VCE History: 20th Century History Unit 2: 1945-2000: Sport

Discusses the boycott of the 1984 Olympics by communist countries as an example of sport colliding with politics.

"Describes the diplomatic and public relations disputes that surrounded the Olympic Games during the Cold War era."

Research Article Abstract: "Films and sports played central roles in Cold War popular culture. Each helped set ideological agendas domestically and internationally while serving as powerful substitutes for direct superpower conflict. This article brings film and sport together by offering the first comparative analysis of how U.S. and Soviet cinema used sport as an instrument of propaganda during the Cold War."

Throughout the Cold War, "sport provided a diversion, a psychological escape from the sense of impending doom, and the perception of a strong national spirit. "

Features articles demonstrating the rivalry between the Soviet bloc and the US and its allies.

How sport was used for political and ideological purposes, e.g. by demonstrating a country's superiority. Includes examples of USSR and East German sports funding and infrastructure, as well as examples of sporting conflicts fueled by Cold War tensions.

This site includes a timeline, essays and podcasts on all aspects of sport during the Cold War.

Outlines the political interference by countries in the Olympics during the Cold War, culminating in the boycotting of the 1980 and 1984 Games.