The Olympics and boycotts by nations due to several geo-political tensions is something that has plagued past editions of the Games on a consistent basis.
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The recent Tokyo 2020 Olympic games were hailed as a success for the nation and world sport despite the threat of the coronavirus pandemic. The only country that pulled out of the Olympics even before it started was North Korea due to the concerns raised over the pandemic. Many nations participated and overcame the logistical hassles posed by the coronavirus pandemic.
The Tokyo Olympics benefited from the lack of geopolitical tensions at this time. The organizers heaved a sigh of relief when the games went off without any protests or diplomatic tensions. The Tokyo Olympics 2020 broke a long jinx. Many of the other games were held against the backdrop of severe geopolitical tensions. The 2008 Beijing Olympics was one such instance. The entire run of the Olympic torch was marred by protests of ‘Free Tibet’.
But, during the age of the cold war, there were severe tensions. In the aftermath of the Second World War, the likes of Japan and Germany were not invited to the 1948 Olympics in London. When the Cold War was reaching dangerous heights, many nations chose to boycott the games. Here is the list of the Olympic Games that have suffered from nation boycotts in the past.
1956 was perhaps the most volatile year when there were two dangerous situations developing in the world. The Suez Crisis, in which Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser nationalized the Suez Canal and kicked out French and British companies, escalated into a full-scale war. This was followed by a clash between Egypt and Israel in Sinai. At the same time, in the other part of the world, the Soviet Union had invaded Hungary to keep the country in the Warsaw Pact.
There was also another small matter of Taiwan’s participation in the Olympics, which forced Communist China to not participate. All these three elements witnessed large-scale boycotts. The crushing of the Hungarian revolution by the Soviet Union saw the Netherlands, Spain, and Switzerland boycott the games. Because of the Sinai war, Egypt, Iraq, and Lebanon also boycotted the games.
The flashpoint of the tensions in the world came in a Waterpolo match that would be famously dubbed as ‘Blood in the Water’ match. One Hungarian player was left bleeding from the head after a brawl with a Soviet player. This led to a fight among spectators and athletes. Hungary, up 4-0 at the start of the brawl, was named the winner and the team eventually won the gold medal. In total, eight countries withdrew from the Olympics due to geopolitical tensions.
If it was not for the Cold War, then the 1970s saw Apartheid raise its ugly head in South Africa. The Republic had already institutionalized Apartheid, which meant that the majority of blacks in South Africa had no rights. The white elite enjoyed most of the privileges. Due to South Africa’s Apartheid politics, there was a sports embargo against the Springbok nation. The Gleneagles agreement had specifically stated that any nation or individual touring South Africa would be considered a supporter of Apartheid.
The sporting boycott had worked. Cricket was the first of the many sports that saw their team being isolated. But, Rugby continued to defy the norms. In 1975/76, the New Zealand All Blacks toured South Africa in defiance of the embargo. But, in 1976, New Zealand was allowed to participate in the Olympics.
This did not go down well with the African nations. Led by Tanzania, a total of 28 nations and 400 athletes boycotted the Montreal Olympics due to the presence of New Zealand.
The tit-for-tat on the global stage spilled over in the 1980 Moscow Olympics. The Cold War had once again reached a dangerous stage, with the Soviet Union invading Afghanistan. Led by US President Jimmy Carter, a world record 65 countries, including the United States boycotted the Moscow Olympics. Ever since the end of the Second World War, the lowest number of nations that participated was the 1956 Melbourne Games. This topped the record, with only 80 nations playing the Games.
The United States, along with all of the Middle East Countries, Israel, China, Japan, West Germany, and Canada all boycotted the games. It is very important to note that Afghanistan, the country that was invaded, did not boycott and participated in the games. The Soviet Union won a total of 195 medals which is still a record.
With the Afghanistan war still raging on, it was time for the Soviet Union to do to the USA what it did four years ago. The Soviet Union, and all the countries of the Warsaw Pact, decided to boycott the Olympics in Los Angeles. They feared physical attacks on them on American soil. Thus, the Soviet Union along with East Germany, Hungary, Poland, Czechoslovakia, Romania, Bulgaria all withdrew from the 1984 Olympics.
China participated in the Olympics for the first time, with Taiwan now being represented as Chinese Taipei. It was a compromise that came about in the mid-70s.
The tradition of boycotts continued in the 60s all the way until the 1980s in Seoul. During the 1988 Olympics, the likes of North Korea, Nicaragua and Cuba boycotted the Olympics in South Korea. The North, obviously, had tensions with the USA and their Southern neighbors. During the 1964 Tokyo Olympics, China, Indonesia, and North Korea boycotted the Games.
The reason. These three nations competed in the 1963 Jakarta-held Games of the New Emerging Forces, created as an alternative multinational amateur competition. The International Olympic Council declared that the athletes who participated in those Games in 1963 would be disqualified. Apart from these three nations, for the first time, South Africa was banned from participating in the Olympics due to their Apartheid system.
There were hardly any boycotts as the world moved on from the end of the Cold War. From 1992 till 2021, a record number of nations continued to participate in the games. The modern era has seen no geopolitical tension dominate the games, but a different level of build-up has been created either due to doping or some issues in the host country, as witnessed in Rio 2016.
