Friendship Games

The 1984 Friendship Games

The 1984 Friendship Games, also called Friendship-84, was a big sports event. It happened between July 2 and September 16 in 1984. The games took place in the Soviet Union and eight other countries. These countries chose not to join the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles. They were part of a group called the Eastern Bloc.

Even though leaders said the Friendship Games was not a replacement for the Olympics, many people thought of it as an “alternative Olympics” for these countries. About fifty countries took part. Some sent their best athletes, and others sent teams that could not qualify for the Olympics in Los Angeles.

Background

See also: 1984 Summer Olympics boycott

In May 1984, the Soviet Union decided not to go to the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles. They said they were concerned about their athletes' safety. Other countries from the Eastern Bloc also chose to join this decision.

Later, these countries planned their own sports events called the Friendship Games. These games took place after the Olympics ended, so they would not overlap with the official Olympic events. The Friendship Games let athletes show their skills even though they couldn't join the Olympics. Countries like Bulgaria, East Germany, and Czechoslovakia helped organize these events.

Participating nations

The Friendship Games in 1984 had athletes from many countries. About 2,300 athletes from 49 countries took part. Some athletes came from countries that did not go to the 1984 Summer Olympics. Others had not qualified for the Olympics. A few athletes competed in both the Los Angeles Olympics and the Friendship Games. For example, Claudia Losch from West Germany won a gold medal at the Olympics but did not win a medal at the Friendship Games. Alice Brown from the United States won a silver medal at the Olympics but also did not win a medal at the Friendship Games. Joyce Oladapo from Great Britain said she thought the event would be like a normal sports meeting but realized its importance when she arrived at the hotel in Prague where many athletes were staying.

Opening ceremony

The opening ceremony for the Friendship Games happened on August 18 in Moscow. The ceremony lasted two hours and had many colorful performances. Young girls spun beachballs, and children wore traditional costumes. Performers made patterns with colorful banners.

Like the Olympics, a torch bearer brought a flame into the stadium and lit a large bowl. The flame came from a special fire. Teams entered the stadium behind their flags, representing sports organizations instead of countries.

Songs during the ceremony included a march from 1918 and a song written for the 1980 Olympics.

Summary

The Friendship Games, also called Friendship-84, were held between 2 July and 16 September 1984 in nine countries that did not join the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles. These countries included Bulgaria, Cuba, Czechoslovakia, East Germany, Hungary, North Korea, Mongolia, Poland, and the Soviet Union. The Games were often called an "alternative Olympics" by many people, even though leaders said it was not meant to replace the Olympics.

The Games included many sports similar to the Olympics, such as swimming, gymnastics, and track and field. Some sports like table tennis and sambo wrestling were not part of the regular Olympics at that time. Countries competed in 22 Olympic sports, plus a few special ones. Athletes from about fifty countries took part, and many set new world records in events like swimming and weightlifting.

Medal table

The following table shows results from the Friendship Games in 1984. It uses information from two books and does not include results from sambo.

Comparisons to the Olympic Games

People from both sides of the Iron Curtain often compared the 1984 Summer Olympics with the Friendship Games. Many athletes from the Friendship Games could have won medals in the Olympics. In some sports like track-and-field and swimming, Eastern Bloc athletes did better than Olympic winners. However, some journalists thought these comparisons were not fair because the conditions and equipment were different. For example, one Olympic winner later ran faster than a Friendship Games winner when they raced each other.

The comparisons also had political meaning. Even though Friendship Games organizers said their event was not an "alternative Olympics," Soviet media often suggested that it was. Some Soviet officials praised their games while criticizing the Los Angeles Olympics. When asked about the Friendship Games, a leader of the International Olympic Committee said she had no reaction.

Aftermath

In 2006, a group in Poland wanted Friendship Games winners to get special retirement benefits. This idea became law in 2007.

In 2023, Russia decided to bring back the Friendship Games because of problems in international sports. Russia planned to hold a new version called the World Friendship Games after the 2024 Summer Olympics, but these plans stopped in December 2024.

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