Since 9th February, the Winter Olympics are underway in South Korea. But like before, politics has been as much a part of the Games as athletics. North Korea Has agreed to participate in the Games this year, and hopes to salvage its eroding reputation in world diplomacy.
Olympics have never been without some political drama, though the Games were meant to ensure brotherhood and harmony over war and violence. In ancient Greece, an Olympic truce was called during the games to allow athletes from warring city-states to travel safely to the competition. In reality, politics frequently intruded, despite the best intentions of the Greeks.
Countries like South Korea (Seoul 1988), China (Beijing 2008), and Brazil (Rio de Janeiro 2016) have used the Olympics to mark their emergence as advanced economies taking their place on the world stage.
To begin with, feminists used the Olympics to plead with gender equality. In 1992, the Games still had 34 countries participating with no female athletes. In 2012, to increase gender equity the IOC gave one of the last major hold outs, Saudi Arabia, an ultimatum: send female athletes or risk a ban from the Games.
In 1936, Jesse Owens, an African-American athlete, broke racial boundaries by dominating the track and field events.
Olympics have also been a ground for neighbourly disputes. In 1956, the People’s Republic of China (PRC) refused to participate alongside The Republic of China, more commonly known as Taiwan. This dispute would last for 32 years, with the China only returning to the Games in 1984.
The Cold War too saw its fair share of drama in the Games. There were a variety of boycotts for political reasons connected to the conflict. Notably the United States refused to participate in the 1980 Moscow Games because of the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan.
Terrorism reared its head at the Games like at it did at every other place. Palestinian terrorists snuck into the Olympic village in Munich and took 11 Israeli athletes hostage. The group known as “Black September” killed two of their hostages during the globally televised standoff.
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Modern Games have had modern problems like Human Rights issues. For example, the 2008 Beijing Olympics was notable for concerns over China’s human rights record. The 2010 winter Olympics in Canada were notable for highlighting the host country’s complicated history with its indigenous people.
In an ideal world, sports would be above politics. But the Olympics has been a stage for world drama and some diplomacy. This year, North Korea will participate and the South Korean government is attempting to leverage the games to ratchet down tensions with Pyongyang.
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