Some sensational headlines from the modern Olympic Games

Posted in Famous news stories, Historical articles, History, Sport, Sporting Heroes on Tuesday, 7 August 2012

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This edited article about the Olympic Games originally appeared in Look and Learn issue number 760 published on 7th August 1976.

Spyridon Louis, picture, image, illustration

Two Greek Princes rushed from the Royal Box and helped Spyridon Louis run the last 100 yards by Ron Embleton

When Britain’s major athletics gold medal hope, David Bedford, was beaten so decisively in both the 5,000 and 10,000 metres at the last Olympic Games in Munich, the world was able to follow the drama of his defeats step by step on television or radio.

With 7,000 journalists, TV and radio men geared to cover the Montreal Games, details of any similar dramas will quickly become world-wide news. But, from earlier games, there are many exciting stories which have only recently been unearthed after years of painstaking research.

They never made the headlines because the newspapers (and radio) virtually ignored the Olympic Games until the 1936 event in Berlin. Only the results and very brief descriptions of the major events appeared. The Nazi government turned the 1936 Games into a propaganda exercise, and 40 years after they began, the world was made aware of the dramas behind its biggest sports event.

The most publicised episode of the first Games in Athens in 1896 is the victory of the Greek postman Spiridon Louis, who won the first marathon race of modern times.

But another Greek, named Constantindis, had an even tougher time winning the first Olympic cycle road race, over 51 miles. Twice he crashed, completely ruining two machines and receiving treatment for injuries before he could continue. After the second crash, the intrepid Constantindis borrowed a third cycle from a spectator to finish the race – and remained nearly 20 minutes ahead of the second man.

The first Olympic swimming races also nearly ended in several fatalities. They took place in the open sea and competitors in the “long-distance” 1,200 metres event soon found themselves ploughing through huge waves in water whose temperature did not exceed 13 degrees Centigrade. More than one had to be dragged out of the water to be saved from drowning. So tough was the race that the winner, Alfred Hajos, of Hungary, said, “My will to live completely overcame my desire to win.”

When the games were held in London for the first time in 1908, a British official caused a sensation by dashing on to the track and breaking the tape as the four finalists in the 400 metres approached. The official demanded an enquiry into the running of the race and as a result an American was disqualified. The race had to be re-run, but only a British competitor, Wyndham Haleswell, turned up – and he had to circle the track all alone in order to claim his gold medal.

Forty years later, again in London at the 1948 Games, a group of four British runners had to hand over gold medals in the 4 x 100 metres relay to American rivals. The Americans had been disqualified by a judge for a faulty takeover in winning the final, but US officials protested against the decision and, for the first time, the study of a film of the event was used to settle a disagreement. It proved that the Americans had won fairly.

The boxing ring at Helsinki in 1952 provided a sensation, and this was not the early defeat of a young British hope named Henry Cooper. The heavyweight division had to be re-drawn to prevent a Swedish fighter named Ingemar Johansson from entering the quarter-finals without having had a fight. But Johansson won through to the final – and was then disqualified for “not trying”.

But seven years later, Johansson became the first Swede to win the professional world heavyweight title – and the man he beat was the winner of the Helsinki middleweight title – Floyd Patterson.

Olympic football has had many dramas and on-field protests. In the 1920 soccer final in Antwerp, the entire Czechoslovak team walked off the field after one of their colleagues had been sent off for striking a linesman. Their opponents, Belgium, were leading 2-0 at the time, and they were awarded the gold medals.

The German team trained for two years to win the 1936 soccer tournament in Berlin but were sent home in disgrace when they were beaten in an early round match. One match, between Peru and Austria was intended to be replayed behind locked doors “to avoid tension” after it was discovered that Peru had substituted a player without permission in the first game between the two. But the second game never took place – Peru refused to play.

Eight years ago, in Mexico City, the final between Hungary and Bulgaria nearly had to be abandoned. In less than three minutes, Bulgaria had three players sent off – one for throwing the ball at the referee – and played the entire second half with eight men. Hungary managed to retain a full team until just before the end, when one of their men was sent off, also. But by that time Hungary had made sure of a 4-1 victory.

Few teams have been barred from the Olympics for their behaviour after a final – but that’s what happened to the Pakistan hockey team in Munich four years ago. They had been beaten for the gold medals 1-0 by West Germany. The Pakistanis accused officials of “fixing” the tournament and assaulted a doctor after the game. The manager and the players were banned from the Olympics for life.

But it was the basketball final which produced one of the biggest in-play sensations of the Munich Games. This was a title the United States had never lost in the six Olympics the game had been played. But against Russia, in Munich, the Americans were behind all the way until, with three seconds to go, they went ahead 50-49. Jubilant Americans mobbed each other when the game ended a few seconds later – but then came a dramatic intervention by an official who insisted that three seconds still remained to be played.

What could the Russians do in three seconds? The only possible thing – the ball was hurled in one long pass from their end of the court to under the American basket where the 6ft 7in tall Alexander Belov netted it for a 51-50 pts victory. The Americans were so upset that they refused to collect their silver medals.

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