Sarajevo 1984 - JRT Broadcast Opening Sequence

Описание: Copyright (c) 1984 Radio and Television of Bosnia and Herzegovina

The XIV Winter Olympic Games were held from 8 to 19 February 1984 in Sarajevo - the city, now the capital of present-day Bosnia and Herzegovina, was once part of the SFR Yugoslavia at the time. It was the first Winter Olympic Games held in a socialist state and in a Slavic language-speaking country, and was the only Winter Games to be held in a communist country up until the 2022 Games in Beijing, China.

The city was elected as hosts in a surprise decision on 18 May 1978 during the 80th IOC Session in Athens, Greece, being picked by a margin of three votes; 39-36, over bids from 1972 hosts Sapporo, Japan and Gothenburg in Sweden - these two cities were seen as frontrunners.

With 1,272 athletes competing in these games, a then-record of 49 nations took part at the 1984 Winter Games, with Egypt, Monaco, Puerto Rico, Senegal, and the British Virgin Islands made their debut at the Winter Olympics. The People's Republic of China ended its Olympic boycott over the controversy regarding the IOC's recognition of the Republic of China (Taiwan), and as a result, the latter had then competed under the name 'Chinese Taipei' for the first time.

Many smaller nations have also taken part at these Sarajevo Games, and it's all thanks to the funding program created by the IOC; the Lausanne-based body had decided that it would cover all expenses for one male and one female athlete, per country. This allowed countries with smaller athletic budgets to participate in the Winter Games.

East Germany led the medal tally with a haul of 24 medals that included nine gold medals. While the USSR topped the overall count with 25 medals, they've won only six golds, which thus placed the mighty Soviets at second. Finishing at third was the United States with eight medals overall - including four golds, and they've put up one of their best Olympic performances in alpine skiing competition, having won five medals - three of which were gold.

The Sarajevo Games, considered a success, made it possible to modernize all of Bosnia and Herzegovina and started to develop winter sports in Yugoslavia, but the Bosnian war that erupted in 1992 had heavily damaged the city as well as the facilities that were built in time for the Olympics. Some sites have been renovated and repaired after the war, but others remain abandoned; the former Olympic sliding track situated at Trebević mountain was among one of the more well-known abandoned sites.