Misha (), also known as Mishka () or The Olympic Mishka (), is the name of the

Russian Bear The Russian Bear () is a widespread symbol (generally of a Eurasian brown bear) for Russia, used in cartoons, articles, and dramatic plays since as early as the 16th century, and relating alike to the Russian Empire, the Russian Provisional Go ...

mascot A mascot is any human, animal, or object thought to bring luck, or anything used to represent a group with a common public identity, such as a school, sports team, university society, society, military unit, or brand, brand name. Mascots are als ...

of the 1980 Moscow

Olympic Games The modern Olympic Games (Olympics; ) are the world's preeminent international Olympic sports, sporting events. They feature summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a Multi-s ...

(the XXII Summer Olympics). He was designed by children's books illustrator Victor Chizhikov. Misha is the first

of a sporting event to achieve large-scale commercial success in merchandise. The Misha doll was used extensively during the opening and closing ceremonies, appeared on several merchandise products and had both an animated short film (animated by

Soyuzmultfilm Soyuzmultfilm ( rus, Союзмультфи́льм, p=səˌjʉsmʊlʲtˈfʲilʲm , ''Unioncartoon'') (also known as SMF Animation Studio in English, formerly known as Soyuzdetmultfilm, ''Unionchildcartoon'') is a Russian animation studio, produ ...

) and a television series (animated by

Nippon Animation is a Japanese animation studio. The company is headquartered in Tokyo, with its headquarters in their Tama, Tokyo, Tama City studio and an administrative office in the Ginza district of Chūō, Tokyo, Chūō. Nippon Animation is known for prod ...

), all of which are now common practice not only in the Olympic Games, but also in the

FIFA World Cup The FIFA World Cup, often called the World Cup, is an international association football competition among the senior List of men's national association football teams, men's national teams of the members of the FIFA, Fédération Internatio ...

and other events' mascots.Alpert, Lukas I.. (20 February 2014
Russians Get Misty for 1980 Olympic Mascot Misha—Except for His Creator – WSJ
Online.wsj.com. Retrieved on 2016-07-02.

Origins

In 1977, the committee organizing the Olympics held a contest for the best illustration of a bear. The judges chose Victor Chizhikov's design depicting a smiling bear cub wearing a blue-black-yellow-green-red (colors of the Olympic rings) weightlifter's belt, with a golden buckle shaped like the five rings. Misha's design of a small, cuddly and smiling bear cub was evidently intended to counter the "big and brutal

". Misha was confirmed as an official mascot on 19 December 1977. Chizhikov complained that the country reneged on a promise to grant him the copyright to his bear which deprived him of royalties, although the Russian Olympic Committee stated "in accordance with the Olympic Charter, after Dec. 31 of the year in which the Olympic Games had been held, all the rights to the intellectual property and the symbols of the Olympics go the International Olympic Committee". RIAN archive 488322 Flag-bearers of states-participants of the XXII Summer Olympic Games

RIAN archive 488322 Flag-bearers of states-participants of the XXII Summer Olympic Games

During the closing ceremony of the 1980 Olympic Games, a giant effigy of Misha the Bear holding a cluster of balloons was paraded in the stadium. On one side of the stadium where the Olympic Torch was situated, there was a placard mural of Misha which shed tears of happiness from his left eye. At the end of the ceremony, Misha with his balloons was released and rose in the air away from the stadium, and this nostalgic moment has been fondly remembered by Russians. A few hours later Misha landed on Vorobyovy Gory and later was exhibited at the

Exhibition Centre A convention center (American English; or conference centre in British English) is a large building that is designed to hold a convention, where individuals and groups gather to promote and share common interests. Convention centers typica ...

Legacy

Misha's designer,

Viktor Chizhikov Victor Alexandrovich Chizhikov (; 26 September 1935 – 20 July 2020) was a Russian children's book illustrator and the designer of the Olympic mascot, Misha, of the 1980 Moscow Olympic Games (the XXII Summer Olympics). Chizhikov illustrated mo ...

, accused the designer of the polar bear mascot (named Bely Mishka, and is said to be Misha's grandson) for the

2014 Sochi Olympics The 2014 Winter Olympics, officially called the XXII Olympic Winter Games () and commonly known as Sochi 2014 (), were an international winter multi-sport event that was held from 7 to 23 February 2014 in Sochi, Russia. Opening ro ...

of plagiarism. Chizhikov noted that the Bely's facial features were all taken from Misha, saying "they just pumped him up and made him fatter". Chizhikov also complained that Bely and the other two mascots (the Hare and Leopard) was lacking personality. As a result of these issues, as well as being denied the copyright to Misha, Chizhikov declined to help when asked by the organizers of the

2014 Winter Olympics closing ceremony The closing ceremony of the 2014 Winter Olympics was held on 23 February 2014 from 20:14 to 22:25 MSK (UTC+4) at the Fisht Olympic Stadium in Sochi, Russia. It was designed to show Russian culture, through a European perspective, and featur ...

. A short clip of the

1980 Summer Olympics closing ceremony The Closing Ceremony of the 1980 Summer Olympics was held at 19:00 Moscow Time (UTC+3) on 3 August 1980 at the Luzhniki Stadium, Grand Arena of the Central Lenin Stadium. It was attended by the List of heads of state of the Soviet Union, Chairma ...

of Misha's departure was shown in the

closing ceremony An opening ceremony, grand opening, or ribbon-cutting ceremony marks the official opening of a newly constructed location or the start of an event.

of the

2014 Winter Olympics The 2014 Winter Olympics, officially called the XXII Olympic Winter Games () and commonly known as Sochi 2014 (), were an international winter multi-sport event that was held from 7 to 23 February 2014 in Sochi, Russia. Opening ro ...

. Afterwards, the giant animatronic polar bear Mishka blew out the 2014 Games Olympic torch and shed a tear (in a nod to Misha's tears during the end of the 1980 Games).Sanchez, Josh. (23 February 2014
2014 Sochi Olympics: Sochi bear mascot cries, blows out flame during Closing Ceremony (Video)
Fansided.com. Retrieved on 2016-07-02.

References

External links

*
Anime series outline by Nippon Animation

Moscow Olympics' site
includes the Misha farewell song ''До свиданья, Москва''

at the

China Daily ''China Daily'' ( zh, s=中国日报, p=Zhōngguó Rìbào) is an English-language daily newspaper owned by the Central Propaganda Department of the Chinese Communist Party. Overview ''China Daily'' has the widest print circulation of any ...

website
Olympics Logos and Mascots
Official image of Misha {{Nippon Animation 1979 anime television series debuts 1980 Summer Olympics Bear mascots Fictional bears Anthropomorphic bears Olympic mascots Culture of the Soviet Union Russian mascots Mascots introduced in 1977

Origins

Legacy

See also

References

External links