From Munich 1972 to Beijing 2022 - Must the Olympic Games Always Go On? (coach, president)

[jbgusa]

I wasn't sure if this thread was bound for Sports, Great Debates or POC, so here it is. From Munich 1972 to Beijing 2022 - must the Olympic Games always go on? Moral repugnance dominates the coverage for the beginning of the 2022 Winter Games in Beijing, People's Republic of China. See In I.O.C.’s ‘Quiet Diplomacy,’ Critics See Whitewash of China’s Actions - The handling of the Peng Shuai case raised new questions about the I.O.C.’s relationship with China. One Olympic official called its actions ‘discreet.’ Critics called it collaboration (link to article). Excerpt:

Originally Posted by NY Times

The International Olympic Committee was under siege. Peng Shuai, a three-time Olympian from China, had not been heard from for weeks after making sexual abuse allegations against a senior political official, a man who had played a central role in preparations for the coming Winter Games in Beijing. Initially silent on the disappearance of Peng, a women’s tennis star, Olympic officials were now facing a growing global chorus of concern. The WTA Tour, through its chief executive, was demanding answers and an investigation. Fellow tennis stars like Serena Williams and Naomi Osaka — but also human rights groups, politicians and everyday fans — were using social media to ask #WhereIsPengShuai? Media organizations were flooding the internet with news coverage. Cornered by the criticism, the I.O.C. finally responded. This, Olympic officials insisted, was a time not for public statements but for “quiet diplomacy.”

This, sadly, is nothing new. In 1972, eleven Israeli athletes were massacred by Black September, a division of the Palestine Liberation Organization. The games went on. Here are two excerpts of New York Times coverage at the time:

Originally Posted by NY Times

Munich, 1972 (link): The bodies of the eleven Israeli athletes and coaches killed by Arab terrorists were still unburied when the games resumed yesterday.In the late nineteen‐thirties Munich became the world symbol of appeasement, the city where Czechoslovakia was sacrificed to Hitler's greed. Now Munich threatens to become a symbol of callousness that is utterly repugnant to the Olympic ideal. For millions all over the world, this indecent haste on the part of the International Olympic Committee to go back to fun and games is unacceptable.

Originally Posted by Avery Brundage in NY Times

Again the Sandbox (link)“We have only the strength of a great ideal. I am ,sure the public will agree that we cannot allow a handful terrorists to destroy this nucleus of international cooperation and goodwill we have in the Olympic movement. The Games must go on and we must continue our efforts keep them clean, pure and honest, and try to extend the sportsmanship of the athletic field into other areas.”

No question about it; these are horrific situations. The world must not knuckle under to terrorist and totalitarian urges to normalize themselves.

[Bondurant]

Why do we draw the line at the Olympics? We shake our fists while everything around us says "Made in China" on it. Boycotting the Olympics is hypocritical. Just don't watch it. Best message you can send. Don't rely on bureaucrats.

[jbgusa]

Originally Posted by Bondurant

Why do we draw the line at the Olympics? We shake our fists while everything around us says "Made in China" on it. Boycotting the Olympics is hypocritical. Just don't watch it. Best message you can send. Don't rely on bureaucrats.

But i re-pose the question; must we normalize atrocity?

[Bondurant]

Originally Posted by jbgusa

But i re-pose the question; must we normalize atrocity?

Point is moot. We already do.

[jbgusa]

Originally Posted by Bondurant

Point is moot. We already do.

This is an easy place not to though. Between Covid risks, the treatment of the Ugyars, and the treatment or likely murder of this tennis player it is time to tell China it's their choice; membership in the civilized world or "self-determination."

[Bondurant]

Originally Posted by jbgusa

This is an easy place not to though. Between Covid risks, the treatment of the Ugyars, and the treatment or likely murder of this tennis player it is time to tell China it's their choice; membership in the civilized world or "self-determination."

I am more concerned that China controls global production of goods than I am about them hosting an Olympics that no one cares about other than for grandstanding. We all like to complain about human rights abuses in China while wearing Nike products with no sense of irony.

[Coolair]

These people are just lobbying politically and thats all. It should not be tied to the sports or the gaming but sadly politics is involved too much in sports much less olympics.

[Natural510]

Originally Posted by Coolair

These people are just lobbying politically and thats all. It should not be tied to the sports or the gaming but sadly politics is involved too much in sports much less olympics.

It doesn't help that the Olympic Committee & FIFA have seen deep corruption in recent years (particularly with the Qatar situation) to make them completely untrustworthy. It's best to assume from here on out international sports events are awarded to whichever dictatorship greases the most palms.

[thinkalot]

The Olympics should always go on except for things like WW2.

I still blame Jimmy Carter fo boycotting. Do you think the Russians gave a damn? But hundreds of athletes lost out on something they worked their entire lives for.

[jbgusa]

Originally Posted by thinkalot

The Olympics should always go on except for things like WW2.

I still blame Jimmy Carter fo boycotting. Do you think the Russians gave a damn? But hundreds of athletes lost out on something they worked their entire lives for.

Why must we cooperate in siting the games in such repugnant places as Munich 1936, Moscow 1980 and Beijing 2008 and 2022?