Film

Olympic Games in Berlin

The 1936 Summer Olympic Games were held in Berlin. For two weeks, Adolf Hitler camouflaged his antisemitic and expansionist agenda while hosting the games. Hoping to impress the many foreign visitors who were in Germany for the games, Hitler authorized a brief relaxation in anti-Jewish activities (including the removal of signs barring Jews from public places). The games were a resounding propaganda success for the Nazis. They presented foreign spectators with the image of a peaceful and tolerant Germany. The 1936 Games also saw the introduction of the Olympic torch relay, in which a lighted torch is carried from Olympia to the site hosting the Olympic Games. This footage shows the inauguration of this new ritual, as a torch bearer brings the Olympic torch to the stadium. Hundreds of athletes in opening day regalia marched into the stadium, team by team in alphabetical order. Adolf Hitler presided over the opening of the games.

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