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Commentary on 1972 Olympic Games in Munich :iyozil,72.

(nntinuecl from Page 2)

tlympic Village. where the
cer
Nn pre
athtetes were quartered
os Olympics had housed par-
ts (pants in such style, and Captain
Fuerstner received much praise
Shortl, before the games opened.
hovers cr. d was discovered that he.
too. had Jewish blood He Was cud
den!, dismissed from his post and
in fait kicked out of the army A
week after the games ended. he

shot himself

suninwr games in Berlin
were spiietacular and the pa Lean
try ma.mificent I enjoyed the fort
oicht•s respite from reporting on
the dark evils of the place and
speculating what the Fuhrer would
do next to upset the peace of an
mcreasincly jitters. Europe.

To Illn• and indeed to most of
the spectators_ including the Ger-
mans, Jesse Owens was the hero
of the Olympic Games Not only
was tie the greatest athlete with
four cold metals in the main track
and field events, but he behaved
at all tones with the utmost mod-
est, and graciousness The crowds
took to hint and hailed him: not
so Adolf Hitlri. Again the pre
judo , of race en'ered the picture
Owens was black Ile believed
then and still believes, f under-
stand, that he was treated fairly
and cnurteously by the Nazis in-
cluding Hitler By the spectators.
certainly. but by the Fuehrer'

"I think the writers showed bad
taste ' Owens was quoted as say-
ing. tan criticizing the man of the
hour in Germany The great
sprinter obvioos!, did not see. as
del Irmo a P ,,ss box a few feet
away from Hitler's loge, how.
after he trotted up the track from
his smashing victories in the 100
and dashes. the broad
loom and as inihorinan on the
460 meter relay team, the Nazi
.1- turn,' his hack to talk
he
although the
to some (Pinkly:
crowd in t . a• st dials Was yiaorous
applaudinc the amazing Arreri-

Nor could air id' us know that
at one of these moments littler
turned to liatilur von Schirach.
the littler Youth leader (as
Schirach later recounted -in his
memoirs), and said: "The Ameri-
cans ought to be asha'red of them-
se've-‘ for letting their medals he
won by Negroes. I myself WOIdd
nevi r shake hands with one of
;
-

thi m '• When Schirach suggested
Thai it would I, good propaganda
for the Fuehrer to let himself he
photograpIled with Owens, Hitler
screw 71),,1 at the thought . . .

i;trinany has now, with the gen-
erous hi io of its conpuerors and
b, prodigious efforts of its own.
recmered and, as visitors to the
Olympics this summer will see, •
completely rebuilt from the ruins.

There is scarcely a reminder
of the lost war of the devastation
of the bombed-out cities and towns,
of the bloody Nazi tbetatorchin. or
of its fanatical leader. Probably
only old-timers like myself will
even recall how 36 years ago
Hitler dominated the Olympic
C;arne• and turned them into such
fabulous propaganda success for
his ruthless regime. For the first
time in Germany there will he an
Olympiad without him. In his place
in the tribune in the Olympic
Stadium will be Dr. Gustav Heine-
mann, president, and at his side.
Willy Brandt, chancellor of the
Federal Republic of Germany. ,
What a contrast' Heinemann is
the first Social Democrat to he
elected president of Germany since
Friedrich Ebert was chosen short
Iv after the end of the First World
War. lie and Brandt. who is also
a Social Democrat and one of the
few heroes of the anti-Nazi under- ,
groend. are staunch democrats and
tirelesa toilers for peace in our •
uneasy world .

Albert Speer tells in his memoirs
of a discussion with Hitler shortly
after the 1936 Olympic Games The
Fattier had ordered him to build
a gi-antic new stadium se -ding
41.1e , in neap, Speer protested
tb,a su i t, a stadium wool,' not
ti it'- the prescribed Olympic pro-
port ions

"No matter, - said Hitler. "In
lo-In th.• Olympic Games will take
Tokyo. But. thereafter . ,
they will take place in Germany
for a'l time to come in this stad-
Pim And then we will determine
tlp measurements of the athletic:,
fold

nIala, In

For the 2ood of the Olympics
and of humanity. it was a prophecy
that was not to he fulfilled. In this,
as in so many other things, the
Germans today have more modest
goals. Visitors to Munich will see
that this slimmer. as well as. to
use the words of With Daume, "a
maw and different Germany un
C.istorted and unretouched. -

Such are the details of the abhorrent chapter in world history
which was allied by the rule over millions by a madman Shirer's
account is of treat---significance at this time. It presents the over-all
picture as he had viewed it as one of the courageous American cor-
respondents who dared to expose the Nazi terror.
In the American Jewish Historical Quarterly, Prof. Gottlieb col-
lected data that shows the Jewish reactions to the Olympics that
were to he held in Munich in 1936 It is a complete and thorough
account resulting from careful research. It recalls the reactions of
many Americans who protested against U. S. participation in games
llitler-land Even Father Coughlin protested against allowing Ameri-
can athletes to go to Germany "to patronize paganism."
Dr. Gottlieb quotes a statement that was made by Ernest L.
Jahmke, former assistant secretary of the U. S. Navy, a member
of the American representation on the International Olympic Com-
mittee, "I shall do all that I can to persuade my fellow' Americans
that they ought not to take part in the games if they are held in

Nazi Germany."
In this account. too. Brundage emerges as the villain. Ile was
strenuously opposed by Judge Mahoney, but the latter and his asso-
ciates fought a losing battle, in spite of a petition with 500,000 signa-
tures, and resolutions from organizations with memberships totaling
1,500.003, asking that Americans refrain from gortinZ to the games
in Nazi Germany Brundage dominated over theiAmateur Athletic
Union, and the events that marked the AAU conveftion, in December
19t5, are referred to in the lengthy essay by Dr Gottlieb. who

pointed out
It was inc,itahle that so stormy
in in t,.n tamal issue as the Her
t
me the subject
iiii.r.iture as well
•-•,.!.,r reports ongintit-
•,
refer
g 11.tsilington, It C
'polo t , • cumber of occasions

S. reaction to
Berlin riots that t
the bloody disorders was aimed
primarily at kearong America out
of the Olympic Games.

Of cordrasting interest is what
the American counterpart bad to
cm July 2a and 31. 1935, the Ger -
man charge informed the Nazi say about the Olympics. Writing to
following the Secretary of State Cordell Hull on
Morsti,

emblem received instructions
from the propaganda ministry
last month that they should par-

only he proficient linguifts. but
skiilfui also in parrying
will
in
embarrassing questions

Jan. 30. 1936. shortly prior to
the holding of the winter Olympics
at Garm.sch-Partenkirchen, Am
baYsactor William F. Dodd stated

.. An rift-repeated Nazi claim
is that the external evidences of
the anti-Jewish campabm are Ite
ing curbed and will probably dis-
appear by the time of the Olym-
pic Games this summer in Ber-
lin. The Nazis are putting great
store by the Olympic Games to
rehabilitate and enhance the ,
reputation of the "New Ger-
many,' and if all goes smoothly,
their hopes are likely to he fully
justified. particularly as it has
been observed that foreigners
who see only Berlin and the larg-
er towns, who speak no German
and base only the usual tourist
contacts with the people are in
clined to reject as libel press ,
I. ..•ports respecting such unplea'
ant occurrences as Jewish per-
secution which they have pre-
viously read in their home pa-
pers. Not content evidently that
the city s cleanliness and order
will make the customary favor.:
able impression upon the visit-
ine tourist, the Olympic author-
ities are taking* no chances but
are understood to have already
begun training a corps of some
2.000 interpreters who will not '

(Continued on Page 15)

insinuating praise of r ational
Socialism in their small talk,
. . . The owners of !several
large Jewish stores in Berlin
'1% hi, would ordinarily he pro-
hibited from flying the national

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