THE OLYMPICS

Next month, on April 16, one of the most enduring rituals of the past century will begin. In a sacred ceremony in Olympia, Greece, the birthplace of the Olympics, the rays of the sun will light the Olympic torch, and it will begin its journey to Paris. Over 68 days, 10,000 different people will carry the torch throughout France, ultimately arriving across the Seine from the Eiffel Tower on July 26 for the now iconic and epic Opening Ceremony of the XXXIII Olympiad. This event is so deeply entrenched in the lore and culture of the games that it would seem to have always been a part of the Olympics, but along with most of the other aspects of the games that have elevated them to legendary status, it had a definite beginning. It all started in 1936 with a truly despicable propaganda campaign.

The modern Olympics were first held in 1896 in Athens, Greece. Subsequent Summer Games were hosted in Paris, St. Louis, London, Stockholm, Antwerp, Amsterdam, and Los Angeles. A symbolic fire was displayed above the main stadium for the first time at Amsterdam 1928, an Olympic Village for athletes and a victor's podium were added at Los Angeles 1932, but for the most part, the Olympics remained a fairly simple athletic competition. In 1931, the International Olympic Committee awarded the games to Berlin. Two years later, Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party took over Germany and decided to use the Olympics to indoctrinate the world.

The Nazis had become masters of propaganda through imagery, spectacle, and modern media. Their efforts had transformed the hearts and minds of Germany. They were determined to position the country and its new ideals of Aryan supremacy in a powerful and positive light on the global stage. The first step was visually retelling the history of the human race. To show that Germany was the natural culmination of art, culture, and technology, they created an inspiring journey of a sun-fired torch through seven countries, directly connecting Germany to ancient Greece. The whole world was captivated by the symbolic pageantry, perhaps missing the racist messages even as the torchbearers passed Greek-style, white marble statues on their way to dramatically light the Olympic flame in a newly-constructed, massive Olympic complex that was the largest the world had ever seen.

First Olympic torch relay Statues for 1936 Berlin Olympics

With a focus on brand continuity, the Nazis also popularized the Olympic rings. Originally developed as a logo for the International Olympic Committee in 1914, the rings first appeared publicly at the 1920 Olympics in Antwerp. But it was the 1936 Olympics that solidified the rings as the eternal emblem of the games. The logo was etched in a stone monument at the beginning of the torch relay, and flags with the ring logo were displayed at every venue. During the Opening Ceremony, the recently completed Hindenburg flew over the stadium with the Olympic rings painted on the aircraft.

Poster for 1936 Berlin Olympics

The 1936 Olympics marked the first television broadcast of a sports event. Twenty-five locations were set up throughout Berlin where the public could watch the games for free. Sports color photography and film were also demonstrated for the first time. In addition, the Berlin games were the first to be widely filmed. The Hindenburg provided aerial footage, and multiple cameras were positioned around the event arenas to capture the action from every angle, a practice that is still utilized in sports broadcasting today.

The crowning achievement of the 1936 Olympics was "Olympia," the first film ever dedicated to the Olympics or any other sporting event. The director was Leni Riefenstahl, a 34-year-old woman hand-picked by Hitler after she created a powerful propaganda film that helped put him in power. Riefenstahl transformed the art of cinema with a variety of innovations, but she specifically reshaped the world's engagement with sports. Multi-angle shots and extreme close-ups perfectly captured the human form in action. Smash cuts and other unique fades elevated the presentation of athletics to an art form. Slow motion footage enabled the world to truly appreciate the abilities of world-class athletes, and laid the groundwork for instant replay, which has redefined modern sports. Motion tracking provided a unique vantage point for lengthy races and a unique way to record speed and competition. Reverse action and underwater shots presented diving as it was never seen before. Most importantly, her vision of depicting the Olympics as a grand epic created not only the imagery of sports as inspiring and entertaining, but the overall drama of sports as a spectacle that can unite all of humanity. Despite its promotion of Nazi ideals and white supremacy, "Olympia" is still regarded as one of the best documentaries and one of the best sports films ever created, and it has influenced every film that came after it.

Poster for Olympia

Following the Olympics, Leni Riefenstahl traveled to the United States to promote her film and try to forge a larger career in Hollywood. But just after she arrived in November 1938, news of the Third Reich burning thousands of synagogues and shipping tens of thousands of Jews to concentration camps became public, and her career was instantly finished. She was never prosecuted as a Nazi sympathizer, but she also did very little work for the rest of her life. Hitler's dream of convincing the whole world of the power of the master race also never materialized. Jesse Owens became the most celebrated athlete of the Berlin Olympics, defeating all the supposedly superior white competitors very publicly. By the end of 1938, most of the world condemned the Nazis and their ideologies. In a chilling reversal of the first Olympic torch relay, Hitler eventually retraced the route and conquered every country from Germany to Greece.

But the world was forever changed with regard to the Olympics particularly and sports generally. In many ways, sports have become the drama of the modern age, harkening back to that first torch relay connecting ancient Greece to the Olympic Games. Sporting events continue to be some of the largest exhibitions produced worldwide. According to Nielsen, the top ten most-watched television broadcasts in the history of the United States are all Super Bowls. Globally, of the top 20 most viewed television events of all time, nine are sports events. In 2022, sports accounted for all but six of the top 100 telecasts.

How we view sports, how we broadcast sports, how we celebrate sports - all of these are direct descendants of the 1936 Olympics. Every blimp that sails over a stadium is a nod to the first flight of the Hindenburg. All the rituals, displays, and productions before and during sports events - from global competitions to college games - exist because of Berlin, including the Super Bowl half-time show. Almost every way we film and watch sports was pioneered by a visionary German woman. The Nazis ultimately failed in their mission to conquer the world and eradicate minority populations from the planet. Instead, they united us all in a way that is deep and primal and exhilarating and inspiring. They obviously underestimated the power of human unity, the power of love and admiration, the power of excellence and competition, and the power of sports. We as humans are probably best encapsulated by the recently updated Olympic motto: "Faster, Higher, Stronger - Together."

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THE OLYMPICS

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