Let me address a different, though not entirely an unrelated issue is the world of Sports - Politics in Olympics.
Ideally sports and politics should be kept separate, but they're inseparable. The Olympics, the largest mutli sports event on earth is no different.
My memory goes back to the year 1936, probably the first instance in modern day Olympics, when the most vulgar use of the mega sporting event for political purposes was made, in a very conspicuous way. In that edition of Olympics held in Berlin, the German Fuehrer Adolf Hitler, fuelled by the propaganda machine of Goebbels, made the most flagrant political showcase of his perceived pro-Aryan theory of Nazi supremacy.
It was the first televised Olympics event. Goebbels understood the power of visual media and made full use of it. The controversial crooked cross Swastikas adored everywhere, so also the racist slogans in Olympics village - "Dogs and Jews aren't allowed".
Politics led to War and War led to the cancellation of the subsequent Olympics of 1940 and 44. The London Olympics of 1948, which was held after a hiatus of 12 years, wasn't free from politics either. Germany and Japan paid the price for being on the losing side of World War II. They weren't invited.
The nascent state of Israel wasn't invited for political reasons, though soon the Blue Star state would become the blue eyed boy of the Superpower, United States and very much at the center of attention in a later Olympics.
The domestic politics of this Superpower spilled over to 1968 Olympics, in the form of the famous Black Power salute by two of its African American Athletes. IOC banned them both, stripping them off their medals.
1972, Munich was politically the bloodiest Olympics. The Palestinian terror group Black September kidnapped a dozen Israeli athletes from the Olympics village. A botched up attempt by German security forces to rescue them resulted in the death of the Israelis. Golda Meir, the then Prime minister of the Jewish state ordered hunting down and killing of the perpetrators, which Mossad, their secret service carried in a spectacular fashion in subsequent years.
1976 Olympics in Montreal was a rare, politics free Olympics. Well almost, for Ethiopia boycotted that Olympics, preventing its star long distance runners, especially the legendary MirutsYifter from participating.
The lull didn't last long. Less than a year prior to the Moscow Olympics in 1980, Russian tanks rolled into Afghanistan. At the height of the cold war, US led boycott had a major impact on the Olympics. The boycott of many major sporting powers came as a blessing for India, in the form of a medal (gold) in Hockey, only time it won in that sports in last 50 years.
In the year 1984, it was Soviet Union's turn as Moscow led communist nations retaliated by boycotting the LA Olympics held in US. Yet for the first time in history, profit from selling of TV rights and Corporate management, made the organizing Olympics look like a lucrative venture. 1984 was the year China came back to the Olympics, from which it was debarred to participate for decades, again due to political reasons.
Seoul Olympics in 1988 was the first boycott free Olympics after a while, except those staunch, remaining Communist nations of North Korea (obviously) and Cuba(still uncomfortable with Gorbachev's policy of Glasnost and Perestroika).
Just a year later, in the year 1989, IOC convened to decide the venue for 1996 Olympics. Being the centenary year, it was taken for granted that Athens, Greece, the host of the first modern day Olympics in 1896, would be granted as the venue. But powered by Coca-Cola and American power of influence, Atlanta squeezed ahead of Athens, amidst disappointment from Greece.
Fast forward to 1993, when Beijing was narrowly defeated by Sydney as the venue of Y2K (2000) Olympics. Beijing whined a lot, openly blaming United States for scuttling its chance by raising human rights issue during the final rounds of voting.
There could be much more such instances in Olympics, where Sports is intertwined with politics, is beyond my memory and scope of this blog. Politics still remains very much part and parcel of sporting events. In an ideal world - Sports should be above politics. But unfortunately, we don't live in an ideal world.
Ideally sports and politics should be kept separate, but they're inseparable. The Olympics, the largest mutli sports event on earth is no different.
My memory goes back to the year 1936, probably the first instance in modern day Olympics, when the most vulgar use of the mega sporting event for political purposes was made, in a very conspicuous way. In that edition of Olympics held in Berlin, the German Fuehrer Adolf Hitler, fuelled by the propaganda machine of Goebbels, made the most flagrant political showcase of his perceived pro-Aryan theory of Nazi supremacy.
It was the first televised Olympics event. Goebbels understood the power of visual media and made full use of it. The controversial crooked cross Swastikas adored everywhere, so also the racist slogans in Olympics village - "Dogs and Jews aren't allowed".
Politics led to War and War led to the cancellation of the subsequent Olympics of 1940 and 44. The London Olympics of 1948, which was held after a hiatus of 12 years, wasn't free from politics either. Germany and Japan paid the price for being on the losing side of World War II. They weren't invited.
The nascent state of Israel wasn't invited for political reasons, though soon the Blue Star state would become the blue eyed boy of the Superpower, United States and very much at the center of attention in a later Olympics.
The domestic politics of this Superpower spilled over to 1968 Olympics, in the form of the famous Black Power salute by two of its African American Athletes. IOC banned them both, stripping them off their medals.
1972, Munich was politically the bloodiest Olympics. The Palestinian terror group Black September kidnapped a dozen Israeli athletes from the Olympics village. A botched up attempt by German security forces to rescue them resulted in the death of the Israelis. Golda Meir, the then Prime minister of the Jewish state ordered hunting down and killing of the perpetrators, which Mossad, their secret service carried in a spectacular fashion in subsequent years.
1976 Olympics in Montreal was a rare, politics free Olympics. Well almost, for Ethiopia boycotted that Olympics, preventing its star long distance runners, especially the legendary MirutsYifter from participating.
The lull didn't last long. Less than a year prior to the Moscow Olympics in 1980, Russian tanks rolled into Afghanistan. At the height of the cold war, US led boycott had a major impact on the Olympics. The boycott of many major sporting powers came as a blessing for India, in the form of a medal (gold) in Hockey, only time it won in that sports in last 50 years.
In the year 1984, it was Soviet Union's turn as Moscow led communist nations retaliated by boycotting the LA Olympics held in US. Yet for the first time in history, profit from selling of TV rights and Corporate management, made the organizing Olympics look like a lucrative venture. 1984 was the year China came back to the Olympics, from which it was debarred to participate for decades, again due to political reasons.
Seoul Olympics in 1988 was the first boycott free Olympics after a while, except those staunch, remaining Communist nations of North Korea (obviously) and Cuba(still uncomfortable with Gorbachev's policy of Glasnost and Perestroika).
Just a year later, in the year 1989, IOC convened to decide the venue for 1996 Olympics. Being the centenary year, it was taken for granted that Athens, Greece, the host of the first modern day Olympics in 1896, would be granted as the venue. But powered by Coca-Cola and American power of influence, Atlanta squeezed ahead of Athens, amidst disappointment from Greece.
Fast forward to 1993, when Beijing was narrowly defeated by Sydney as the venue of Y2K (2000) Olympics. Beijing whined a lot, openly blaming United States for scuttling its chance by raising human rights issue during the final rounds of voting.
There could be much more such instances in Olympics, where Sports is intertwined with politics, is beyond my memory and scope of this blog. Politics still remains very much part and parcel of sporting events. In an ideal world - Sports should be above politics. But unfortunately, we don't live in an ideal world.
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