Backgrounder: Olympic Games Munich 1972: Marred by tragedy

The Olympic Games returned for a second time to Germany and this time in the city of Munich, West Germany, in 1972, over three decades after the edition in Berlin.

The Games, whose motto was to defend peace, were marred five days before the Closing Ceremony due to a terrorist attack that shocked the world and caused the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to suspend the sporting event for 34 hours.

On September 5, eight Palestinian terrorists belonging to an organization known as Black September broke into the Olympic Village where the Israeli team were staying, killing two athletes and taking nine hostage. In exchange for their freedom, the terrorists asked for the release of 234 Palestinian prisoners jailed in Israel.

The German authorities allowed the terrorists to travel with the nine hostages to a nearby military airport, where the kidnappers hoped to leave the country.

However, in the airport, the German police opened fire on the terrorists which led to them retaliating by setting off grenades and firing at the authorities and the hostages. This caused all the kidnapped Israelis, a policeman and a pilot to be killed along with five of the eight terrorists.

After the tragedy, a special ceremony honoring the victims was held in the Olympic Stadium, the Israeli team abandoned the Games and German authorities reinforced security measures to the maximum until the end of the Olympics.

Apart from the tragic incident, Germany had made a big effort preparing for the 20th edition of the Games and the city built its first metro line especially for this event.

A sports complex was also developed for the Games, encompassing the stadium, sports palace and Olympic swimming pool which was covered by a wide tent made of special material that allowed natural light to pass through. The Olympic Village was very close to the facilities and the streets were named after champions from previous editions.

The Munich Games attracted a record number of participants of 7,234 athletes from 121 countries and regions to compete in 195 events between August 26 and September 11.

Also in this edition the first official Olympic mascot was introduced: Waldi the dog. German athlete Heidi Schuller was the first ever woman in Olympic history to take the Olympic Oath during the Opening Ceremony.

In the basketball final, the USSR defeated the United States by only one point after a controversial game which needed the judges to intervene. The U.S. team have since listed the game as "the most controversial in the history of international basketball."

Australian swimmer Shane Gould won five medals at the tender age of 15: three gold, one silver and one bronze. The legendary swimmer broke all the World Records in women's freestyle swimming, from 100 to 1,500 meters and is the only Australian to win three individual gold medals at a single Olympics.

Also in swimming, Mark Spitz from the U.S. won seven Olympic titles, setting World Records in each one and setting another one for winning seven golds in one Olympics.

Wim Ruska from the Netherlands became the first judoka to win two gold medals.

OLYMPIC GAMES MUNICH 1972 MEDAL TABLE

COUNTRY GOLD SILVER BRONZE TOTAL

USSR 50 27 22 99

U.S. 33 31 30 94

East Germany 20 23 23 66

West Germany 13 11 16 40

Japan 13 8 8 29

Australia 8 7 2 17

Poland 7 5 9 21

Hungary 6 13 16 35

Bulgaria 6 10 5 21

Italy 5 3 10 18

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