Boycotts, bribes, death threats: the forgotten story of our scorned Olympians
Representing your nation at the Olympics should be the pinnacle of athletic achievement, but in 1980 the honour was vexed. The Moscow games took place amid the Cold War. With the USA boycotting the Olympics, the Australian government wanted our athletes to follow suit. 121 Australians competed despite financial pressure and public backlash. There were no parades or fanfare when they returned. Now the Australian government is attempting to right some of the wrongs of 1980. Gold medallist Michelle Ford and marathoner Rob de Castella share their experiences. Featured: Michelle Ford, Olympic gold medallist. Rob de Castella, Olympic marathoner. Subscribe to the ABC Sport Newsletter
ABC SPORT Daily · Australian Broadcasting Corporation
Audio is streamed directly from the publisher (mediacore-live-production.akamaized.net) as published in their RSS feed. Play Podcasts does not host this file. Rights-holders can request removal through the copyright & takedown page.
Show Notes
Representing your nation at the Olympics should be the pinnacle of athletic achievement, but in 1980 the honour was vexed. The Moscow games took place amid the Cold War. With the USA boycotting the Olympics, the Australian government wanted our athletes to follow suit. 121 Australians competed despite financial pressure and public backlash. There were no parades or fanfare when they returned. Now the Australian government is attempting to right some of the wrongs of 1980. Gold medallist Michelle Ford and marathoner Rob de Castella share their experiences. Featured: Michelle Ford, Olympic gold medallist. Rob de Castella, Olympic marathoner.