The 1984 Friendship Games, or Friendship-84 (, ''Druzhba-84''), was an international

multi-sport event A multi-sport event is an organized sporting event, often held over multiple days, featuring competition in many different sports among organized teams of athletes from (mostly) nation-states. The first major, modern, multi-sport event of intern ...

held between 2 July and 16 September 1984 in the

Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

and eight other

Eastern Bloc The Eastern Bloc, also known as the Communist Bloc (Combloc), the Socialist Bloc, the Workers Bloc, and the Soviet Bloc, was an unofficial coalition of communist states of Central and Eastern Europe, Asia, Africa, and Latin America that were a ...

states which

boycotted A boycott is an act of nonviolent, voluntary abstention from a product, person, organisation, or country as an expression of protest. It is usually for moral, social, political, or environmental reasons. The purpose of a boycott is to inflict ...

the

1984 Summer Olympics The 1984 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXIII Olympiad and commonly known as Los Angeles 1984) were an international multi-sport event held from July 28 to August 12, 1984, in Los Angeles, California, United States. It marked the ...

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

. Although Friendship Games officials denied that the Games were a counter-Olympic event to avoid conflicts with the

International Olympic Committee The International Olympic Committee (IOC; , CIO) is the international, non-governmental, sports governing body of the modern Olympic Games. Founded in 1894 by Pierre de Coubertin and Demetrios Vikelas, it is based i ...

, the competition was often dubbed the Soviet Bloc's "alternative Olympics". Some fifty states took part in the competition. While the boycotting countries were represented by their strongest athletes, other states sent their reserve teams, consisting of athletes who failed to qualify for the games in Los Angeles.

Background

On 8 May 1984, less than three months before the

were scheduled to begin, the

announced its decision to boycott the Games, citing lack of security for Soviet athletes in

. The

TASS The Russian News Agency TASS, or simply TASS, is a Russian state-owned news agency founded in 1904. It is the largest Russian news agency and one of the largest news agencies worldwide. TASS is registered as a Federal State Unitary Enterpri ...

news agency further accused the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

of trying to "exploit the Games for its political purposes" stating that the "arrogant, hegemonic course of the Washington administration in international relations is at odds with the noble ideals of the Olympic movement". In an article published by the ''

London Evening Standard The ''London Standard'', formerly the ''Evening Standard'' (1904–2024) and originally ''The Standard'' (1827–1904), is a long-established regional newspaper published weekly and distributed free of charge in London, England. It is print ...

'' several hours before the official announcement,

Victor Louis Victor Louis (; 10 May 1731, Paris – 2 July 1800, Paris) was a French architect, disqualified on a technicality from winning the Prix de Rome in architecture in 1755. Life He was born Louis-Nicolas Louis in Paris. He did not adopt the name V ...

– a Soviet journalist writing for the Western press and thought to be used by the

Kremlin The Moscow Kremlin (also the Kremlin) is a fortified complex in Moscow, Russia. Located in the centre of the country's capital city, the Moscow Kremlin (fortification), Kremlin comprises five palaces, four cathedrals, and the enclosing Mosco ...

as an unofficial means of leaking information to the West – first informed the world of the USSR's decision to boycott, adding that detailed plans for the "Soviet bloc's alternative games" had already been made. Louis claimed they would "probably be announced at the last minute to throw the American organization into chaos". The article named

Bulgaria Bulgaria, officially the Republic of Bulgaria, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern portion of the Balkans directly south of the Danube river and west of the Black Sea. Bulgaria is bordered by Greece and Turkey t ...

as the possible host country. On 10 May, Bulgaria became the first Soviet ally to join the boycott, soon followed by

East Germany East Germany, officially known as the German Democratic Republic (GDR), was a country in Central Europe from Foundation of East Germany, its formation on 7 October 1949 until German reunification, its reunification with West Germany (FRG) on ...

(also 10 May),

Mongolia Mongolia is a landlocked country in East Asia, bordered by Russia to the north and China to the south and southeast. It covers an area of , with a population of 3.5 million, making it the world's List of countries and dependencies by po ...

and

Vietnam Vietnam, officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (SRV), is a country at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of about and a population of over 100 million, making it the world's List of countries and depende ...

(both 11 May). Louis wrote another article on 13 May, for the French ''

Le Journal du Dimanche ''Le Journal du Dimanche'' (; ), also known as the JDD , is a French weekly newspaper published on Sundays in France. JDD was bought in 2023 by Vivendi of media mogul Vincent Bolloré, triggering a strike movement against the new editorial s ...

'', once again stating that the Soviet Union was contemplating counter-Olympic Games, possibly held in

Sofia Sofia is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Bulgaria, largest city of Bulgaria. It is situated in the Sofia Valley at the foot of the Vitosha mountain, in the western part of the country. The city is built west of the Is ...

, the capital of Bulgaria. However, this time he noted that the idea was unlikely, as the Soviets feared that organizing such an event might prompt the

to exclude the USSR. On the same day, Soviet sports commentator Vsevolod Kuskuskin, during an interview for

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Broadcasting * Aliw Broadcasting Corporation, Philippine broadcast company * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial American ...

television program '' This Week with David Brinkley'', said the

would definitely not organize such games. Also on 13 May,

Laos Laos, officially the Lao People's Democratic Republic (LPDR), is the only landlocked country in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by Myanmar and China to the northwest, Vietnam to the east, Cambodia to the southeast, and Thailand to the west and ...

Czechoslovakia Czechoslovakia ( ; Czech language, Czech and , ''Česko-Slovensko'') was a landlocked country in Central Europe, created in 1918, when it declared its independence from Austria-Hungary. In 1938, after the Munich Agreement, the Sudetenland beca ...

and

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. It is bordered by Pakistan to the Durand Line, east and south, Iran to the Afghanistan–Iran borde ...

announced their decision to boycott the Los Angeles games. On 14 May, Marat Gramov, head of the Soviet Olympic Committee, called a press conference to discuss the boycott. During the conference, Gramov assured "Moscow would not support any alternative games staged to compete with the Olympics". On the same day,

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...

stated that, while Eastern Bloc officials had vetoed a counter-Olympics idea, the Bloc would instead "sponsor sports events in various nations as a substitute for participation in the Los Angeles games", holding them at a different time than the Olympics.

Hungary Hungary is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning much of the Pannonian Basin, Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia and ...

became the ninth country to boycott the 1984 Summer Olympics on 16 May, followed by Poland a day later. On 20 May, Olaf Brockmann of Austrian newspaper ''

Die Presse (, ) is a German-language daily broadsheet newspaper based in Vienna, Austria. It is considered a newspaper of record for Austria. History and profile was first printed on 3 July 1848 as a liberal (libertarian)-bourgeois newspaper within the ...

'', citing Alexander Ushakov, head trainer of the Soviet decathlon team, said Eastern Bloc countries were hastily arranging a series of sports events. Brockmann named five competitions: two track and field athletics meets, one to be held in

Prague Prague ( ; ) is the capital and List of cities and towns in the Czech Republic, largest city of the Czech Republic and the historical capital of Bohemia. Prague, located on the Vltava River, has a population of about 1.4 million, while its P ...

, Czechoslovakia, and the other in

East Berlin East Berlin (; ) was the partially recognised capital city, capital of East Germany (GDR) from 1949 to 1990. From 1945, it was the Allied occupation zones in Germany, Soviet occupation sector of Berlin. The American, British, and French se ...

and

Potsdam Potsdam () is the capital and largest city of the Germany, German States of Germany, state of Brandenburg. It is part of the Berlin/Brandenburg Metropolitan Region. Potsdam sits on the Havel, River Havel, a tributary of the Elbe, downstream of B ...

, East Germany; plus fencing, modern pentathlon and boxing events to be held in Poland. Ushakov reportedly said the events would be held either before or after the Olympics, to avoid conflicts with the IOC, which would ban any form of counter-Olympic Games.

Juan Antonio Samaranch Juan Antonio Samaranch y Torelló, 1st Marquess of Samaranch ( Catalan: ''Joan Antoni Samaranch i Torelló'', ; 17 July 1920 – 21 April 2010) was a Spanish sports administrator under the Franco regime (1973–1977) who served as the seventh ...

, President of the IOC, held a conference with National Olympic Committees of eleven Eastern Bloc countries (eight of the boycotting states – Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, East Germany, Hungary, Mongolia, Poland, the Soviet Union and Vietnam – plus

Cuba Cuba, officially the Republic of Cuba, is an island country, comprising the island of Cuba (largest island), Isla de la Juventud, and List of islands of Cuba, 4,195 islands, islets and cays surrounding the main island. It is located where the ...

North Korea North Korea, officially the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the northern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders China and Russia to the north at the Yalu River, Yalu (Amnok) an ...

and

Romania Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern and Southeast Europe. It borders Ukraine to the north and east, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Bulgaria to the south, Moldova to ...

) in Prague, Czechoslovakia, starting on 21 May. Samaranch hoped to convince the boycotting states to change their position, but while Romania assured him it would attend the 1984 Summer Olympics, the remaining ten countries did not change their stance and even used the meeting to discuss "their own summer games". The official announcement was made by Antonin Himl, president of the Czechoslovak Olympic Committee, who appeared on Prague television on 24 May. Himl said that, after the Olympic Games ended, various Eastern bloc countries would hold their own sport events in Olympic disciplines. Himl stated that the games' intention would be to "give athletes who have conscientiously prepared for the past four years a possibility to sell their abilities". Thus, the Friendship Games idea was officially proclaimed. Himl said the games would be held after 12 August (i.e. after the Summer Olympics), and that his country, Czechoslovakia, would host gymnastics, archery, women's handball, and women's track and field athletics. He also gave assurances that the events would be open to all athletes, including those from non-boycotting nations. Soon after the meeting, Cuba also announced its decision to boycott the 1984 Summer Olympics. By the end of June,

South Yemen South Yemen, officially the People's Democratic Republic of Yemen, abbreviated to Democratic Yemen, was a country in South Arabia that existed in what is now southeast Yemen from 1967 until Yemeni unification, its unification with the Yemen A ...

Ethiopia Ethiopia, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country located in the Horn of Africa region of East Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the north, Djibouti to the northeast, Somalia to the east, Ken ...

and

Angola Angola, officially the Republic of Angola, is a country on the west-Central Africa, central coast of Southern Africa. It is the second-largest Portuguese-speaking world, Portuguese-speaking (Lusophone) country in both total area and List of c ...

announced their decisions to boycott. In June, the Soviet Union officials asked

Ted Turner Robert Edward Turner III (born November 19, 1938) is an American entrepreneur, television producer, media proprietor, and Philanthropy, philanthropist. He founded the CNN, Cable News Network (CNN), the first 24-hour United States cable news, ...

and his

Turner Broadcasting System Turner Broadcasting System, Inc. was an American television and media conglomerate founded by Ted Turner in 1965. Based in Atlanta, Georgia, it merged with Time Warner (later WarnerMedia) on October 10, 1996. As of April 2022, all of its asse ...

to televise the events held in Hungary for American audiences. Turner eventually declined, but assured that his network would give spot coverage to the Games and treat it as any other sporting event.

Participating nations

Initial estimates placed the number of athletes participating in Soviet event venues at approximately 8,000. Later, the number of expected participants was lowered to 2,300, representing 49 countries. However, not all the expected athletes showed up. The exact number of athletes who took part in events held outside of the Soviet Union is unknown. While Olympic-boycotting countries were represented by their strongest athletes, other states sent their reserve teams, consisting of athletes who failed to qualify for the 1984 Summer Olympics. Some athletes competed at both the Los Angeles Olympics and the Friendship Games, such as

Claudia Losch Claudia Losch (born 10 January 1960) is a retired German shot putter. She is the 1984 Olympic Champion. Shortly after the Olympics, she competed in the shot put at the Friendship Games in Prague, which were held as an event for sportspeople fro ...

of West Germany, who won the Olympic gold in the shot put, and the United States' Alice Brown, the Olympic 100m silver medallist: neither Losch nor Brown was able to place in the medals at the Friendship Games. In a 2021 interview, long jumper

Joyce Oladapo Joyce Elena Oladapo (married name ''Hepher;'' born 11 February 1964) is an English retired long jumper. Biography Oladapo, born in London, finished second behind Australian Robyn Lorraway in the long jump event at the 1983 WAAA Championships ...

, who competed for Great Britain at the Friendship Games, said that she had initially been under the impression that the event was to be more along the lines of a regular athletics meeting, and only realised its significance when she arrived at the hotel in Prague where athletes were staying: "Literally anyone who was anyone in the Eastern Bloc was there". *

* * * * * *

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

* * * * * * * *

* * * * * * * * * * * *

Madagascar Madagascar, officially the Republic of Madagascar, is an island country that includes the island of Madagascar and numerous smaller peripheral islands. Lying off the southeastern coast of Africa, it is the world's List of islands by area, f ...

* * * * * * * * *

Venezuela Venezuela, officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many Federal Dependencies of Venezuela, islands and islets in the Caribbean Sea. It com ...

* * * *

Opening ceremony

Although the Games began on 2 July with table tennis events held in North Korea, the official opening ceremony was held on 18 August in Moscow, soon after the first events hosted by the Soviet Union started. The two-hour ceremony held at the Central Lenin Stadium included "girls in white leotards pinningred and white beachballs in unison, (...) dozens of children in traditional costumes of the Soviet republics", a "squadron of young performers" which created "a human weaving machine by ducking and turning to mesh their colored banners" and "red-attired teenage girls with silver

hula hoop A hula hoop is a toy hoop (rhythmic gymnastics), hoop that is twirled around the waist, limbs or neck. It can also be wheeled along the ground like a wheel with careful execution and practice. They have been used by children and adults since ...

s", which spelled the words 'USSR' and 'peace'. The ceremony was described as being "reminiscent of Olympic galas". As in Olympic opening ceremonies, a torch bearer (Soviet runner and

1980 Events January * January 4 – U.S. President Jimmy Carter proclaims a United States grain embargo against the Soviet Union, grain embargo against the USSR with the support of the European Commission. * January 6 – Global Positioning Sys ...

gold medalist

Viktor Markin Viktor Fyodorovich Markin (; born 23 February 1957 in the village of Oktyabrsky, Ust-Tarksky District, Novosibirsk Oblast ) is a former Soviet athlete, winner of two gold medals at the 1980 Summer Olympics. After graduating from a se ...

) carried the flame into the stadium and lit a giant bowl which had been built for the 1980 Moscow Olympics. The torch had been lit from an

eternal flame An eternal flame is a flame, lamp or torch that burns for an indefinite time. Most eternal flames are ignited and tended intentionally, but some are natural phenomena caused by natural gas leaks, peat fires and coal seam fires, all of which ca ...

for

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

victims located in the

. Teams marched onto the stadium behind flags, but unlike in the Olympics, they were not national teams but sporting organisations, such as

Dynamo "Dynamo Electric Machine" (end view, partly section, ) A dynamo is an electrical generator that creates direct current using a commutator. Dynamos employed electromagnets for self-starting by using residual magnetic field left in the iron cores ...

or Spartak. Songs performed during the ceremony included a 1918 military march dedicated to the

Red Army The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army, often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Republic and, from 1922, the Soviet Union. The army was established in January 1918 by a decree of the Council of People ...

, "Stadium of My Dreams", written for the 1980 Olympics, and a specially composed song with the chorus "To a sunny peace – yes, yes, yes / To a nuclear blast – no, no, no."

General Secretary Secretary is a title often used in organizations to indicate a person having a certain amount of authority, Power (social and political), power, or importance in the organization. Secretaries announce important events and communicate to the org ...

Konstantin Chernenko Konstantin Ustinovich Chernenko ( – 10 March 1985) was a Soviet politician who served as the General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union from 1984 until his death a year later. Born to a poor family in Siberia, Chernenko jo ...

did not attend the ceremony as expected, but five

Politburo A politburo () or political bureau is the highest organ of the central committee in communist parties. The term is also sometimes used to refer to similar organs in socialist and Islamist parties, such as the UK Labour Party's NEC or the Poli ...

members were present: Dimitri Ustinov,

Mikhail Gorbachev Mikhail Sergeyevich Gorbachev (2 March 1931 – 30 August 2022) was a Soviet and Russian politician who served as the last leader of the Soviet Union from 1985 to dissolution of the Soviet Union, the country's dissolution in 1991. He served a ...

Grigory Romanov Grigory Vasilyevich Romanov (; 7 February 1923 – 3 June 2008) was a Soviet politician and member of the Politburo and Secretariat of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union. In 1985, he was considered Mikhail Gorbachev's main rival in the succes ...

Vitaly Vorotnikov Vitaly Ivanovich Vorotnikov (; 20 January 1926 – 19 February 2012) was a Soviet politician and diplomat who was the Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the Russian SFSR between 1988 and 1990. Early life and education Vorot ...

and

Viktor Grishin Viktor Vasilyevich Grishin (; – 25 May 1992) was a Soviet politician. He was a candidate (1961–1971) and full member (1971–1986) of the Politburo of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union. Biography Gris ...

Summary

ImageSize = width:400 height:420 PlotArea = top:20 bottom:50 right:40 left:20 AlignBars = late Colors = id:grid value:rgb(0.85,0.85,0.85) DateFormat = dd/mm/yyyy Period = from:01/06/1984 till:01/10/1984 TimeAxis = orientation:horizontal ScaleMinor = unit:month increment:1 start:01/06/1984 gridcolor:grid BackgroundColors = canvas:oceanblue TextData = textcolor:black fontsize:M pos:(50,20) text:"June" pos:(130,20) text:"July" pos:(210,20) text:"August" pos:(290,20) text:"September" textcolor:purple fontsize:S pos:(180,35) text:"1984 OG" BarData = barset:PM TextData = pos:(150,420) textcolor:red fontsize:M text: Friendship Games PlotData= width:10 align:left fontsize:S shift:(5,-3) anchor:till barset:PM color:orange textcolor:yellow from:06/06/1984 till:10/06/1984 text:" " from:16/08/1984 till:18/08/1984 text:"athletics" from:02/07/1984 till:10/07/1984 text:"table tennis" shift:(-80,-3) from:05/07/1984 till:15/07/1984 text:" " from:13/07/1984 till:15/07/1984 text:"Greco-Roman wrestling" shift:(-120,-3) from:15/07/1984 till:20/07/1984 text:"fencing" shift:(-60,-3) from:17/07/1984 till:21/07/1984 text:" " from:20/07/1984 till:22/07/1984 text:"freestyle wrestling" shift:(-100,-3) from:21/07/1984 till:22/07/1984 text:"canoeing" shift:(-50,-3) from:16/08/1984 till:19/08/1984 text:"diving" from:17/08/1984 till:19/08/1984 text:"rhythmic gymnastics" from:18/08/1984 till:22/08/1984 text:"track cycling" from:18/08/1984 till:26/08/1984 text:"sailing" from:19/08/1984 till:21/08/1984 text:"trap and skeet" from:19/08/1984 till:24/08/1984 text:"boxing" from:19/08/1984 till:25/08/1984 text:"swimming" from:19/08/1984 till:25/08/1984 text:"shooting" from:19/08/1984 till:26/08/1984 text:"water polo" from:19/08/1984 till:21/08/1984 text:" " from:20/08/1984 till:26/08/1984 text:"artistic gymnastics" from:20/08/1984 till:26/08/1984 text:"tennis" from:22/08/1984 till:30/08/1984 text:"basketball" from:23/08/1984 till:23/08/1984 text:" " from:23/08/1984 till:25/08/1984 text:"rowing" from:24/08/1984 till:26/08/1984 text:"judo" from:01/09/1984 till:02/09/1984 text:"sambo wrestling" from:05/09/1984 till:09/09/1984 text:"modern pentathlon" from:12/09/1984 till:16/09/1984 text:"weightlifting" barset:break from:06/08/1984 till:26/08/1984 text:"equestrianism" from:20/06/1984 till:21/06/1984 text:" " barset:skip from:19/08/1984 till:26/08/1984 text:"volleyball" barset:skip barset:skip from:21/08/1984 till:25/08/1984 text:"handball" barset:skip barset:skip barset:skip barset:skip barset:skip barset:skip barset:skip barset:skip barset:skip barset:skip barset:skip from:28/08/1984 till:30/08/1984 text:"hockey" barset:skip barset:skip barset:skip from:26/08/1984 till:26/08/1984 text:"road cycling" LineData = at:28/07/1984 color:green width:1 at:12/08/1984 color:green width:1

Events were hosted by nine countries (Bulgaria, Cuba, Czechoslovakia, East Germany, Hungary, North Korea, Mongolia, Poland, and the Soviet Union) between 2 July and 16 September 1984. With the exception of equestrian jumping, no events were held during the Summer Olympics in Los Angeles (held between 28 July and 12 August). The Games were contested in 22 Olympic disciplines (all except

association football Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 Football player, players who almost exclusively use their feet to propel a Ball (association football), ball around a rectangular f ...

and

synchronized swimming Synchronized swimming (in British English, synchronised swimming), also known as artistic swimming, is a sport where swimmers perform a synchronized choreographed routine, accompanied by music. The sport is governed internationally by World A ...

), and in non-Olympic

table tennis Table tennis (also known as ping-pong) is a racket sport derived from tennis but distinguished by its playing surface being atop a stationary table, rather than the Tennis court, court on which players stand. Either individually or in teams of ...

tennis Tennis is a List of racket sports, racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent (singles (tennis), singles) or between two teams of two players each (doubles (tennis), doubles). Each player uses a tennis racket st ...

, and sambo wrestling.

Archery

The Soviet Union won five out of six possible medals.

Athletics

In an interview shortly before the events began, the Soviet team's coach

Igor Ter-Ovanesyan Igor Aramovich Ter-Ovanesyan (, ; born 19 May 1938) is a Soviet and Ukrainian former long jumper and coach, of Armenian descent. Competing for the Soviet Union, he was a five-time European and two-time Olympic medalist in this event. In 1985, h ...

said his athletes beat more than ten world records during the preparations for the competition. While the Soviet athletes set no new records during the Games, they still dominated, winning more than a half of the gold medals. The only new world record was set by East German

Irina Meszynski Irina Meszynski (born 24 March 1962 in East Berlin) is a retired East German discus thrower. On 17 August 1984 Meszynski set a world record in women's discus throw at boycott inspired Friendship Games of 73.36 meters. Her record lasted ba ...

in women's discus throw, with 73.36 m. In an unusual feat,

Alberto Juantorena Alberto Juantorena (born 3 December 1950) is a Cuban former runner. He is the only athlete to win both the 400 and 800 m Olympic titles, which he achieved in 1976. He was ranked as the world's best runner in the 400 m in 1974 and 1976–19 ...

(Cuba) and

Ryszard Ostrowski Ryszard Ostrowski (born 6 February 1961) is a retired Poland, Polish middle-distance runner who specialized in the 800 metres. He was born in Poznań, and represented the club Olimpia Poznań. He won the 800 metres at the Athletics at the 1983 Su ...

(Poland) both crossed the finish line at exactly the same moment in the men's 800-metre run. After the officials were unable to decide who came first – even after examining a

photograph A photograph (also known as a photo, or more generically referred to as an ''image'' or ''picture'') is an image created by light falling on a photosensitivity, photosensitive surface, usually photographic film or an electronic image sensor. Th ...

– both were declared winners. The annual Moscow Marathon was declared to be a Friendship Games event in 1984. This caused a minor controversy, as the

United States Marine The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines or simply the Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is responsible for conducting expeditionary ...

guards of the American embassy, who usually took part in it, withdrew after learning it would be treated as a Friendship Games competition.

Basketball

The Soviet Union won the men's final against Czechoslovakia 105–70, and Cuba came in third ahead of Poland. The USSR also finished first in the women's event, but since it was a

round-robin tournament A round-robin tournament or all-play-all tournament is a competition format in which each contestant meets every other participant, usually in turn.''Webster's Third New International Dictionary of the English Language, Unabridged'' (1971, G. & ...

, there were no semifinals or finals.

Boxing

The host nation, Cuba, fully dominated the event, winning eleven out of twelve gold medals. East German

Torsten Schmitz Torsten Schmitz (born 26 August 1964 in Crivitz) is a retired German boxer in the Light Middleweight class. He represented East Germany at the 1988 Summer Olympics. Amateur career Schmitz was an amateur standout and fought in several notable ...

in the

welterweight Welterweight is a weight class in combat sports. Originally the term ''welterweight'' was used only in boxing, but other combat sports like muay Thai, taekwondo, and mixed martial arts also use it for their own weight division system to classify th ...

category was the only non-Cuban to win gold.

Teófilo Stevenson Teófilo Stevenson Lawrence (; 29 March 1952 – 11 June 2012) was a Cuban amateur boxer who competed from 1966 to 1986. Stevenson won the Val Barker Trophy (1972) as well was honored with the Olympic Order (1987) and is one of only three bo ...

, three-time consecutive Olympic gold medalist who lost the chance to win his fourth gold when Cuba boycotted the Los Angeles Games, won the super heavyweight category. Boxing was one of just three disciplines in which the Soviet Union did not win a gold medal, the others being modern pentathlon and table tennis.

Canoeing

Hosts East Germany and the Soviet Union won all twelve gold medals, six apiece.

Cycling

The Schleizer Dreieck in

Schleiz Schleiz () is a town in the Districts of Germany, district of Saale-Orla-Kreis in Thuringia, Germany. The former municipality Crispendorf was merged into Schleiz in January 2019, and Burgk in December 2019. Location Schleiz is in the Thuring ...

, East Germany, usually used as a car or motorcycle race track, served as cycling venue for the individual road race. The event saw participation of top cyclists of the era, including numerous

Peace Race The Peace Race (, , , (), , , , ) is a cycling race that was established as the largest event in Eastern Europe after the Second World War. Since 2013, it has been run as one of the most prestigious stage races for national U23 teams. Histo ...

veterans such as

Uwe Ampler Uwe Ampler (born 11 October 1964) is a retired track and road cyclist who competed for East Germany at the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul, South Korea. There he won the gold medal in the men's team time trial, alongside Jan Schur, Mario Kumm ...

and

Uwe Raab Uwe Raab (born 26 July 1962) is a German former professional cyclist born in Wittenberg, East Germany. He is most known for winning the Points classification in the 1990 and 1991 Vuelta a Españas. He also competed in the road race at the 198 ...

Diving

Diving was yet another event dominated by East Germans and Soviets. Gold medalists included Aleksandr Portnov and

Brita Baldus Brita Pia Baldus (born 4 June 1965 in Leipzig, Saxony) is a German diver, who competed for East Germany until the unification in 1991. She was affiliated with the ''Sportclub Deutsche Hochschule für Körperkultur'' in Leipzig. She participat ...

Equestrian

Equestrian events were the only discipline contested at the same time as the 1984 Summer Olympics, as jumping events took place between 6 and 10 August. It was also the only discipline in which West German and Italian athletes won medals. In individual dressage,

Yuri Kovshov Yuri Aleksandrovich Kovshov (; born 5 September 1951) is a former Ukrainian Soviet equestrian and Olympic champion. He was born in Kushka, Turkmen SSR, and was affiliated with VDFSO Kiev. He won a gold medal in team dressage at ...

won both gold and silver, riding two different horses.

Fencing

Soviet fencers won most of the men's events, while Hungary won both women's events, thanks to

Gertrúd Stefanek Gertrúd Stefanek (born 5 July 1959, Ózd, Hungary) is a Hungarian fencer, who won two Olympic medals in the foil Foil may refer to: Materials * Foil (metal), a quite thin sheet of metal, usually manufactured with a rolling mill machine * M ...

and Edit Kovács.

Field hockey

The Soviet Union "A" team won the men's tournament, and while the Soviet Union "B" team came in third, fourth-place finishers

Zimbabwe file:Zimbabwe, relief map.jpg, upright=1.22, Zimbabwe, relief map Zimbabwe, officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, bordered by South Africa to the south, Bots ...

were awarded the bronze medal. A team representing the

Democratic Republic of Afghanistan The Democratic Republic of Afghanistan, later known as the Republic of Afghanistan, was the Afghan state between History of Afghanistan (1978–1992), 1978 and 1992. It was bordered by Pakistan to the east and south, by Iran to the west, by the ...

also competed in the men's event, but lost all its matches, including a 0:27 loss to East Germany.

Gymnastics

In artistic gymnastics,

Olga Mostepanova Olga Vasilyevna Mostepanova (; born 3 January 1969) is a retired former Soviet gymnast. She won three gold medals at the World Championships. Personal life Mostepanova's birth year has been variously reported as 1968 or 1969. She herself state ...

achieved perfect "10" scores ten times: four in individual competitions, and six in team events. All fifteen medals in rhythmic gymnastics were won by just four athletes: Bulgarians

Anelia Ralenkova Anelia Ralenkova (; born 25 December 1963) is a Bulgarian former individual rhythmic gymnast. She is one of the "Golden Girls" of Bulgaria that dominated rhythmic gymnastics in the 1980s. She now works as a coach. Biography She won gold meda ...

and

Diliana Gueorguieva Diliana Georgieva (; born 18 February 1965) is a Bulgarian retired rhythmic gymnast. She was a two-time all-around World champion and one of the Golden Girls of Bulgaria that dominated Rhythmic Gymnastics in the 1980s. She was named the BTA Best ...

, and Soviets

Galina Beloglazova Galina Beloglazova (; born June 10, 1967, in Astrakhan, Soviet Union) is a Soviet individual rhythmic gymnast. She was the 1983 World All-around silver medalist and the 1984 European All-around champion. Career Beloglazova began training a ...

and

Dalia Kutkaitė Dalia Kutkaitė (born 11 February 1965 in Vilnius, Lithuania) is retired Lithuanian rhythmic gymnast who competed for the Soviet Union. She is the Rhythmic Gymnastics European Championships, 1982 European all-around champion and the Rhythmic Gymn ...

Handball

East Germany won the men's event, thanks to an 18:17 win over the Soviet Union, while Poland came in third. Péter Kovács of Hungary was the top scorer with 26 goals. The USSR finished first in the women's tournament.

Judo

The Soviet Union again won most of the gold medals. The event was also particularly successful for Poland, which won seven medals.

Modern pentathlon

Hungarian László Fábián won the individual competition, and Hungary also won the team event.

Rowing

The USSR took 11 out of 14 gold medals, while East Germany captured the remaining three.

Sailing

Sailing took place on the

Baltic Sea The Baltic Sea is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that is enclosed by the countries of Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, Sweden, and the North European Plain, North and Central European Plain regions. It is the ...

, near

Tallinn Tallinn is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Estonia, most populous city of Estonia. Situated on a Tallinn Bay, bay in north Estonia, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland of the Baltic Sea, it has a population of (as of 2025) and ...

Estonian SSR The Estonian Soviet Socialist Republic, (abbreviated Estonian SSR, Soviet Estonia, or simply Estonia ) was an administrative subunit ( union republic) of the former Soviet Union (USSR), covering the occupied and annexed territory of Estonia ...

(where the

sailing at the 1980 Summer Olympics Sailing/Yachting is an Olympic sport starting from the Games of the 1st Olympiad ( 1896 Olympics in Athens, Greece). With the exception of 1904 and the canceled 1916 Summer Olympics, sailing has always been included on the Olympic schedule. The ...

also took place), with the exception of 470 and Finn classes, which were contested on

Lake Balaton Lake Balaton () is a freshwater rift lake in the Transdanubian region of Hungary. It is the List of largest lakes of Europe, largest lake in Central Europe, and one of the region's foremost tourist destinations. The Zala River provides the larges ...

in Hungary. Soviets and East Germans won all of the gold medals.

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

and

Finland Finland, officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It borders Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bothnia to the west and the Gulf of Finland to the south, ...

won their only Friendship Games medals.

Shooting

While most disciplines mimicked the Olympic Games in terms of events, women's shooting included non-Olympic competitions, namely the

10 metre air pistol The 10 metre air pistol is an Olympic shooting event governed by the International Shooting Sport Federation (ISSF). It is similar to 10 metre air rifle in that it is shot with 4.5 mm (or .177) caliber air guns at a distance of , and tha ...

and

50 metre rifle three positions 50 meter rifle three positions (formerly known as one of four free rifle disciplines) is an International Shooting Sport Federation event, a miniature version of 300 meter rifle three positions. It consists of the kneeling, prone, and standing ...

events.

Swimming

Five new world records were set during the competition.

Sergei Zabolotnov Sergei Valentinovich Zabolotnov (also Sergey, ; born 11 August 1963, is a former backstroke swimmer from the USSR. Career In 1983, he set a European record in the 200 m backstroke. The time of 2:00.42 was achieved on 4 July 1983 at Edmonton, C ...

's result of 1:58.41 in men's 200 metre backstroke excited the crowd, as it was some one and a half seconds better than

Rick Carey Richard John Carey (born March 13, 1963) is an American former competition swimmer, three-time Olympic champion, and former world record-holder in three events. Carey specialized in the backstroke. At the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, ...

's result during the Olympics. Fifteen-year-old

Sylvia Gerasch Sylvia Gerasch (born 16 March 1969) is a former swimmer who competed for East Germany and Germany. Career Gerasch was fifteen years old when she participated in the 1983 European Championships and placed second behind Ute Geweniger in the 100& ...

set the world record in women's 100 m breaststroke and was also part of the relay team that beat the 4 × 100 m medley record.

Table tennis

Table tennis, a non-Olympic sport at that time, was the only event hosted by North Korea, which won four out of seven gold medals. Notably, the

People's Republic of China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

, which was at odds with most socialist states following the

Sino-Soviet split The Sino-Soviet split was the gradual worsening of relations between the People's Republic of China (PRC) and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) during the Cold War. This was primarily caused by divergences that arose from their ...

, took part in the event.

Tennis

Soviet players dominated the singles category, and also won the men's doubles event. The Czechoslovakian women's double team was the only non-Soviet team to win gold.

Volleyball

Not surprisingly, the Soviet team finished first in the men's event, over Cuba and Poland. In the women's tournament, Cuba won the final against the USSR.

Water polo

The Soviet team – composed mostly of the players who won gold during the 1980 Summer Olympics – finished first, while Hungary and Cuba took the second and third spots.

Weightlifting

Dominated by Bulgaria and the Soviet Union, the event saw thirty world records broken,Chmielewski (1987), p. 186 including two in the super heavyweight category, set by Anatoly Pisarenko.

Wrestling

In addition to

freestyle Freestyle may refer to: Brands * Reebok Freestyle, a women's athletic shoe * Ford Freestyle, an SUV automobile * Coca-Cola Freestyle, a vending machine * Abbott FreeStyle, a blood glucose monitor by Abbott Laboritories Media * '' FreeStyle'', ...

and

Greco-Roman The Greco-Roman world , also Greco-Roman civilization, Greco-Roman culture or Greco-Latin culture (spelled Græco-Roman or Graeco-Roman in British English), as understood by modern scholars and writers, includes the geographical regions and co ...

events, non-Olympic

sambo Sambo may refer to: Places * Sambo, Angola, a commune in Tchicala Tcholohanga, Huambo Province, Angola * Sambo Creek, a village in Honduras People * Ferdy Sambo (born 1973), former Indonesian police general * Khem Sambo (1961–2011), Cambodi ...

wrestling events were also contested. Sambo was the only event hosted by Mongolia.

Medal table

The following table is based on statistics from the books ''Na olimpijskim szlaku 1984'' and ''Gwiazdy sportu '84'' and does not include sambo results.

Comparisons to the Olympic Games

Media on both sides of the

Iron Curtain The Iron Curtain was the political and physical boundary dividing Europe into two separate areas from the end of World War II in 1945 until the end of the Cold War in 1991. On the east side of the Iron Curtain were countries connected to the So ...

frequently compared the results of 1984 Summer Olympics and the Friendship Games.Chmielewski (1987), p. 151 Over sixty Friendship Games results would have secured medals at the Olympic Games. Eastern Bloc athletes outperformed Olympic winners in 20 of 41 track-and-field events, and eleven of 29 swimming events. Had Li Yuwei, who won the 1984 Olympic gold medal in

50 metre running target 50 meter running target or 50 meter running boar is an ISSF shooting event, shot with a .22-calibre rifle at a target depicting a boar moving sideways across a 10-meter wide opening. It was devised as a replacement for 100 meter running deer in th ...

shooting, obtained the same score in the Friendship Games, he would have only placed sixth.Chmielewski (1987), p. 183 Indeed, in events such as weightlifting or wrestling, the Friendship Games included almost all of the top athletes of the time. It must also be noted that Eastern bloc countries ran massive state-sponsored doping programs at the time. However, some journalists noted that such comparisons were unjustified due to differing conditions and equipment. For example,

Marlies Göhr Marlies Göhr ( Oelsner, born 21 March 1958 in Gera) is a former East German track and field athlete, the winner of the 100 metres at the inaugural World Championships in 1983. She ranked in the top 10 of the 100 m world rankings for twe ...

's result of 10.95 in women's 100 metre run was slightly better than

Evelyn Ashford Evelyn Ashford (born April 15, 1957) is an American retired track and field athlete, the 1984 Olympic champion in the 100-meter dash, and the world record-holder in the 60-yard dash. She ran under the 11-second barrier over 30 times and was t ...

's winning time of 10.97 at the 1984 Olympics, but when the two met head-to-head a week after the Friendship Games, Ashford was much faster than Göhr and set a new world record. Similarly, Eastern Bloc results in track cycling were better than Olympic results, but Friendship Games cyclists competed on an indoor wooden track, while the Olympic events took place on an outdoor concrete track. "It is like saying

Carl Lewis Frederick Carlton Lewis (born July 1, 1961) is an American former track and field athlete who won nine Olympic gold medals, one Olympic silver medal, and 10 World Championships medals, including eight gold. Lewis was a dominant sprinter and lo ...

was faster than

Jesse Owens James Cleveland "Jesse" Owens (September 12, 1913 – March 31, 1980) was an American track and field athlete who made history at the Athletics at the 1936 Summer Olympics, 1936 Olympic Games by becoming the first person to win four gold meda ...

Muhammad Ali Muhammad Ali (; born Cassius Marcellus Clay Jr.; January 17, 1942 – June 3, 2016) was an American professional boxer and social activist. A global cultural icon, widely known by the nickname "The Greatest", he is often regarded as the gr ...

would have beaten

Joe Louis Joseph Louis Barrow (May 13, 1914 – April 12, 1981) was an American professional boxer who competed from 1934 to 1951. Nicknamed "the Brown Bomber", Louis is widely regarded as one of the greatest and most influential boxers of all time. He r ...

Secretariat Secretariat may refer to: * Secretariat (administrative office) * Secretariat (horse) Secretariat (March 30, 1970 – October 4, 1989), also known as Big Red, was a champion American thoroughbred horse racing, racehorse who was the ninth winn ...

would have outrun

Man o' War Man o' War was a thoroughbred racehorse considered an all-time great. Man o' War (or capitalization variations thereof) may also refer to: Animals * Portuguese man o' war, a floating marine animal found in the Atlantic that resembles a jellyfish ...

Sam Lacy Samuel Harold Lacy (October 23, 1903 – May 8, 2003) was an African-American and Native American sportswriter, reporter, columnist, editor, and television/radio commentator who worked in the sports journalism field for parts of nine decades. Cr ...

of ''

The Afro-American The ''Baltimore Afro-American'', commonly known as ''The Afro'' or ''Afro News'', is a weekly African-American newspaper published in Baltimore, Maryland. It is the flagship newspaper of the ''AFRO-American'' chain and the longest-running Africa ...

'' concluded. The comparisons also had political significance. While Friendship Games organizers repeatedly assured the press that their event was not an "alternative Olympics", presumably to avoid punitive IOC measures, Soviet state-run media often alluded to such comparisons. The TASS agency declared that the Eastern Bloc's games were a "major event in the Olympic year", while the Sovietsky Sport newspaper described the Games as the "main event of the Olympic

quadrennium A unit of time is any particular time interval, used as a standard way of measuring or expressing duration. The base unit of time in the International System of Units (SI), and by extension most of the Western world, is the second, defined as a ...

". Marat Gramov, head of the Soviet Olympic Committee, said that the "socialist nations remain faithful to the task of strengthening the unity of the Olympics movement", while describing the Los Angeles Games as full of "chauvinism and mass psychosis". When asked about the Friendship Games, Monique Berlioux, then director of the IOC, said she had "no reaction whatsoever" to the competition.

Aftermath

In 2006, the

Law and Justice Law and Justice ( , PiS) is a Right-wing populism, right-wing populist and National conservatism, national-conservative List of political parties in Poland, political party in Poland. The party is a member of European Conservatives and Refo ...

party in Poland proposed granting Friendship Games medalists sports retirement benefits similar to those given to Olympic medalists. It was signed into law in 2007. In 2023, facing international sporting isolation in the wake of its invasion of Ukraine, Russia announced plans to revive the Friendship Games and host its second edition in 2024. In May 2023, Russia announced it would be reviving the event as the

World Friendship Games The World Friendship Games (, ) was a planned international multi-sport event, was expected to be held in Moscow and Yekaterinburg, Russia from 15 to 29 September 2024. Unlike the Olympic Games, where athletes only compete for medals, athletes at ...

, initially planned to take place shortly after the

2024 Summer Olympics The 2024 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXXIII Olympiad () and branded as Paris 2024, were an international multi-sport event held in France from 26 July to 11 August 2024, with several events started from 24 July. P ...

but suspended indefinitely .