1980 Moscow Olympians finally recognised in Canberra ceremony after being snubbed for 45 years
Snubbed for 45 years, the team which represented Australia at the 1980 Moscow Olympics will be acknowledged in the federal parliament. This is why every athlete since should thank them.
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When Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Opposition Leader Sussan Ley finally welcome home the Australian team that competed at the 1980 Moscow Olympics on Wednesday, every athlete who has followed in their footsteps should join them in showing their appreciation.
While many of the 121 Australian athletes who went to Moscow were subjected to death threats and vile abuse for going against the government’s demands to boycott the Games in protest at the USSR’s invasion of Afghanistan, their courage and defiance also helped safeguard future generations of athletes from political interference.
It took guts to stake a stand, and many paid a high personal price, including the athletes who were prevented from going because their sporting federations caved in under the pressure.
Snubbed for 45 years, they will all be formally acknowledged in the federal parliament in Canberra on Wednesday.
It promises to be an emotional occasion for everyone involved. The torment they suffered and the sacrifices they made have had a deep and lasting impact on everyone involved, even though their legacy is already assured.
While the Moscow Games are remembered for being one of the most divisive issues in Australian sports history, it is often forgotten that they also led to significant positive changes that continue to benefit athletes today because they were given a voice.
In the year immediately after Moscow, the International Olympic Committee took the unprecedented step of asking a select group of high-profile athletes to speak at the 1981 Congress in Baden-Baden, Germany.
The 20 invited athletes included future IOC president Thomas Bach, British athletics legend Sebastian Coe and Australian swimming sensation Michelle Ford, who had won gold at Moscow.
Six of the athletes delivered speeches to the Congress on matters close to their hearts: including a call for life bans for drug cheats, equal rights for women, and a revision of the outdated rules on amateurism.
It was the first time that athletes had been allowed to address the most powerful sporting body in the world. They not only found their voice, but importantly what they had to say was heard.
Ford was the only Australian athlete invited to take part. Still in her teens at the time, she played a pivotal role in advocating for athletes to have a say in what impacts them.
“They used to call us unthinking robots,” Ford told Code Sports.
“Athletes weren’t meant to be heard. They were meant to be on the field and that was it.
“Even when we got to Baden-Baden they just wanted us to visit schools and have drinks with different people around town, like we were part of a parade, but we wanted to make a difference.
“This was our chance to actually say something, not a complaint, but a call to action, which surprised the Congress. Their faces just went blank when they heard what we had to say.”
After listening to the speeches, the IOC members agreed to create an Athletes’ Commission, which remains a powerful lobby group to this day, and a model that others sports and federations have since adopted.
Earlier this year, the Athletes’ Commission’s former leader, Zimbabwe’s Kirsty Coventry, became the first female to be elected president of the IOC, the most powerful job in world sport.
Among the VIP guests at Coventry’s handover ceremony in Switzerland was Ford, who’s still fighting for athlete rights all these years later.
On Wednesday, Ford will be among the guests at another ceremony, this time surrounded by her Aussie teammates from 1980 when they are belatedly acknowledged by the government.
“I’m very proud to see some of the things that have happened from that meeting in Baden Baden, especially the creation of the IOC Athletes Commission and more chances for women,” Ford said.
“It used to be a real boy’s club so it was amazing to be part of that movement and a real honour to be the only Australian there and one of the few females.
“We opened a few doors and it’s important to recognise that if Australia didn’t turn up to those Games, along with some other Western nations who were allies of the US, there may not be an Olympic Games.”
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Originally published as 1980 Moscow Olympians finally recognised in Canberra ceremony after being snubbed for 45 years
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