1936 olympics
The modern Olympic Games is an international sporting event held every four years at different sites throughout the world. Many countries, totaling more than ten thousand athletes, compete against each other in a variety of sports. Began in Athens, Greece, in 1896, the Games were established to promote a more peaceful world. Although an athletic event, numerous countries have used the Olympics as an opportunity to make a political statement. One such Olympics were the 1936 Olympics in Berlin, Germany...The Nazi Olympics. Due to the Spanish Revolution, the Spanish athletes returned home before the finish of the games. Brazil sent two teams, each representing a different political viewpoint. They were both barred from competing. And then there was the host country Germany. In the following pages you will read about a sinister leader of that country trying to prove to the world that the Aryan race was supreme and how he would use the Olympics to prove this idea. You will also read about how one man did as much as anybody to dispel those notions. The 1936 Olympics was awarded to Berlin in 1931, two years before Adolf Hitler came to power. Obviously,
In fact, Hitler was so pleased with the Olympics that he planned on building a stadium that would seat over 400,000 people. According to him, all Olympics after the 1940 games in Tokyo would be held there. All athletic competition would be confined forever to "pure" Germans. Ironically, the completion date for the stadium was supposed to be in 1945. That is the year that the Nazi nightmare would end. "You can melt down all the medal and cups I have and they wouldn't be plating on the 24-carat friendship I felt for Luz Long." Jesse Owens won a total of four gold medals during the 1936 Olympic Games. Astonishingly, no other athlete would equal that feat until 1984 when another U.S. sprinter-jumper, Carl Lewis, won gold medals in the same four events. But the differences between the two put Owens feat on a much higher plateau. In 1984, the Soviet Union boycotted the Olympics, by far our closest competitor. Lewis also accomplished his feat in the United States, far away from Nazi Germany and many years after any type of legal discrimination and racism was banned. He did not have to perform under extreme racists conditions or under a ruthless dictator's watch. Owens did not have these comforts. Owens' achievements had consequences far beyond the arena, for they effectively debunked the myth that Aryan superiority-right in front of Hitler. In fact, the 10 African-Americans on the U.S. track team outscored all other national teams, winning 13 medals in all (eight gold, three silver and two bronze). Germany won the total medal count mainly because of an expanded men's gymnastics program. To no one's surprise, the U.S. men's basketball team won the gold medal. Yet another landmark for the 1936 Games, this was the first year that basketball was an Olympic sport. It was not done, however, in a very professional matter. The games were played outdoors, often in the rain. This did not pose a problem for the Americans, though, as it easily defeated almost every opponent. There was really only one concern. Shortly after the games started, the International Basketball Federation put into effect a rule which prohibits all players over six feet three inches tall. The rule would have affected only three players, all Americans, so it was quickly rescinded. James Cleveland Owens was born in 1913 in Alabama and was the grandson of slaves. Owens was an outstanding athlete throughout his high school career. He later was a member of the Ohio State University track team. At the Big Ten Track and Field Championships of 1935, he set or equaled world records in six events: the 100 and 220-yard dashes, 200-yard low hurdles, the long jump, 200-meter run and 200-meter hurdles. That is six world records in one afternoon, and he did it all in 45 minutes! The following year, he swept the 100 and 200 meters and long jump at the Olympic Trials and headed for Germany as a favorite to win all three.
Some common words found in the essay are:
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Approximate Word count = 2712
Approximate Pages = 11 (250 words per page double spaced)
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