Legacy of the Mat

Chapter 25, Olympic Terror starting at the beginning of the chapter (about a page and a half)--
“The Opening Ceremony of the Olympic Games is one of the most exciting events that an athlete can experience. Those athletes come from all over the world, large countries and small. Some countries are represented by hundreds of athletes and some by just a few.
In 1968, in Mexico City, Mexico there were 112 countries represented by almost 5,500 athletes. In 1972, in Munich, Germany, there were over 7,000 athletes from 122 countries. Added to that number were coaches, trainers, and referees.
Dave and I were privileged to compete in both the 1968 and 1972 Olympic Games. After we completed the qualifying tournaments, and were named to the United States Olympic Teams, we went to training camps in the United Sates for about a week, where all the wrestlers met and worked out. Then the entire Olympic Team, all sports included, was flown to a large hotel for several days, where we received athletic uniforms, travel uniforms, luggage, cameras, etc.
The companies sponsoring the Olympics were very generous. We were given the uniforms that we would be wearing during the Opening Ceremonies of the Olympic Games.
When this time at the hotel was complete, the entire Olympic Team was flown to the site of the Olympics. For us it was Mexico City and later Munich.
The Olympic Villages were huge. This was where the athletes, coaches, trainers, referees, and support staff stayed and where we received our meals. It was a city. Spectators did not stay at the Olympic Village.
Both days of the 1968 and 1972 Olympic Opening Ceremonies dawned bright and beautiful. Excitement and anticipation were in the air. I looked around at the athletes from various countries. God had been so good to Dave and me. With our wrestling, we had traveled to Mexico, Germany, Canada, Argentina, Romania, Bulgaria, France, England, and Italy, and I would soon be going to Poland as a coach.
Never in my wildest dreams had I thought that God would give me those privileges. For a small and shy young man from Minnesota, this was beyond what I had ever imagined.
We lined up for the opening ceremonies. In 1968 and 1972, the teams marched in, in a very orderly fashion. In recent years, the teams just walk in. It does not really matter. What matters is that those athletes are there, standing for their sport and their country. They proudly march in, bearing their flag. Athletes from the country of Greece always march in first, because that is where the Olympics originated.
The rest of the countries march in, in alphabetical order, and the host country marches in last. We circled the track, and then stood in the center of the track. As I looked around, the sight was unbelievable. All those athletes.
After the last team has entered, there are several speeches, the Olympic pledges, and the lighting of the Olympic torch. After that, the announcer says, “Let the games begin.”
Held in Munich, the 1972 Olympic Games began with the athletes prepared and the venue beautiful. We were so excited to be there. A sad day, however, would soon come, a day that would change the Olympics forever.”