Nationalism has left its mark on the Olympic Games, beginning with the 1936
Games in Berlin. The Nazis built a powerful team through nationalized training and dominated the
games.

The next surge of such nationalism was 1956, when Egypt, Iraq, and Lebanon
boycotted the Melbourne Games to protest Anglo-French seizure of the Suez
Canal.  Netherlands, Spain, and Switzerland also boycotted to protest the
USSR's invasion of Hungary.

American black athletes Tommie Smith and John Carlos used the victory stand to
publicize U.S. racial policies at the 1968 Games at Mexico City.

Eleven Israeli athletes were killed by nonparticipating Palestinian terrorists
in 1972 at Munich.

Thirty-three African nations boycotted the 1976 Games at Montreal to protest
South Africa's apartheid policies.

The U.S. government led a boycott of the 1980 Summer Games at Moscow to protest
the 1979 Soviet invasion of Afghanistan.  The private U.S. Olympic Committee
was pressured by the Carter administration to boycott.  About 40 nations
followed the United States' lead.

The 1984 Games at Los Angeles were boycotted by Eastern-bloc nations, led by
the USSR.