1980 -- Lake Placid 1

• Published in: The Salt Lake tribune
• Format: Newspaper Article
• Language: English
• Published: Salt Lake City, Utah The Salt Lake Tribune 22.11.2001
• ISSN: 0746-3502

At the IOC session preceding the Games, U.S. Secretary of State Cyrus Vance badgered the IOC to move or postpone the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow in the wake of the Soviet Union's invasion of Afghanistan. With President Carter's threat of an American boycott of the Summer Games hanging over its head, the IOC declared on the eve of the Lake Placid Games that the Moscow Olympics would go on. A Taiwan newspaper agreed the Soviets didn't deserve the Games, but also opined that "the United States has shown itself to be as unworthy of hosting the Olympics as the Soviet Union." The Taiwanese had reason to be unhappy. The IOC, in an attempt to bring mainland China into the Olympic fold, had ruled in 1979 that Taiwan could no longer use the flag or anthem of the "Republic of China," but rather must adopt new ones for "Chinese Taipei." Still, the bus system got the athletes to their spots at the appointed time, and the Olympians filled their roles superbly, especially [Eric Heiden] and the hockey players. While Heiden swept all five of the men's speedskating races, the U.S. hockey team put together its "Miracle on Ice," which reached its crescendo in a stunning 4-3 upset of the dominant Russians. Even though the game was not televised live in the United States (it began at 5 p.m. EST), it remains the most exhilarating moment for the United States in Winter Olympic history.