On This Day: Jesse Owens snubbed by Hitler after claiming Olympic glory

Although it is widely accepted that Hitler specifically snubbed Jesse Owen at the 1936 Berlin Olympics, I recently read an article about an interview with him in which he stated that Hitler had taken the decision previous to his win, not to congratulate any of the athletes, as he was not allowed to only congratulate either Germans or Caucasians (if my memory serves me correctly as to the reasons). So it was a general snub, and not specific to any individual.

The article that I read went on to say that Owens was snubbed, but it was by his own President, who had congratulated other USA Olympians, but failed to contact Owens. 

Although I believe that this article is incorrect because of the above, I still think that it is worth publishing without correction or editing, just to honour the great man and athlete, Jesse Owens.

Eamonn

The American grandson of slaves won the 100m Sprint, which infuriated the German dictator because he hoped to use the Games to showcase Aryan racial supremacy

By Julian Gavaghan | British Pathé – 20 hours ago

Owens, pictured in a 200m heat at the 1936 Olympics, stormed to 100m gold in 10.3 seconds. (PA)

AUGUST 3, 1936: Black athlete Jesse Owens won the first of four gold medals at the Berlin Olympics on this day in 1936 – outraging Adolf Hitler so much that he stormed out the stadium.

The American grandson of slaves won the 100m Sprint, which infuriated the German dictator because he hoped to use the Games to showcase Aryan racial supremacy.

Hitler, who had shaken hands with all the German winners the previous day, was widely reported to have snubbed Owens, who became the star of the Olympics.

The Nazi party, which took power two years after Berlin won the right to host the Games in 1931, had initially wanted to ban black and Jewish athletes.

They relented – and even readmitted half-Jewish gold medal-winning fencer Helene Meyer to the German team as a token gesture – when threatened with a boycott.

Owens salutes during the medal ceremony for the 100m at the 1936 Berlin Olympics. (PA)

The regime, which three years later would trigger World War Two and murder six million Jews during the Holocaust, was also forced to tone down its racism.

Signs, such as those stating 'Jews not wanted' and similar slogans, were removed from Berlin’s main tourist attractions.

Although, prior to the Games, police rounded up all Romany gypsies and interned them in a concentration camp as part of a bid to 'clean up' the city.

But, despite the Nazis’ attempt to promote a friendlier image, Hitler’s snubbing of Owens helped people turn their attention back to the ugly nature of his regime.

In a British Pathé newsreel, the sprinter was filmed streaking ahead of the other competitors as he set a time of 10.3 seconds.

Owens, who was then aged 22, became the most successful athlete of the Games after also winning gold in the 200m dash, 4x100m relay and long jump.

German sprinter Luz Long and Jesse Owens, who would become close friends during the Games. (PA)

In that last event he most defied Hitler’s boasts of Aryan 'supermen' by beating the 'ideal' German Luz Long, who was tall, strapping and had blond hair and blue eyes.

In the final, Owens, who performed badly while qualifying, astonished the crowd by jumping 19cm further than the Olympic record Long had set in preliminary rounds.

Long, who died as a Luftwaffe pilot in 1943, was the first to congratulate Owens and defied Hitler by walking arm-in-arm with the supposedly racially inferior black man.

Owens, who became a heavy smoker and died from lung cancer at age 66 in 1980, later said: 'It took a lot of courage for him to befriend me in front of Hitler.

'You can melt down all the medals and cups I have and they wouldn't be a plating on the twenty-four karat friendship that I felt for Luz Long at that moment.'

(source: http://uk.news.yahoo.com/on-this-day--jesse-owens-snubbed-by-hitler-after-claiming-olympic-glory-144548496.html?vp=1#T14cO8K)