Thread: 1980 Moscow Olympic Games

They are talking about it every now and then in Russian TV. Does anyone among you guys remember it? I was "-8" years old when it was being held, but others might have clear memories of the Moscow Olympics. Wasn't it a high-risk political action to let so many foreigners pour into the capital of the Eastern Bloc? How did people react to this?

I remember it clearly though I was only 4 then. I remember that I tasted many stuff that miraculously appeared in Moscow stores during the games and disappeared immediately after they had ended. Generally my memories are very positive though I wept when I saw the olympic bear flying away from the stadium.
What concerns political risks - there was no risk whatsoever. Moscow was awash with KGB operatives, all 'unreliable elements' like dissidents, etc were rounded up and sent away so I don't think that there was any risk. You probably cannot imagine how tight the security was. *EVERY* foreigner was either accompanied openly or watched by KGB, probably even in bathroom ))).
All undesired contacts were simply impossible because no one could approach a foreigner without approval of KGB.
This policy towards the people from abroad was normal even before the Olympics and after them. They started to relax their grip only after 1985 when Gorbachev came to power, but never before so they were well-prepared and generally everything was organized perfectly.

It was very bright and fantastic event. Everything around was saturated with the sense of the Olympics. Our close relatives just bought a color TV and our families gathered together to watch it in color.

Originally Posted by Ramil

Generally my memories are very positive though I wept when I saw the olympic bear flying away from the stadium.

me too .

Originally Posted by CoffeeCup

Originally Posted by Ramil

Generally my memories are very positive though I wept when I saw the olympic bear flying away from the stadium.

me too .

I had actually watched this a while ago when someone on the forum mentioned sent it to me!!

I wanted to know what happened to Misha after he flew away!!!

This is the short version of Misha
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_2WewT1jBQQ

Long version
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t3G1vl5UAxU

Originally Posted by rockzmom

I wanted to know what happened to Misha after he flew away!!!

According to the song's lyrics he returned to his fairytale forest. Ah, good ol' "Evil Empire" *nostalgic sigh*.

I'd like to thank Jimmy Carter for the wonderful time the USA had at the 1980 Olympics.
/sarcasm

Originally Posted by capecoddah

I'd like to thank Jimmy Carter for the wonderful time the USA had at the 1980 Olympics.
/sarcasm

The most surprising fact is that Afghanistan itself participated in the Games, while all that boycott business was due to the Soviet invasion of...Afghanistan!

Originally Posted by Basil77

Originally Posted by rockzmom

I wanted to know what happened to Misha after he flew away!!!

According to the song's lyrics he returned to his fairytale forest. Ah, good ol' "Evil Empire" *nostalgic sigh*.

Basil... thanks for explaining the lyrics! No wonder all the kids cried! They all wanted to find the fairytale forest and go visit Misha! I would have asked to go there!

But honestly... does anyone know where the bear landed? Did they shoot the poor Misha down? Is Misha in a museum somewhere?

Originally Posted by rockzmom

Originally Posted by Basil77

Originally Posted by rockzmom

I wanted to know what happened to Misha after he flew away!!!

According to the song's lyrics he returned to his fairytale forest. Ah, good ol' "Evil Empire" *nostalgic sigh*.

Basil... thanks for explaining the lyrics! No wonder all the kids cried! They all wanted to find the fairytale forest and go visit Misha! I would have asked to go there!

But honestly... does anyone know where the bear landed? Did they shoot the poor Misha down? Is Misha in a museum somewhere?

Well its real story is sadder. It landed on Vorobyevy Gory (not very far away from the stadium). For some time it was exhibited on the ВДНХ but then it was stored in some warehouse where it's been half-eaten by rats. A bit later it was cut to pieces and disposed.

Originally Posted by Ramil

I remember it clearly though I was only 4 then. I remember that I tasted many stuff that miraculously appeared in Moscow stores during the games and disappeared immediately after they had ended.
This policy towards the people from abroad was normal even before the Olympics and after them. They started to relax their grip only after 1985 when Gorbachev came to power, but never before so they were well-prepared and generally everything was organized perfectly.

Yeah, same here; I just about remember the bear... that's all

Well I just want to say that I actually visited Russia during the Soviet period, in the early 1980s and in the late 1980s. We had to hire a guide but they did not go everywhere with ust. We could walk around in St Petersburg on our own (and my mother got lost with my two siblings and me - big drama & language problems..) Maybe it was just some nationalities that got treated as suspect, not all.

However we could not visit the flat of our Estonian relatives who lived in Leningrad. Later, I heard that it was they themselves who wanted to be careful, so that they would not become regarded as suspicious.

When I went to a Baltic sea resort with my family, only non-Soviet people (Germans and Scandinavians) were staying at the hotel - It was essentially "segregated".

I was pretty young on that first trip and a lot of things about the USSR were actually quite attractive to a kid. Good ice cream (no shortage of that, at least), nice playgrounds.... Something that I particularly remember is some miniature toilets and wash basins that were childrens size - really impressed me when I was about 7.

http://www.themoscowtimes.com/arts_n_id ... 11024.html

I was a little kid and in the hospital. I remember crying when Misha flew away.

I remember we kept repeating the mistranslated lyrics of the Dschinghis Khan's song: "Москау, Москау, забросаем бомбами, будет вам Олимпиада, ха-ха-ха-ха-ха!"