What’s the earliest Olympic Games that you remember seeing? Last night while my wife and I were watching some of the games and we talked about this. For each of us we were about 10-12 years old.
What Olympic Games was the earliest one that you remember watching? Was it a summer or winter games? Do you remember the host city? What are some of your earliest Olympic memories? Include your year of birth if you want.
Mine:
1961: born
1972: Munich Summer Olympics. I remember Frank Shorter winning the marathon, Olga Korbut dominating gymnastics, Dan Gable’s wrestling win, the US men’s basketball team losing that heartbreaking and controversial game to the USSR and then not showing up for their medals, and Mark Spitz dominating his swimming events - 7 golds and 7 world records. And, tragically, the Munich Massacre.
I don’t have any clear specific memories of the Olympics until 1968. There were the Black Power salutes, Dick Fosbury winning the high jump with a flop, and Bob Beamon setting an incredible long jump record. I met Beamon years later in Boston at a marketing event, he said something to me and I stammered like a child.
In 1976 (I was about ten years old), we happened to be visiting a family friend in Montreal. So my parents tried to buy tickets at the last minute to see something. The women’s gymnastics tickets were extremely expensive (like several hundred dollars each), so I think we ended up with nosebleed seats to a judo competition. Somewhere in the house is a small wooden beaver (the mascot) from a souvenir we bought.
Pretty much the same, although I do remember the torch lighting from Sapporo (1972 Winter Olympics).
From Munich, I also remember watching Vasily Alexeev in the weightlifting, and watching wrestler Chris Taylor win a bronze after losing one match. (They had a strange “elimination points” system back then - 0 for a pin, 1/2 for a win by 8 or more, 1 for a win by 7 or less, 2 for a draw, and the loser got 4 minus what the winner got; a wrestler was eliminated after getting 6 points.) If I read the story correctly, Taylor played a big part (pun intended) in there being a maximum weight for wrestlers now.
Ski jumping in the 1972 Sapporo Winter Games, and a Dutch skater named Ard Schenk who won several medals. My father called him Ard Vark, which tickled my 11 year old fancy no end.
I have very vague memories of Nadia Comăneci winning all that gold in the '76 games, but I was 6, and honestly couldn’t tell you if I’m remembering it from when it actually happened, or constant replays afterwards.
My first clearcut Olympic memory is the 1980 US hockey game against the Russians. I watched it as it aired (it wasn’t broadcast live, but I didn’t know that at the time, and had no idea what was going to happen). Definitely the greatest sports memory of my life.
Born in 1061. 72 and 76 are the only ones I watched. I recall Mark Spitz mostly, since I was a swimmer in those days. I also recall Jenner, which was a huge thing. I think there were some good gymnasts in those years as well.
Pretty much this. Also there was a thing about one of the women’s gymnasts from the USA? And how all the girls had their hair cut like hers? I’m blanking on her name though.
That’s definitely the strongest early memory for me as well. Things were very anxious in our house during that time.
My earliest firm sporting memories are probably of Mark Spitz during the 1972 games since I was a competitive swimmer back then. A more solid memory was of the 1976 gold medal run in the downhill by Franz Klammer in Innsbruck.
Eric Heiden winning a gold medal at the 1980 winter games.
I also remember watching the US hockey team defeating the Russians, but there’s a strong possibility that with all the times that I’ve seen it replayed over the years that that’s a false memory.
Same here, although I don’t recall the terrorism much; it probably went over my head at the time. I was 7.
I remember an imposter came in to the stadium ahead of Shorter at the end of the marathon. And I remember the Opening Ceremonies.
Heiden won 5 golds in Lake Placid; every distance from 500m to 10,000m.
I watch the Games now with some fascination at how much they’ve changed. Teams used to march in during the Opening Ceremonies, in step, and in straight lines. Speed skating used to be outdoors.