Wednesday, September 5, 2012

Munich 1972

We went on trip with Dog Dad in the WABAC machine today.  We travelled back forty years to 5 September 1972, the location Munich, Germany.  The world was very different back then, times were simpler.  They were not as politically correct, a war was being fought in a place called Vietnam and Watergate had not yet torched the nations soul.  Dog Dad was a scrawny young High School kid.  The Holmhaven collie line was represented by a young pup named Holmhaven Magic Flash. 
Holmhaven Magic Flash, UD
We are at the the Olympic Village in Munich, West Germany.  We are going out for a walk and the time 4:30 am local.  We hear noises and look at Dad, eight terrorist have broken into the Israeli apartment in the Olympic Village.  The news coverage is intense, we watch as a tragedy unfolds before the eyes of the world.  It ends the next day at 12:04 am.  The news reports that all eleven members of the Israeli Olympic Team, a West German Police officer and five terrorists are dead. 

The 1972 Olympics are remembered for other memorable events like:
 -   Mark Spitz winning seven gold medals and setting a new world records each time.
  -   The United States losing it's first Olympic basketball game in a controversial finals to the USSR.
  -    Two USA medal winners turning their backs to the US flag when the US national anthem was being play, then being barred for life. 


1972 Memorial Plaque in Munich, Germany
from Wikipedia
These memorable Olympic events, were overshadowed by the tragedy.  Afterwards the word terrorists would be etched into the worlds and our nations vocabulary. 

6 comments:

Dianne SS said...

I remember how shocking that was. The tragic deaths certainly overshadowed the Olympics.
Dianne

Dawn said...

I remember the terrorists too...but didn't remember that it was the same year as Mark Spitz. Sad.

How Sam Sees It said...

It was a sad day for the Olympics.

Sam

Collie222 said...

Do you remember what reason those two medalists had, for turning their backs?

KEY WEST COLLIES said...

From what we read they didn't to honor the anthem because of the struggle faced by African Americans at the time.

Arran, Arthur and Mum said...

Thank you for taking us back on that time travel. Mum and me are too young to remember it, but we heard all about it with the olympics being over here this time.