The 1972 Summer Olympic games were held in Munich Germany.  Germans were eager to develop a new reputation with the game and developed the “Happy Games” motto to help.  The games began on August 26th and ran smoothly, until tragedy struck on the last day of the games.

On this day, September 5, in 1972, one of sport’s most horrific tragedies occurred, when 11 Israeli athletes were murdered in a terrorist plot at the Munich Olympics. The tragedy began when eight Palestinian terrorists, belonging to the Black September organization, kidnapped 11 Israeli athletes, coaches and officials.  After hours of negotiations, the rescue of the hostages did not go to plan and all eleven were killed.

The event became known as the Munich Massacre.  Despite the obvious heart break and sorrow surrounding the event, the International Olympic Committee president felt that the “Games must go on.” A memorial was held in the Olympic stadium and the games were concluded 24 hours later.