Munich - Misremembered

London Olympics 2012: No excuse to leave Munich out of Opening Ceremony | London 2012 | Sports | National Post:

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It was made very clear by a number of broadcasters and journalists that something was missing from this year's opening ceremonies, and yet oddly enough I DON'T agree with the judgement of these outspoken individuals.

It was said that there should have been a dedication to the Israeli athletes murdered in 1972 at the Olympics held in Munich however the opening ceremonies are hardly the time for such a sombre theme, especially when that theme is not something immediately pressing as in the case of the Georgian luger killed back in 2010 where the incident occurred at the Olympics being held, not at an event decades later.

Now I agree, somewhere in the Olympic proceedings there should be a moment to recognize the events of 1972, but there is another point to be noted in the Munich tragedy... The Israeli MOSSAD agency hunted down and executed every individual involved in the murder of the Israeli Olympians at Munich which, at least in my perception of justice sets things close to even. The guilty did not go unpunished, memorials were held for the lost... What else is there to be said or done? I was actually surprised to see that there was a memorial for friends/family of the spectators in the opening ceremonies. To me the opening ceremonies are something positive, a moment to relish life, not emphasize death. If there was a memorial in the closing ceremonies I would not have had an issue, but to open things up with a sombre note seems a little backwards to me. You can include these things in the summation of the games while surrounding them with positivity and not suffer a diminished attitude towards the events.

That's really all I have to say, I just think that too much has been made of an issue before the Olympics are over... It's like calling a game a loss when the teams are tied at half-time... It's simply pessimism incarnate to bitch before Munich can be said to have been completely left out of the games as far as a memorial is concerned.

Enjoy your swim,

Joshua J. Taylor