Stryder50
Platinum Member
They've always been "political".
What's new ???
The 1936 Berlin Olympics and the Controversy of U.S Participation ...
The Olympic games have always been about the countries of the world coming together in healthy and friendly competition. These events have been opportunities to celebrate the hard work, athleticism, and mental strength of athletes from all over the world. In theory, any political riffs are supposed to be set aside, at least for the duration of the Olympics, so that for a moment, the world can be at peace. The International Olympic Committee (IOC) even promotes the concept of the “Olympic Truce” in its charter, a policy which was observed during the ancient Olympics. Despite the IOC’s goals for international peace during the games, politics have disrupted the Olympic games throughout modern history, whether by boycotts, propaganda, or protests. The 1936 Berlin Olympics were a notable example of this.Berlin was voted to host the 1936 Olympic Games in 1931, before the Nazi Party came to power in Germany. Proposed boycotts of the Berlin Olympics arose in many Western countries, who were appalled by Germany’s racist policies and human rights violations. Still, 49 countries attended the games in Berlin, the most countries to attend an Olympiad up to that date. The German government used the international spotlight as an opportunity to portray the country as a benign and progressive nation while also providing fuel for its Aryan-superiority propaganda, the latter of which the IOC specifically prohibited. The 1936 Berlin Olympics Games and the controversy of American participation in those games was the first of the so-called political Olympics games. For Hitler, the 1936 games were a pageant for Nazi propaganda. The United States and the world had an opportunity to stand up against Hitler’s Germany and boycott the games. Why didn’t they?
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