The 1936 Olympic Games in Berlin

In 1931, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) had granted the Olympic Games to Berlin, Germany without knowing that Adolf Hitler was to obtain authority in the country two years after. Not later than 1936, the Nazis were already in command of Germany and started to execute their racist schemes. There was a worldwide dispute if the 1936 Olympic Games in Nazi Germany must be boycotted. The US was on the brink of passing up, although in the final minute, they chose to take the invitation.

The Nazis took advantage of the occasion and made it a means to advocate their philosophy. They constructed four extravagant arenas, a polo sports ground, an open-air theatre, swimming pools and an Olympic Village which had 150 small houses for the male participants. The German people would have been prouder to display a German Flag during the 1936 Berlin Olympics, but instead Nazi banners were all over the place during the Games. A well-known Nazi propaganda filmmaker recorded the Olympic Games and created a movie from it entitled Olympia.

The 1936 Berlin Olympics were the first Games broadcasted on TV and were the original to employ telex transmissions of the outcome. The torch relay made its first appearance as well at these Games.

The prominent athlete of the 1936 Olympics was Jesse Owens who was a black competitor from the US. Owens, dubbed as the "Tan Cyclone" took home four gold medals for the long jump, the 200-meter sprint around a turn, the 100-meter dash and for being a part of the 400-meter relay team.