Geraubte Träume: Der doppelte Olympia-Boykott 1980 und 1984

In the organizer's words:

Lecture and discussion

The Olympic Games are regarded as a celebration of peace and international understanding. But in the 1980s, sport became a hostage of the Cold War. On May 6, 2026, the Hamburg State Center for Political Education invites you to a special evening that sheds light on the fates behind the headlines.

The event will focus on the Olympic Games of 1980 (Moscow) and 1984 (Los Angeles). While the Federal Republic of Germany followed the USA's call for a boycott of the Moscow Games in 1980, the GDR joined the Soviet counter-boycott of Los Angeles in 1984. For hundreds of athletes in East and West, such as top decathletes Guido Kratschmer (West Germany) and Uwe Freimuth (East Germany), who were at the peak of their sporting careers, this meant the abrupt end of their medal dreams. In his introductory lecture, Prof. Lorenz Peiffer (University of Hanover) measures the sport-political dimensions of the boycott movements in East and West.

Afterwards, Andreas Käckell (NDR) will discuss with Guido Kratschmer, Uwe Freimuth and historian Dr. René Wiese (Zentrum deutsche Sportgeschichte) about Olympic sports politics during the Cold War, the pain of missed opportunities and today's political pressure on international sport.