s to decipher Geesink’s outstretched arm during the bout. He was pointing towards the Japanese coach Matsumoto, who had been crouching at the edge of the Tatami yelling advice at Kaminaga. The gesture astonished the referee, who hadn’t even noticed. He sent the Japanese eighth dan to his chair in a state of confusion.

Dawn Fraser, Wayward Genius

No author would have dared dream up such a heroine for a piece of fiction. Nothing seemed to stop her. Neither convention nor criticism could deter her from fulfilling the destiny of her extravagant gifts in the water. It is almost as if she deliberately sought obstacles to overcome to enhance her unique achievements. She was the first woman to swim 100 meters and break the one-minute barrier with 59.9 secs in Oct 1962. She had won gold medals in Melbourne, Rome and Tokyo. The unprecedented third gold should have put any other news about Dawn Fraser in the shade, to wit, her secret participation in the Opening Ceremony, her outlandish shirt, her bugle calls at the edge of the pool and even a bizarre episode in which  she stole the Olympic flag flying over the Imperial Palace.

Don Schollander, The First Swimmer To Win Four Golds  

On his way to an unprecedented four Gold medals, the young American outclassed his rivals in the 100 meters, freestyle. Schollander won in the 100, 400, 4x100 and 4x200 meters thus becoming the first swimmer to win four medals in one Olympic Games.

The Fastest Man In The World

The American Bob Hayes became the fastest athlete in the Games with a wind assisted 9.9 secs world record. In the finals, Hayes took on Cuba’s Enrique Figuerola. A dense matrix of politics underlay the encounter, although no – one in the stadium cared for anything but the individuals on the blocks. It was only after the race that the search for some encrypted meaning began. It emerged in the warm, sincere handshake between the American and the Cuban, a rare event those days. It was a wonderful moment which left all believing, just for a while, that sport really can bring people together.

Peter Snell Overcomes His Fear Of Defeat

Snell, who was the 800 meters champion four years ago in Rome, retained that and added the 1500 meters title to it. When the officials were looking for Peter to award him his second Gold medal, they panicked. For, he had taken refuge with his wife Sally, behind a wall, at the exit of the changing room and was embracing her tenderly. He was finally located and on approaching the victory stand he said that he was tired, very tired.

Bikila Rises Through The Ranks

Once again, the slender figure of Abebe Bikila delighted the spectators by the purity of his style and the remarkable radiance he emanated, being a thoroughbred. He was four years older than he was in Rome, approaching 32 years. He won in 2:15:16.2 secs in 1960 and this time he achieved 2:12:11.2 secs, to become the first marathon runner to keep his title.

India regained the Hockey Gold which it had lost to Pakistan in Rome.

Valery Brumel the world record holder with 2.28 meters, went one better. Although a magnificent technician, Brumel failed his first two attempts at 2.03 meters, a height normally well within him. He cleared it at the last attempt. Then his form returned and he jumped better. His strongest rival John Thomas, who also cleared 2.18 meters, lost out on the number of failed attempts and Valery the master of the roll, won the Gold.

The Games In Brief

Opening Ceremony                                 10 Oct 1964

Closing Ceremony                                  24 Oct 1964

Host Nation                                             Japan

Nations Represented                              94 Nations

Athletes                                                   5,140 (683 women, 4,457 men)

Sports                                                      19

Events                                                     163 (33 open to women)

Games Officially Opened By                 Emperor Hirohito

Olympic Flame Lit By                           Yoshinori Sakai

                                                                (Born in Hiroshima on 06 Aug 1945)

Olympic Oath By                                    Takashi Ono (Gymnastics)

IOC President                                         Avery Brundage (USA)

The Tokyo Games were the first to be held in Asia. The most touching symbol of the Games was the final torchbearer, Yoshinori Sakai; born in Hiroshima on the day the atomic bomb exploded over the city, he was chosen in honor of the victims. Two new sports, judo and volleyball (both men’s and women’s), were included in Tokyo. In another first, competitors in the Pole Vault used fiberglass poles. Tokyo was the last Games in which athletics events were run on a cinder track.

The first ‘Fair Play’ prize was awarded by the IOC to the Kali brothers of Sweden who, during a regatta, gave up their chance of victory to help two fellow competitors who had capsized.

PS -: Matter researched from the archives in the Olympic Games museum in Lausanne.

Brigadier (retd) S D Dangwal

+919410900051

Olympic Series

Olympics – 1960 Rome

(Milkha Singh Runs His Dream Race:But Fails To Win A Medal)

Sixty four years after the first Games in Athens – fifty four years after Italy had had to give away the 1908 Olympics after the eruption of Mount Vesuvius – Rome provided a stunning Olympic backdrop that had been handed down from antiquity. Despite its classical roots, however, the Olympic festival of sport was constantly evolving. Qualifying standards had climbed so rapidly in certain sports that some 1956 champions had been unable to satisfy them to defend their titles.

A record eighty – three nations attended the Games, their numbers boosted by representatives from many African countries that had gained independence in the four years since Melbourne Games. Clement ‘Ike’ Quartey, representing one of those new nations, Ghana, created Olympic history by taking Silver in the light – welterweight boxing tournament, the first black African Olympic medalist. Five days later his achievement was eclipsed by Ethiopia’s Abebe Bikila, the bare- footed winner of the marathon.

As the Cold War cooled the international climate, suffocating heat stifled Rome. This did not prevent modernity and tradition uniting for the fortnight of the Games. The day before the Opening Ceremony, Pope John XX111 blessed the Games in Saint Peter’s Square. Later he enjoyed the canoeing semi – finals from the window of his summer residence.

Wilma Rudolph – A Picture of Elegance

The young and beautiful American skipped through the sprint events to three Gold medals. Wilma Rudolph’s appearance at the Games could be described as a moment of illumination in a life of misfortune. She had lived her dream in the Roman summer, and with her velvety stride, exquisite bearing and seraphic calm, even at full tilt, nothing so beautiful was ever seen on an athletics track. It was almost beyond belief that such beauty – shared for the first time by millions of television viewers, like in the first day of cinema – should mask such a cruel destiny.

Rudolph was one of twenty – two children living in the heart of a Tennessee ghetto. Born premature, Rudolph, the twentieth of the brood, was a little girl of fragile health, weighing less than four pounds at birth. Polio, double pneumonia, scarlet fever: early childhood spared her little. She lost the use of her left leg at the age of four and spent two years bed – ridden. She learnt to walk normally aged seven. Endless massages and the love of her family worked wonders for her. She was called ‘Skeeter’, meaning mosquito by her friends, more because of her youth than her small size. Wilma was a picture of grace and strength, as she took the top of the podium in the 100,200 and 4x100 meters, despite spraining an ankle the day before the 100 meter final. Wilma managed all this with her left foot in a bandage – but which did nothing to lessen the beauty of her stride.

Milkha Singh an Outstanding Indian Athlete

Born on 08 Oct 1935 in Lyallpur, Milkha saw his parents and relatives massacred in the communal madness, which besieged people in the riots during the partition of India. He survived and was supported by his elder brother Malkhan, who helped him to get enrolled into the Army, in the Corps of Electrical and Mechanical Engineers (EME) in his third attempt. His athletic career commenced from here and under the care and watchful eye of his mentor Havildar Gurdev Singh, he blossomed into a star. Often, Milkha trained so hard that he vomited blood, but came back undeterred to train harder, still. His Olympic career commenced from 1956 in Melbourne and he was a strong contender for Gold in the 400 meters, in the 1960 Rome Olympics. Milkha, ran the race of his life in the finals of the event, but sadly finished fourth. The race was so keenly contested that the winners were decided on a photo finish and the first four broke the Olympic record. In the finals of the 400 meters, Milkha running in the fifth lane took off like an arrow and was leading till about 250 meters, when he misjudged his speed and held back, only to see others go past him and despite his best effort to then catch up, was unable to do so. Ottis Davis (USA) and Carl Kaufmann (Germany), both finished with a timing of 44.9 secs, Malcolm C Spence (South Africa) came in third with a timing of 45.5 secs and Milkha clocked 45.6 secs, missing the Bronze medal by the proverbial whisker of .1 sec. It was quite a while before the results were declared and Milkha missed on the opportunity of going down in history as an Olympic medalist in athletics. Milkha later participated in a duel meet with Pakistan in 1962, when he beat the Asian Games 100 meters champion Abdul Khaliq, and was christened The Flying Sikh by none other than President Ayub Khan, who maintained that he does not run but instead flies on the track.

A Phenomenal Decathlon

The first and doubtlessly one of the most beautiful images of the Games was that of Rafer Johnson, a black, carrying the American flag during the Opening Ceremony. His event, the decathlon was most keenly contested between him and his rival and fellow student at the University of California in Los Angeles, Yang Chuan – Kwang of Taiwan (Formosa).It was a neck and neck competition, in which after a dramatic 1500 meters, Rafer snatched the Gold from Yang.On the finish line, the two men fell into each others arms. It definitely was the most beautiful moment of the evening.

Abebe Bikila’s Amazing Adventure

Abebe Bikila, a full - blooded Amhara and a soldier in Ethiopia’s Imperial Bodyguard, 5 feet 9 inches and weighing 125 pounds, with curly hair, dark brown skin, regular features, a prominent and straight nose and pronounced lips: won the marathon running barefooted. Bikila had run huge distances to achieve his success. He trained twice a day, very early in the morning and at the end of the afternoon .His resting pulse was 45 beats per minute. His coach Onni Niskanen, born in Helsinki of Swedish parents was ecstatic about the presence of talent in the youth in Ethiopia and was hopeful about their giving winning performances in the Tokyo Olympics.

Cassius Marcellus Clay Arrives               

 Three Americans won Gold medals in the boxing finals on 05 Sept 1960, but it was the 18 year old Cassius Marcellus Clay in the Light – Heavyweight category, who stole the limelight when they returned to the United States. Clay, born in Louisville, Kentucky was the centre of attention from the moment he arrived in the Olympic Village. Six times winner of the Golden Gloves in Kentucky, twice the National Golden Gloves and twice US Champion, Clay easily qualified for the Games. Clay surprised other boxers in the changing rooms with his pre – bout dancing. The surprise continued in the ring, as he won his bouts with ease and a fine display of his art.

The Games In Brief

Opening Date                                        25 August 1960

Closing Date                                         11 September 1960

Host Nation                                           Italy

Nations Represented                             84

Athletes                                                 5,348(610 women,4,738 men)

Sports                                                     17

Events                                                   150

Games Officially Opened By               Giovanni Gronchi, President of Italy

Olympic Flame Lit By                         Giancarlo Peris (Athlete)

Olympic Oath Taken By                     Adolfo Consolini (Athlete)

IOC President                                     Avery Brundage

Because of apartheid, Rome would be the last Games in which South Africa would participate until 1992.Over 100 television channels broadcast both live and recorded footage of the Games to 18 countries across Europe as well as the United States, Japan and Canada.

PS -: Matter researched from the archives of the Olympic Games museum in Laussane.

Brigadier (retd) S D Dangwal

+919410900051 

Olympic Series

OLYMPICS 1956 – MELBOURNE

For the first time the IOC sacrificed the unity of the Games in time and place. Five years after Melbourne’s 1949 nomination to host the Games in 1956, it emerged that the six – month quarantine that Australian law imposed on foreign horses would cause a major problem. Stockholm was therefore chosen to host the equestrian events in May, while the rest of the events would be held in Melbourne from the end of November.

It was worth it: The Melbourne Games were a resounding success. However, in the face of geopolitical reality, the world of sport had to admit its insignificance, and act as a sounding board. Egypt, Lebanon and Iraq boycotted the Games in protest at the Franco –British expedition to the Suez Canal, which followed the advance of Israeli troops into the Sinai. Communist China did the same, to avoid a meeting in Australia with Formosa (Taiwan).

Holland, Switzerland and Spain stayed away in protest at Soviet intervention in Hungary, where the uprising was crushed weeks before the opening of the Games. At the Games, the Hungarian delegation was warmly embraced; the Soviets received cold courtesy. The antagonism peaked when Hungary met the USSR in the water polo tournament.

The two events which set the Games above the political highs and lows went almost unnoticed; East and West Germanys managed to agree to line up a single team, while delegations from throughout the world mingled during the closing ceremony – an innovative celebration that became permanent.

Hungary vs USSR: A Historic Encounter

The confrontation between Hungary and the USSR was much more than just a water polo match. The Olympic swimming pool saw a symbolic battle over flow into a literal fist fight. The Hungarians and the Soviets are always passionate about their water polo, but this time their differences overwhelmed the usually ample confines of mere sport .In the final round of the tournament, from the opening of the game, the spectators recognized the tensions: the players were irascible and cruel, doubtless more concerned with handing out slaps and calling each other names than with shots and passes. In an explosive encounter, the Hungarians won the game 4-0 and their victory went beyond the strict context of a simple sporting event. Only five minutes remained when the Soviet Prokpov unleashed a violent elbow at Ervin Zador, who split his eyebrow with fresh blood gushing from the wound. The shock of the blow and the spectacular nature of the injury – more than its severity – unleashed a torrent of screams and punches. Fearing that things could degenerate even further, the referee judged it wiser to call the game to a halt before full time, and Hungary was credited with victory.

Laszlo Papp wins Three Gold Medals in Boxing

It was a gala evening at the boxing finals in the West Stadium. The officials wore dinner jackets and the Duke of Edinburgh had slipped into the first row of the balcony to enjoy proceedings incognito. The bouts certainly merited his presence. Laszlo had won in London in the middleweight category and in Helsinki in the light middleweight. Here in Melbourne, the thirty year old Papp achieved the unprecedented feat of three Olympic titles in eight years. He had a genius for boxing and such a personal style that he could not be compared to anyone, even among professional boxers, most of whom would not last three rounds with him.

The Australians confirmed their invincibility in freestyle swimming. The resounding domination of the Australians did not pass without comment in the Olympic Village. They were accused of covert professionalism, for the six hours they spent in water, training and hence making it into a full time profession.Volodymyr Kuts of the USSR taught his opponents a lesson in the 5,000 and 10,000 meters. Kuts appeared like a feudal nobleman. His features were unmarked: his carefully combed hair as smooth as if he had just come out of the bathroom in his Moscow flat.

The Games In Brief    

Opening Date                                        22 November 1956

Closing Date                                         08 December 1956

Nations Represented                            67

Athletes                                                 3,184 (371 women, 2,813 men)

Sports                                                    16 (8 open to women)

Events                                                   182 (8 open to women)

Games Officially Opened By               The Duke of Edinburgh

Oplympic Flame lit by                          Ron Clarke (athletics)

Olympic Oath read by                          John Landy (athletics)

IOC President                                       Avery Brundage (USA)

Melbourne was chosen over Buenos Aires to host the 1956 Olympics Games with a majority of only one vote. In athletics, Georgios Roubanis was the first to use the fiberglass pole in the individual pole vault. American Bob Mathias had already done this in 1952, but in the decathlon. Another first in these Games was a false start in the marathon. In swimming, a fourth stroke made its appearance: the Butterfly was separated from the Breaststroke and was contested over 200 meters.

PS -: Matter researched from the archives of the Olympic Games museum in Lausanne.

Brigadier (retd) S D Dangwal

+919410900051                           

Olympic Series

HELSINKI – 1952 OLYMPICS GAMES

The1952 Olympic Games were faced with perplexing issues. The first was the question of Soviet participation for the first time, in a host nation that had suffered greatly at the hands of its troublesome neighbor. Then, there were Germany and Japan, both banned from the 1948 Games. West Germany was now firmly in the Western bloc. A separate East German team first competed in 1968: until then, the two countries sent what was, in theory, at least, a joint delegation. As for China, invitations went to both the People’s Republic and Chiang Kai- Shek’s Taipei: fifty athletes from the former arrived five days before the Games ended. The latter stayed away in protest.

The Finn’s managed, with astonishing efficiency, to keep politics – and business, for that matter – away from the stadium. They embodied the spirit of the Olympics so well, with such warmth, thoughtfulness, enthusiasm, fair play, and organizational competence that some supported the idea of making Helsinki the permanent venue for future Olympic Games.

The fortnight began by ridiculing the Olympic Committee: at the opening ceremony, the great Johan ‘Hannes’ Kohlemainen, now 62, received the Olympic torch from Paavo Nurmi, aged 55,-the same Nurmi banned from the Games twenty years earlier because of supposed professionalism. Finland had never forgiven the IOC, and on that alone, the long ovation had all the piquancy of revenge- a discreet expression of nationalist sentiment, and the only such display during an otherwise model Games.

Zatopek Takes Gold in His Most Spectacular Victory Ever

The Helsinki 5000 meters, the peak of athletic achievement, will go down in history as one of sport’s most savage contests, fought to the bitter end, but also as a superior human challenge in which the human physique, supercharged by a desire that is almost innate, was pushed to its very limits. To comprehend what really happened on the final lap of the greatest 5,000 ever – perhaps the greatest track race ever – one would have to see the entire event replayed many, many times. It was a brutal war between four great athletes whose fortunes surged and ebbed from one moment to the next. Each saw his hopes shattered, restored, and then shattered again as the race progressed. The crowd of 70,000 lost all sense of self or reason.

It was an astonishing feat for three men – and there would have been four, if Chataway had not fallen 80 meters from the finish – to complete 5,000 meters inside 14:10 mins. Yet even the combined efforts of the foursome were eclipsed by the intensity of the tragedy, to use the word in its ancient sense of grandeur and nobility. The art of running, as mastered by Emily Zatopek, was to inflict pain with carefully- calibrated cruelty. His brutality was expertly dosed to break his opponent’s rhythm, crush their spirits and steer them into despair. Only an athlete of Zatopek’s abilities would dare mete out this sort of punishment. Zatopek alone could ennoble his rivals by allowing them to demonstrate their remarkable talents even as he destroyed them. Zatopek won Gold medals in 5,000 and 10,000 meters and the Marathon.

The Games in Brief

Opening Date                                                        19th  July 1952

Closing Date                                                         03 Aug 1952

Host Nation                                                           Finland

Nations Represented                                             69

Athletes                                                                4,925(518 women,4,407 men)

Sports                                                                  19(8 open to women)

Games officially opened by                                President Juho Paasikivi of Finland

Olympic FlameLit By                                         Paavo Nurmi and Hannes Kolehmainen

Olympic Oath Taken BY                                    Heikki Savolainen (gymnastics)

IOC President                                                    Sigfrid Edstrom (Sweden)

These Games took place in the middle of the Cold War, and the arrival of the Soviet Union for the first time led to various precautions being put in place. These proved unnecessary as the atmosphere that reigned in Helsinki really brought people together.

PS -: Matter researched from the Olympics Games Museum in Laussane.

Brigadier (retd) S D Dangwal

+919410900051

Olympics Series

Olympics - 1948 London

World War two was barely over when, in August 1945 London, selected in 1938 to hold the 1944 Games, was awarded the poisoned chalice of organizing the Olympic revival of 1948. The world was healing its wounds and it was a time of austerity in a city that had shown courageous resistance and whose major priority was reconstruction. The Olympic Games would have to adopt the same tone.

The competitors were lodged in military barracks at Uxbridge and Richmond Park, or converted classrooms, in conditions that many athletes today would snub. There were problems in maintaining supply chains, and at times glaring inadequacies in conditions. These only got worse as the Games went on. Yet, given the circumstances, they were tolerated. The London Games were very austere, as they were poorly prepared. They were also, however, the Games where a record number of countries took part. The Games were the first global sporting event after the war, despite the absence of the Germans (who were not invited), the Japanese (who declined the invitation), and the Soviets (who were in sporting isolation). The Games had to go on, and the London Games put them back on track. It is true that there were limited resources, but there were symbols of the Games all around. And at the start of the television era, the event was brought into viewer’s home for the first time. Even if television sets were rare, the presence of cameras at Wembley Stadium and the Empire Swimming Pool were a promise of things to come.

Blankers–Koen, housewife and champion

At 30 the Flying Dutchwoman was more than a proud mother: she won the 100, 200 and 80 meters hurdles and 4x100 meters relay. Neither the birth of her children, nor the Second World War, could break Fanny Blankers-Koen stride. She was a female Jesse Owens, winning four Gold medals. At 14 years she took up competitive sport and two years later her physical education teacher, hearing of her dream of Olympic glory, shaped her career by telling her, “We already have plenty of good swimmers, choose athletics”. Under the supervision of former triple jump champion Jan Blankers, the 18- year old Blankers-Koen qualified for the Berlin Games, finishing sixth in the high jump and fifth in the 4x100 meters relay. At the London Games, on a water logged cinder track, she entered eight races and won them all. “All I’ve done is run fast. I don’t see what people are making such a fuss about it” .I’m not sure we should believe her.

A stocky 29 year old fireman from Argentina, Delfo Carbrera with jet black hair and a thick moustache won the marathon. When his coach of the San Lorenzo club, Francisco Moura asked him that he was looking for a marathon runner; Carbrera asked what is a marathon? In fact he had never run a marathon before and he ran on the road for the first time in London and finished first. Carbrera was amazed to have won and said “I am happy because it will encourage young people in Argentina to go running”.

Micheline Ostermeyer carried the weight of France on her shoulders and gave a unique and rare recital. But they were solid enough to allow her to take a double Olympics victory in the most muscular of women’s field events. Just three months ago she had graduated with honors from the Paris Conservatory of Music.

The Games in Brief

Opening Date                              29 July 1948

Closing Date                                14August 1948

Host Nation                                  Great Britain

Nations Represented                   59

Athletes                                        4,099

Sports                                           19 (8 open to women)

Games officially opened by        King George VI of England

Olympic flame lit by                   John Mark (athletics)

Olympic oath read by                 Donald Finlay (athletics)

IOC President                              Sigfrid Edstrom (Sweden)

The Communist States took part in the Games, and with them the first political defection occurred: Marie Provaznikova, President of the Technical Commission of Women’s Gymnastics refused to return to Czechoslavakia.

In athletics the starting block was used for the first time. Two Olympic Champions from the last Games in 1936 managed to retain their titles 12 years on.

In pistol shooting, Hungarian Karoly Takacs, who lost his right hand in the war when a grenade exploded; taught himself to shoot with the left hand and won the Gold medal in the rapid fire pistol event.

PS -: Matter researched from the archives in the Olympic Museum in Lausanne.

Brigadier (retd) S D Dangwal

=919410900051