The 1972 Summer Olympic Games were held in the German city of Munich, the capital of the federal state of Bavaria, in the south of Germany. In the six years that have passed since the choice of this city as the site of the Olympics, the organizers of the games have done a great job.
Colossal funds were invested in the improvement of Munich, having built a metro, many new hotels, and reconstructing the central part of the city. A huge Olympic stadium with 80 thousand seats was erected with an original roof resembling a spider web, as well as a number of other sports facilities where the participants of the games were to compete. Moreover, all these facilities were equipped with the most modern technical devices at that time.
The opening ceremony of the Olympics took place on August 26. The competition was attended by 7170 athletes who fought for 195 sets of medals. The USSR national team performed brilliantly, having won the most gold medals - 50. The USA team, which took second place, had 33.
Unfortunately, this wonderful sports event turned out to be overshadowed by tragedy. At dawn on September 5, Palestinian terrorists infiltrated the Olympic Village, killed two members of the Israeli sports delegation and took nine others hostage. The terrorists demanded the release of several hundred prisoners, and a little later put forward an additional demand - to provide them with a plane to Cairo, as well as the ability to freely get to the airfield with the hostages. A hastily planned and insufficiently professional rescue operation killed all nine hostages, five terrorists and one police officer. Three terrorists were captured alive.
The members of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) were faced with a very serious question: how to respond to this egregious incident, whether to continue the games or end them? In addition, many athletes, including the surviving members of the Israeli national team, announced their departure from Munich. After a difficult discussion and a one-day break, the IOC decided to continue the Olympics. The competition ended on September 10th.
This tragedy led to a dramatic increase in security measures at the subsequent Olympics, especially in the territory of the Olympic villages. Also, in many countries, special anti-terrorist units have been created.
