Avery Brundage (pictured below - 2nd from top) near the end of his reign as IOC president, made a controversial (but generally agreed upon) decision that "the games must go on" after the chilling and tragic 18-hour ordeal that came to be known as the Munich Massacre.
From an American athletic perspective, the Games held few highlights - the brightest being the 7-gold medal performance of swimmer Mark Spitz. Every bit as dominant as Michael Phelps is today, Spitz set new world records in all seven victories ... click here to see video clips of his wins.
Dave Wottle (shown in trademark cap below) won a thrilling 800 M race (click to view), but joy for the US basketball team was short-lived after the Soviets scored on a (third) last-chance field goal to win 51-50 in the gold medal game - America's first loss in Olympic men's basketball competition (the link above is a musical piece with snapshots of the controversial loss).
Teenage Soviet gymnast Olga Korbut (top picture) captured hearts east and west with her spectacular routine on the uneven parallel bars ... she ushered in a golden age of gymnastics. Click here to see her 1972 performance.
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