Along with the gold medal performance at the dressage (dressage? I can't be doing with horses normally) which made me start snivelling, and the boo bo-ing over tales of the struggles of athletes I have never seen from countries I have never even heard of, there was one story which touched me enormously, and one I want to record here.
In the Mexico Olympics of 1968, the 200 metre medal ceremony attracted massive controversy and outrage because of this:
It is commonly known as the Black Power Salute, demonstrated by Tommie Smith and John Carlos, signifying support for the human rights movement, notably the struggle of black people for equality.
This story focuses on Peter Norman, the white guy in the picture. He was Australian and came second in the race. Smith and Carlos told Norman before the ceremony what they planned to do, and Norman pledged his support, saying 'I'll stand by you.' At the ceremony he wore this badge:
which got him in a whole heap of trouble. Smith and Carlos were banned from the Olympic village and expelled from the Games. Peter Norman was shunned and ostracised from Australian athletics for the rest of his career, and despite making the qualifying time for the next Olympics, was not selected to represent Australia in Munich. His silver-medal time at the Mexico Olympics of 20.06 still stands as the Australian record. The Sydney Games of 2000 saw him excluded from events completely, but subsequently received an invitiation from the Americans. I find this gratifying enough, but what moved me to tears was that when Norman died in 2006, both Smith and Carlos were pallbearers at his funeral and both gave eulogies.
The support offered and the sacrifices made by this white athlete had clearly not been forgotten over time.
Not sure how many more of these sorts of stories I can take before I have an emotional collapse....
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