The Darkest Day

Fifty years have now passed since the world was stunned by the terrorist attack at Munich 1972. Philip Barker looks back on the events which changed the Olympic Movement forever.

Even today, 50 years after it happened, the events of the 1972 Munich Olympics cast a long shadow over the city.

Throughout this year there have been a series of commemorative occasions to remember those who came to compete in friendship but then never returned home.

Those who only watched on television will still be able to recall the grim bulletins over two nightmarish days, when 11 Israeli team members were killed.

A Munich police officer and five members of the Black September group, which had unleashed the deadly terrorist attack, also perished.

Munich was the second occasion that the Summer Olympics had been staged in Germany.

The Games were famously, or perhaps infamously, held in Berlin under the ominous shadow of Hitler and the Nazi swastika in 1936.

Munich 1972 organising chief Willi Daume was determined to present a friendly and welcoming face and put on “cheerful” Games, which would as far as possible erase the bitter memories of Berlin.

The International Olympic Committee selected Munich in 1966, ahead of rival bids from Montreal, Madrid and Detroit.

A vast site on the outskirts of the city was transformed into an Olympic Park, and a large stadium and sports complex, complete with a tented roof, was designed by Frei Otto.

The Athletes’ Village was built close by and was used for housing after the Games.

As with many Olympics, the build-up to the action was mired in political controversy.

Apartheid-era South Africa had been banned in 1970 but there were calls from many African nations to exclude the Rhodesians as well, because of their similar discriminatory policies.

Even so, an agreement was brokered in the days leading up to Munich which allowed the Rhodesians to compete.

The conditions stipulated that they were to compete as Southern Rhodesia, the name by which the country was known when it was a British colony, before its declaration of independence in 1965.

The team duly arrived in the Olympic city and took part in the traditional welcome ceremony at the Village.

The old flag of Southern Rhodesia was raised, and the British national anthem God Save the Queen was played.

Team members wore green blazers with the single word “Rhodesia” below the crest, but the agreement for them to participate was deemed to have been infringed as they carried only Olympic identity cards and not British passports.

This was a technicality, but it gave the Ethiopians, Kenyans and others the ammunition to call for Rhodesia’s expulsion.

It did not help that a member of the

PHILIP BARKER HISTORIAN, INSIDETHEGAMES

delegation had flippantly suggested that “we will compete under any flag, even that of the boy scouts”.

Eventually, the IOC voted on the question and, when President Avery Brundage announced the result, 36 had voted to expel the Rhodesians with 31 voting against.

This episode was to have unexpected resonance following later events, but most other teams had arrived in Munich in good spirits.

They found arenas decorated in pastel colours with a festive look, created by the German designer Otl Aicher.

Staff at all the venues and the Village were dressed in the same colour scheme.

Design work included pictograms, and the Munich 1972 logo was based on the blue and white colours of the locality.

This was all widely acclaimed at the time, and last year the work featured in an exhibition at the Smithsonian Institute, a testimony to its enduring place in graphic design history.

The Games opened on a glorious summer afternoon in late August, with the parade of nations.

First into the stadium were the Greeks, with their flag carried by Mediterranean Games pole vault gold medallist Christos Papanikolaou.

A soundtrack of folk music, appropriate to each team, was specially arranged by Kurt Edelhagen and his orchestra.

There was much interest in the entry of East Germany.

For more than a decade they had competed uneasily in a joint team with their Western counterparts, but now, on West German soil, the German Democratic Republic entered under their own flag.

This was the German tricolour with the addition of a communist coat of arms, and it was carried by 1968 boxing gold medallist Manfred Wolke.

Although the women wore a variety of colours, the men donned jackets which were almost identical to the sky blue ones worn later by the West German team.

In what was a much simpler Opening Ceremony, the parade was followed by what was described as a “greeting from the youth”.

Dancers in yellow, green and blue performed to the music of Sumer is Icumen In, a medieval tune thought to date back to the 13th century.

Brundage made a speech with some words spoken in faltering German, before West German President Gustav Heinemann made a simple declaration to open the Games.

The Olympic flag was carried by members of the victorious 1968 German men’s rowing eight, which had won gold in Mexico. They did so to a brisk arrangement of the Olympic Anthem.

In those days, the official handover of the ceremonial Olympic flag took place at the Opening Ceremony.

It was therefore 1968 host Mexico City which entrusted the decorated silk flag to Munich.

Their group entered while accompanied by a mariachi band and dancers.

Mexico City Mayor Octavio Sentíes Gómez passed the flag to Brundage, who then passed it to Munich Mayor Georg Kronawitter as local performers cracked whips to celebrate.

The Flame which had been lit in Olympia was brought overland through Europe by some 6,200 Torchbearers, with the journey lasting for almost a month.

It entered the stadium in the hands of 18-year-old Günter Zahn, the winner of the 1500 metres at the German Youth Championships.

He was described by organisers as "a young, unknown runner as a representative of future generations”. Zahn was escorted by athletes from four other continents, including marathon runners Derek Clayton of Australia and Japan’s Kenji Kimihara.

They were joined by 1500m world record holder Jim Ryun of the United States and Kenya’s Kip Keino, who won Olympic gold over the same distance in 1968.

The taking of the athletes’ oath was also a significant moment.

Long jumper Heidi Schüller became the first woman to do so at a Summer Olympics, and equestrian judge Heinz Pollay, resplendent in a bright green uniform, took a similar oath on behalf of the officials.

This had only been introduced earlier in the year at the Winter Olympics in Sapporo.

Many felt that the Games had become too unwieldy and that the time had come for them to be reduced in size. It was a plea which fell on deaf ears.

Kenya's Kip Keino was one of the stars of the Munich 1972 Olympic Games. Photo: Getty Images

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Swimmer Mark Spitz was the standout performer of the Games, winning seven gold medals. Photo: Getty Images

Among the new events included on the schedule was canoe slalom, which was staged on an ambitious new course in Augsburg.

It was said that the East Germans reproduced the course in exact detail at Zwickau, and they certainly reaped the rewards after winning all four gold medals on offer.

Indoor handball was included as a sport for the first time, but only for men, and Yugoslavia won the first gold medal.

Archery made its return after an absence of 52 years, in the picturesque surroundings of Munich’s Englischer Garten.

Its return was in no small measure due to the promptings of Inger Frith, the President of the International Archery Federation and at the time the only female leader of an Olympic sport.

A huge computer processed results from all of the Games venues.

Nowhere was busier than the Olympia Schwimmhalle, where the feats of American swimmer Mark Spitz made him the outstanding performer of the Games.

He won no fewer than seven gold medals, a record for a single Games until the rise of fellow swimmer and compatriot Michael Phelps.

The women’s competitions brought three gold medals, one silver and one bronze for 15-year-old Australian schoolgirl Shane Gould.

The fifth and final day of the men’s modern pentathlon was held in the stadium. In those days, the competition began with riding and ended with a 4,000 metre run.

Football was the first sport staged in the main stadium and East Germany later beat their West German counterparts 3-2. This was the first Olympic encounter where East and West directly opposed each other at the Games.

The football gold ultimately went to Poland, who beat Hungary 2-1 in the final. Kazimierz Deyna scored both goals and the squad also included Jerzy Gorgoń, Robert Gadocha and Grzegorz Lato, the core of the Polish team which played superbly and finished third at the 1974 FIFA World Cup.

The gymnastics hall was nearby and attracted great attention in the first week, largely because of a 16-year-old Belarusian born athlete called Olga Korbut who was transformed into a world superstar.

She won three gold medals and her personality endeared her to those watching on television.

It was said she inspired millions of young girls to take up the sport.

As athletics began, Uganda’s John Akii-Bua devastated the rest of the field, including Britain’s defending champion David Hemery, to win the 400m hurdles gold in a world record time of 47.82sec from the inside lane.

Keino demonstrated his versatility as he proved unstoppable in the steeplechase, but his 1500m crown went to Pekka Vasala as the Finns won every other long distance track event.

Vasala’s compatriot Lasse Virén, a policeman from Myrskylä, completed an impressive distance double.

His 10,000m time of 27min 38.35sec broke a world record which had stood for seven years and was achieved despite a fall.

There was home delight as 16-year-old Ulrike Meyfarth soared to win high jump gold, and Heide Rosendahl leapt to victory in the long jump and 4x100m relay.

Rosendahl also claimed silver in the women’s pentathlon. This proved to be an epic struggle and was eventually won by Mary Peters from Belfast, competing in British colours.

There was last-gasp controversy in the basketball final between the United States and the Soviet Union. Photo: Getty Images

In the sprints, Ukrainian Valeriy Borzov, wearing the red vest of the Soviet Union, won the men’s 100m and 200m.

It was a feat emulated in the women’s events by Renate Stecher, in a foretaste of the dominance that female athletes from East Germany would enjoy over the next two decades.

American Dave Wottle surged through to win the men’s 800m in a sensational finish.

He had been back in fourth as the field entered the last 200m of the race, but he sprinted through to win by three one hundredths of a second.

It was a late finish which perfectly summed up his nickname of “The Head Waiter”.

Wottle wore a baseball cap while running and had to be consoled after realising he had forgotten to remove it during the medal ceremony.

Favourites Eddie Hart and Rey Robinson were both disqualified from the quarter-finals of the 100m after not reporting in time, having both been around world record pace.

It emerged that American team officials had been working from an outdated schedule.

When the marathon reached its climax, the computer showed that American Frank Shorter was leading the race.

But the first runner who appeared was student Norbert Sudhaus, wearing number 72.

It turned out that he had sneaked onto the course just outside the stadium, but television commentators and fans were soon wise to his hoax. Soon afterwards, Shorter entered for his moment of glory.

Unfortunately, the sport on show also included some displays of petulance. American pole vaulter Bob Seagren, the 1968 Olympic gold medallist, was told he could not use his new fibreglass pole, known as the “Cata-Pole”. He angrily remonstrated with official Adriaan Paulen, later to become the supremo of world athletics. The gold medal went instead to East Germany’s Wolfgang Nordwig, and it was the first time that an American had failed to win the event since its introduction at the first Modern Olympics in 1896. The American winning streak in basketball could be traced back only to 1936, but that too evaporated after an extraordinary finale to their match against the Soviet Union. When the klaxon sounded the US thought they had won, but officials then ordered an extra three seconds to be played. In that time, the Soviets launched one final desperate attack and Alexander Belov scored the basket which gave them a 51-50 victory. Despite American protests, the result stood. They refused to attend the medal ceremony and, to this day, the silver medals have never been presented. American captain Ken Davis has even written a clause in his will forbidding his family to ever accept the medal. There was also trouble at the medal ceremony for men’s hockey. West Germany had beaten Pakistan by a single goal in the final, but Pakistani players were unhappy with the umpiring during the match. They refused to wear the medals or even face the flags during the presentation. “Grave sanctions” were announced by the IOC and 11 players were eventually given life bans, although these were later rescinded.

The IOC also acted to punish American 400m gold and silver medallists Vince Matthews and Wayne Collett.

They stood in a casual manner on the podium to protest against racial discrimination back home in the US.

Their gesture was described by the IOC as an "insulting display", and it threatened to withhold medals in the event of future protests. The pair were expelled from the Games, and the US could not field a team in the relay as a result.

The names of all medal winners were recorded around the stadium, but there is also a plaque at 31 Connollystrasse, a street named after James Connolly, the first Olympic champion of the modern era in 1896.

It was here that the Israeli team was staying during the Games. Security at the Village was deliberately low key, and the terrorist group wore tracksuits to appear as athletes before infiltrating the site.

Maps of the Village were also freely distributed to journalists who were covering the Games.

For more than a day, television and newspapers showed terrifying images of hooded terrorists on the balcony after they forced their way inside and made their way to the Israeli team’s base.

Two were killed in the initial assault, and a tense siege followed the next day.

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The Olympic flag flies at half mast in memory of those who died in the terrorist attack. Photo: Getty Images

It emerged that the terrorists had demanded the release of more than 200 prisoners in Israel and of Andreas Baader and Ulrike Meinhof, who were imprisoned in Germany.

Eventually, late at night, the terrorists and their hostages set off for Fürstenfeldbruck Air Base on the outskirts of the city.

Volunteer snipers were called for, but it appeared the police had not been told how many terrorists there were.

A firefight followed at the airport, and all of the remaining Israeli hostages were killed when a grenade exploded in the helicopter where they were being held captive.

The police officer and the five terrorists were also killed.

In a macabre twist, a media conference had claimed that the rescue operation had been a “success”, shortly before a further announcement a few hours later which confirmed the worst.

“They’re gone, all gone,” was the memorable announcement by American television presenter Jim Mackay.

By now, the sport had been halted and a memorial service was hastily arranged.

Flags were lowered to half-mast and some 2,000 athletes filed quietly into the stadium.

“The Olympic Games stand still,” declared BBC commentator David Coleman, his voice breaking with emotion. “The whole world bewildered and appalled by the bloody chaos at Fürstenfeldbruck.” Daume described it as a “day of unbounded sorrow”. “Even in the world of crime there are still taboos, a final boundary of brutality, that makes people shrink back,” he said. “Those at fault in the Olympic Village have broken through this boundary.” As the Munich Philharmonic Orchestra played the funeral march from Beethoven’s Eroica Symphony, the Israeli Chef de Mission Shmuel Lalkin rose to recite the names of those who had died. "Shaken to the core, we mourn the barbaric profanation of the Olympic spirit caused by the malicious raid by terrorists,” Lalkin said. Brundage said that “every civilized person is dismayed by this barbaric and criminal raid on the peaceful Olympic site by terrorists”. “With our Israeli friends, we mourn the victims of this brutal attack,” he added. “It is a sorrowful fact in our imperfect world that the greater and more important the Olympic Games become, the more they become the victim of economic, political and now criminal pressure.”

Brundage was later widely criticised for comparing the attack with the dispute over the participation of Rhodesia.

“The Games of the 20th Olympiad have been the target of two terrible attacks because we have lost the struggle against political repression in the case of Rhodesia,” he said.

“We control only the force of a great ideal. I am convinced that world opinion agrees with me that we cannot allow a handful of terrorists to destroy this core of international cooperation and goodwill which the Olympic Games represent.

“The Games must go on! We must proceed with our efforts to keep them pure and praiseworthy, and to carry the sportsmanlike conduct of the athletes into other spheres.

“We declare, therefore, this day as a day of mourning and we will continue all events as planned, one day later.”

The Games did go on, but without joy, and they left a legacy of greater security at all future major events. Watching sadly was legendary athlete Jesse Owens, who won four gold medals when the Olympics were held in Berlin.

Owens later said that the Games were a place “to break bread with the world”.

The 11 Israelis who came to Munich would do so no more.