Political games at Olympics

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The Olympics has always been a fertile playground for politics, even though we keep hearing noises to the contrary.

From World War I to the Cold War, a series of non-sporting events has affected the Games. The Olympic movement had to grapple with boycotts from Melbourne in 1956. When the US and the USSR traded punches by staying away from the 1980 and 1984 Games respectively, there were fears about the future of the Olympics.

But a successful organisation of the 1988 Olympics and the subsequent thaw in the American-Russian relationship got the Olympic movement back on track.

Wars wreak havoc: World War I forced the cancellation of the sixth edition of the modern Olympics. The fact that German capital Berlin was supposed to stage the Games in 1916 didn’t help matters. The International Olympic Committee awarded the next edition to Antwerp, which had been devastated in the war. World War II would account for two editions in 1940 and 1944.

The effects of the Cold War between the US and the USSR weren’t as deadly, as the two superpowers only used the Games for political one-upmanship. But “boycott” became the buzzword from 1956 to 1984.

Berlin (1936): Adolf Hitler tried to appropriate the Games as a propaganda tool for his Nazi beliefs. It was the first time politics mixed unmistakably with sports.

Melbourne (1956): The People’s Republic of China stayed away to register their protest at the inclusion of the Republic of China (Taiwan). It was only in 1984 that the People’s Republic of China returned to the Olympic fold. Egypt, Iraq and Lebanon boycotted the Games to condemn the Anglo-French control of the Suez Canal. The Soviet invasion of Hungary sparked the pullout of Spain, Switzerland and the Netherlands.

Rome (1960): It was the last Olympics South Africa would attend before 1992. South Africa were banned for their government’s apartheid policies.

Mexico (1968): Mexican authorities killed scores of students who had been demonstrating peacefully against the government spending on the Games. The Soviet Union had invaded Czechoslovakia, causing consternation in Europe.

Munich (1972): The killing of 11 Israeli athletes and coaches by eight members of a Palestinian terrorist organisation marked the bloodiest edition in the Olympic history.

Montreal (1976): Scores of African countries withdrew from the Olympics to protest the inclusion of New Zealand, whose rugby team had toured South Africa.

Moscow (1980): The USSR invaded Afghanistan in 1979 and the US retaliated the next year by pulling out of the Moscow Games. US president Jimmy Carter dashed the dreams of many American athletes with his contentious decision. Only 80 countries — the fewest since 1956 — took part in the Games.

Los Angeles (1984): The Soviet Union and the Eastern Bloc exacted revenge by staying away from the LA Games. In the battle between communism and capitalism, the losers were once again athletes.

Seoul (1988): Boycotts by super powers came to an end, though Cuba gave Seoul a miss to show their support for North Korea.

Beijing (2008): The Western press kept filing stories about the polluted Beijing air and China’s questionable human rights record. But China passed the Olympic test with flying colours.

Blood in the water as USSR clash with Hungary

Soviet tanks had rolled into Budapest weeks before the 1956 Games to quell a rebellion against the USSR-backed communist rule in Hungary. Scores of people were killed even as Hungary’s Olympic contingent reached Melbourne with great difficulties.

The political battle between the oppressor and the oppressed spilled into the water polo semifinal involving Hungary and the USSR. Water polo was more than a sport for Hungary; it was a national identity. News about the Soviet brutality had reached the Hungarian players and they were determined to prove a point in the water.

The semifinal, which was punctuated by violent tackles from both teams, reached a point of no return when Russia’s Valentin Prokopov opened a gash above Hungarian Ervin Zador’s right eye with an elbow. The whole pool was bloodied, forcing the cancellation of the match.

Officials awarded the tie to Hungary who had been leading 4-0 before the brutal elbow. The Hungarians went on to win the gold, beating Yugoslavia 2-1 in the final. The emotional “blood in the water” match in Melbourne galvanised the whole of Hungary against the USSR.

Black September ruins ’72 games

West Germany staged the 1972 Munich Olympics to let the world know that the country has moved on from its Nazi past. But the script went horribly wrong when members of a Palestinian group, Black September, stormed the Olympic village and took 11 Israeli athletes and coaches as hostages on September 5.

It was a meticulously planned early morning operation as the hostage takers had done a recce of the village.

Security arrangements at the village were perfunctory because the local organising committee wanted to create an atmosphere of friendliness. The hostage takers killed two Israelis before making their demand — release of more than 200 Palestinians imprisoned in Israel and elsewhere — public.

Israel said no to negotiations. Pressure was mounting on West Germany to ensure the safety of the hostages. Meanwhile, Mark Spitz who won a record seven gold medals in swimming at Munich was packed home amidst high security. The authorities feared that there would an attempt to kidnap the US swimmer because he was a Jew.

Negotiators managed to extend two deadlines before a deal was struck. The captors wanted a safe flight to an Arab country. Two helicopters were sent to fly them and the hostages to a military airbase outside Munich. It is where tragedy unfolded. Thinking that there were only five hostage takers, the German police had placed five snipers at the airport complex for an ambush. But eight Black September members were involved in the operation. The police plan went haywire.

The hostage takers threw a hand grenade on the helicopter where the captives had been sitting with their hands tied. All the hostages died and the athletic community was stunned. But the Games resumed after 34 hours.

Five terrorists were killed in the operation and three were captured. Another drama unfolded seven weeks later when a Palestinian group hijacked a Lufthansa flight from Beirut to Frankfurt and demanded the release of the trio involved in the Munich operation.

West Germany set the three free without consulting Israel. But the Israeli intelligence agency Mossad, under the orders of prime minister Golda Meir, hunted down two of the terrorists and 12 other Black September members suspected to be involved in the Munich massacre. And the lone survivor lives somewhere in Africa.

Caslavska is the Muhammad Ali of gymnastics

Vera Caslavska of Czechoslovakia was a gymnast of pure class and a human being of uncommon bravery. After winning three gold medals including the coveted all-round title and silver in 1964, she was the gymnast to look out for in Mexico. But her preparations went off the rails as a result of her political beliefs.

Five months before the Olympics she signed the Manifesto of 2000 Words, which was a statement opposing the USSR’s interference in the affairs of Czechoslovakia. And, her worst fears came true as the Soviet Union troops marched into Prague two months later.

The rebellious Caslavska was hounded. Fearing arrest, she went into hiding in the mountains. The ace gymnast never stopped training: she used tree branches and meadows to practise her routines. She was allowed to return to the national squad just in time for the Olympics. Caslavska had a mountain to climb at Mexico.

Unbelievably, she delivered under extraordinary pressure to retain her all-round gold, beating the Soviet stars in the process. The Czech rebel won four gold and two silver medals in 1968 to become the darling of the crowd, which loved her graceful style inside the gymnastic hall and commitment off it. The Soviet authorities never forgave Caslavska. She was told to take her endorsement of the manifesto back if she wanted a job. She stood her ground once again.

When communism fell in Czechoslovakia, Caslavska got the recognition that had long been denied to her. She became an adviser to president Vaclev Havel, who masterminded the Velvet Revolution that saw the back of communism in Czechoslovakia.