Lead: The Bitter 1972 USA Olympic Basketball Team continues to refuse Silver Medal Reward amidst Being Robbed of the Gold 50 years ago In Munich
Many would consider the 1972 Olympic basketball game to be the greatest injustice in Olympic history. Being that this match for the gold takes place just about 30 years after the United States’ WW3 victory, a lot of bad blood still filled the air between the USA and the Soviet Union. That animosity would quite obviously spill over into this controversial game between the two.
“Those medals are going to be in Lausanne, Switzerland, for a thousand years from now,” stated former player for the 1972 USA Olympic Team with a heavy heart. Why is that though? What could have gone so wrong that the team still refuses to accept its loss to the Soviets and collect their medals even 50 years later?
The Washington Post suspects that this all derives from a game which was not even expected to cause any drama or wrongdoings. The question lingered over the Summer Olympics and Team USA players of whether the games should still be going on anyway as militants of Palestine had 11 athletes and coaches murdered at the Munich Olympic Village just days before. Via The Washington PostInternational Olympic Committee (IOC) president, Avery Brundage, stated that the games must go on. This was nothing unfamiliar to the Olympic Games as decades prior the US was forced to take place in the “Nazi Olympics” by that very Avery.
In the semi-final game Team USA would go on to win their sixty-third straight game against Italy moving them on to the finals against the Soviets for the gold.
The final 6 seconds of the US-Soviet game were what made this whole controversy. Via Sports Illustrated, Doug Collins of Team USA was fouled hard, nearly unconscious, following a stolen pass and hard drive to the basket. Down 48-49, Doug sinks two free throws after recomposing himself to give Team USA the lead at 50-49 with just 3 seconds on the clock.
Via Sports Illustrated international rules suggest that a timeout must be called by pressing a red button following the inbound after the made free throw. They also suggest that this was not the action taken by the Soviet squad, but instead they ran on the court demanding a that the clock stops, which was illegal. Following a referee stopping the clock an inbound violation is missed by the ref which would have overturned the ball back to Team USA and most likely giving them the win. Instead, the ball was thrown deep by the Soviets and no shot was taken before time ran out, still giving Team USA the win.
The New York Times suggests that while Team USA celebrated, the head on international basketball then came on the court from the stands to suggest that the Soviets get yet another chance alleging that the clock operator never reset the clock. Leaving team USA to either forfeit or redo the 3 seconds for a third time, they step back onto the court again. This time, only for the Soviets to get a layup off right as the clock expires and lose the game 51-50. After several illegal players and redoes by the Soviets with the help of referees and even people in the stands, they went on to win the Gold medals, robbing Team USA of its eighth consecutive gold medal win.
After protesting against the outcome of the game Team USA was outvoted 3-2 by other communist nations in Hungary, Poland, and Cuba via The Washington Post.
“The Americans have to learn how to lose, even when they think they are right,” FIBA chief, Jones, stated to The Washington Post as the Americans continued to be tormented for their beliefs on the outcome of the game. Team USA boycotted playing against the Soviets for years to come but ended up losing to the Soviets again in a semifinal game in 1988. This time the loss was straight up.
Team USA was left with an all or nothing acceptance for their silver medals meaning that the whole team would have to accept them, or no one would receive anything. 50 years later the team still stands on their beliefs about the game despite multiple opportunities to put it behind them and accept their medals. Team USA was screwed over in the 1972 game and it’s amazing to see them still stand on their beliefs about who should have won the gold till this day.
As time continues to go on players on the team like Tom McMillen still hold fears that the significance of the story is slowly being eroded by time. A wrong never to be righted will very much soon be forgotten.
“It’s unfortunate because that’s exactly what the I.O.C. wants. Our medals sit in Lausanne, and there are going to be fewer of us around for the 60th anniversary. History fades into the ether,” McMillen says with great pain via New York Times.
https://www.nytimes.com/2022/09/09/sports/olympics/usa-soviet-union-olympics-basketball.html
https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/olympics/2022/09/08/us-ussr-basketball-1972-munich-olympics/