ABSTRACT
The 1980 Moscow Olympics were the occasion of an enthralling battle, fought out between the stadium and the television screen. At stake was the interpretation of the games. The Soviet Union controlled the pictures, British television commanded the microphone. The Soviet Union started impressively with a huge mosaic of people holding coloured cards that spelled the message ‘Sport, you are peace’. David Coleman, playing for the BBC, countered by referring to the human mosaic,‘so popular in communist countries’.At home we wondered if he had ever watched BBC’s Match of the Day, which used to kick off with a similar mosaic revealing the inspiring sight of Jimmy Hill.The Soviet Union then undermined its early advantage with the bizarre sight of a phalanx of men goose-stepping along, right arms aloft clutching doves. Few images so perfectly captured the ambiguities of the Olympic movement.The battle raged on through the games. British television constantly reminded us that ‘our’ team was competing under the Olympic flag, while Russian cameras zoomed in on hordes of ‘unofficial’ Union Jacks in the crowd. Lord Killanin, head of the International Olympic Committee, made a dramatic late appearance in the closing ceremony to ask sportspeople of the world to unite in peace before a holocaust descended.The great mosaic produced an image of the Moscow mascot crying in sadness at the closing of the games. Coleman countered brilliantly:‘Mika the mascot sheds a cardboard tear – so this is, perhaps, a moment to remember the real grief called for elsewhere which has led to half the world staying away.’ It is hard to believe that anyone will ever be able to say again, with a straight face, that sport is nothing to do with politics.
