Exclusion of Jews from Olympics

Initially Hitler saw little value in the 1936 Olympics, it was only after his Minister of Propaganda Joseph Goebbels convinced him of the potential of the Olympic stage for proliferating Aryan propaganda on a world stage.

One of the main tenants of Hitler's ideology was the inferiority and inherent 'evil' of the Jewish race. Starting soon after his rise to power Hitler began a systematic exclusion of the Jewish race from the German nation.

In relation to the 1936 Olympics the Nazi regime banned all Jewish youth from participating in any public and school related physical education. Jewish athletes (regardless of talent) were not allowed in any gymnasiums or training facilities effectively banning their inclusion as competitors in the Berlin Olympics.

The establishment of the Nuremburg Laws in 1935 took away the citizenships of German Jews, stripping away any legal ability for a Jewish athlete to participate in the Olympics as they were no longer citizens of Germany and therefore not eligible to participate.

The exclusion of Jews from legal citizenship and any sporting venues should have been reason alone for the boycott and political statement to be made by the world community to send a message to the Third Reich

Non-Aryan Participation in the Berlin Olympics

Jesse Owens won 4 gold medals at the 1936 Olympics

The Third Reich's views on the purity and sanctity of the Aryan race led Hitler to ban all non-aryans from the German national team. However his view of a "perfect" race was dealt multiple blows when participants from other countries of varying ethnicities and races won multiple Gold medals. Athletes such as Jesse Owens and his other African-American teammates who went on to account for 13 medals in total (7 gold, 3 silver & bronze), along with other participants from many other countries, refuted any claims of racial superiority put forth by the Nazi party about the Aryan race.

"Die Amerikaner sollten sich schämen, Vermietung Neger gewinnen die Medaillen für sie. Ich werde nicht die Hand mit dieser Negro ....... glaubst du wirklich, daß ich mir erlauben, sich fotografieren zu Händeschütteln mit einem Neger werden"

[The Americans should be ashamed of themselves, letting Negroes win their medals for them. I shall not shake hands with this Negro.......do you really think that I will allow myself to be photographed shaking hands with a Negro?]

-Hitler

Video footage of Jesse Owens and the 1936 Olympics

Gold medal winning 1936 Indian National Field Hockey team

Boycott Sentiments

Boycott Sentiments

From the moment Hitler was elected the IOC stated concerns about the planned Olympics to be held Berlin. The Olympics were conceived and held in the spirit sportsmanship, equality, and meant to foster friendship amongst everyone. The radical ideologies of the Third Reich conflicted with all of those peaceful tenants and ideas of boycott started to swirl around the world community.

"The very foundation of the modern Olympic revival will be undermined if individual countries are allowed to restrict participation by reason of class, creed, or race... Participation in these games must not be construed to be an endorsement of the policies and practices of the Nazi government and the anti-boycott forces. Measures have been adopted to ensure that there will be no violation of the fundamental principles of fair play and sportsmanship, or the Olympic standards of freedom and equality to all."

-Avery Brundage (American Olympic Committee President in 1933)

Despite his harsh words Brundage later altered his statement. Saying that "..the Olympics belong to the athletes" and should not involve politics and nearing the 1936 lead the anti-boycott movement. Around the world, boycott movements started to lose energy and eventually very few countries actually did boycott the Olympics. (It should be noted that Jewish athletes from many countries decided to abstain from participating in the Olympics due to the Nazi persecution of German-Jews)

We believe that the world community missed a perfect opportunity to send a message to the Nazi Empire and Hitler about their tactics. While the game of "what if" can be played within many scenarios, it is not far out of the realm of reason that a verbal outcry could have at the very least curbed the vigor of the Nazi expansionist policies. The results of the overall Olympic medals gave Hitler a boost of confidence in his ideas of racial superiority, and if a boycott had gone through, perhaps his grandiose visions might have not affected so many in the following decade.