1936 Summer Olympics

The Games of the XI Olympiad were held in Berlin from August 1 to 16, 1936. Nazi Germany used the event to project an image of a peaceful, modern state.

Jesse Owens: An American track-and-field athlete who won four gold medals at the 1936 Berlin Olympics. His victories became the Games’ most prominent athletic story and challenged Nazi racial propaganda.
International Olympic Committee: The non-governmental organization that oversees the Olympic Movement and awards the Olympic Games. The IOC awarded Berlin the 1936 Games before the Nazis came to power.
Nazi propaganda: Communication organized by the Nazi regime to promote its ideology and consolidate political control. The regime used the Olympics to present Germany as orderly and welcoming while concealing persecution.
Olympic boycott: A refusal to participate in or attend an Olympic Games for political or other reasons. The Berlin controversy helped establish boycotting as a recurring question in Olympic politics.
Leni Riefenstahl: A German filmmaker whose documentaries include the 1938 film Olympia about the 1936 Berlin Olympics. Her film shaped the lasting visual memory of the Games.
Olympic Games: An international multisport event held every four years, alternating between Summer and Winter editions. The Berlin event was one edition of this recurring international competition.
1936 Summer Olympics boycott movement: An international campaign urging athletes and governments to boycott the Berlin Olympics in protest against Nazi policies. The boycott debate tested whether participation would legitimize the regime.
Sportswashing: The use of sport to improve the public image of a state or organization despite harmful conduct. Berlin is frequently examined as an early example of a regime using sport for image-making.
Olympiastadion Berlin: A stadium in Berlin built for the 1936 Summer Olympics and still used for major sporting events. It was the Games’ principal venue and a centerpiece of Nazi architecture.
1916 Summer Olympics: The Summer Games of the VI Olympiad, scheduled for Berlin but canceled because of World War I. Berlin had previously been selected to host, making the 1936 Games a renewed bid for Olympic prestige.

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