Olympics: JUST a sporting event?

Citius, Altius, Fortius (Faster, Higher, Stronger)

Though the Games have been a quadrennial event that were supposedly said to bring nations together, which would have been other bickering about land, resources etc, it is an undeniable fact that the Games are more than just about jellying nations (and consequently their peoples). In the course of this write-up I will try to explore the political interference that reared its evil face over the history of Olympics

The political interference in Games has been, unfortunately, as old as the modern Games themselves. In 1936, Hitler used the Games for showcasing Germany as modern nation capable of constructing colossal stadiums and providing the corresponding logistics to match. The rather infamous Nazi salute featured in the Olympics too. The Games were close to being boycotted by the Americans due to the overt anti-Jewish stance of the then Nazi government. In 1972, another political drama played out but only that this it was in Munich. Palestinian militants abducted Israeli athletes and then killed them for avenging the Israeli occupation of the West Bank and Gaza. Later on in 1980, when cold war was at its peak, the Games were held in Moscow. The Americans boycotted the event simply due to the venue of the Games. The Soviets returned the favour in 1984 when the Games were held in Los Angeles in 1984.

The games since then have been free of controversies and political statements, barring some minor incidents, ever since. But the Beijing Olympics brought us back to the days that we thought were history. China’s rigid stand on Tibet as an integral part of China has been a sticking point with many countries esp. the Western ones which feel sympathetic to the Tibetan cause. Couple this with poor human rights track record of China and bingo we have yet another global sporting event that was potentially to be swallowed up political diktat.

Tibetan cause came to the fore when Tibetan monks went on a rampage earlier this year. World nations went into a huddle and revived their call for Tibetan independence. Some even threatened a boycott along the lines of the Moscow and LA games if China tried to use disproportionate force to quell the protest. The torch relay for the Beijing Games was not spared either. Tibetan activists made their presence felt when the torch went around the world, a usual ritual organised by the host nation and the IOC. In some cases the Olympic flame was extinguished, an incident that is considered to be an insult to the host nation in this case China. Tibetan activists managed to lodge their protests right in the Chinese capital as well by hoisting the Tibetan flag at Tiananmen Square. On his the part, the Dalai Lama has said that he never opposed China hosting the Olympics and that in fact China deserved to host the reputed event. He has asked his supporters to refrain from violence in any form. China, on expected lines, condemned the protest but never found fault with the nations for not providing fool proof security for the torch relay. Beijing probably didn’t want to bite more than it can chew!