It’s nice to know that you live in one of the most sporting countries on the globe. In a country that has brought up thousands of great athletes, has won hundreds of world-class trophies, has forever entered its records in the annals of sports history.
A significant part of the athletic exploits of domestic athletes falls on the days of the Soviet Union. Of course, special attention has always been paid to sports in the USSR, but the 1960s and 1980s of the 20th century can be called golden for Soviet sports. Why? The answer to this question, supported by striking examples in sports such as basketball, hockey and volleyball, is contained in this article.
General trends
A country with a vast territory, having won the largest military conflict of the 20th century and competing with the United States for world leadership, was simply obliged to maintain its image in the international arena. A wonderful and, most importantly, peaceful way to do this was sport. Athletes confidently winning major international competitions - is this not the best demonstration of the right course of development of the country? Naturally, the development of sports was given great importance.
Due to the tense foreign policy situation caused by the bipolarity of the post-war world, the Soviet Union was constantly in good shape. Military-applied sports, such as orienteering, martial arts, shooting, were actively developed. The Ready for Labor and Defense complex continued to gain popularity.
An important role in popularizing sports in the USSR and strengthening the country's image in the international arena was played by victories in mass sports such as hockey, basketball and volleyball. Of course, Soviet athletes won titles and awards in other sports, but today we are not talking about them.
Basketball Achievements
A high class of the game was shown by the basketball team of the USSR. In the years 60-80, sport that came from the United States did not see such a high-quality game, which was issued by the USSR team. Apart from the Americans, and later the Yugoslavs, no one could compare with the Soviet basketball players.
The USSR national basketball team during this period won a large number of important trophies. These are 9 gold medals of the European Championships, and Olympic silver (1964), bronze (1968, 1976, 1980) and gold (1972), and gold of the World Championship (1964 and 1974).
The enchanting finals of the rivalry between the national teams of the USSR and the USA for gold awards in Munich in 1972, the point at which Alexander Belov set the gold throw a few seconds before the end of the match, formed the basis of the plot of the movie "Upward Movement", released in late 2017. So the Soviet basketball players for the first time became champions of the Olympic Games, defeating their main rivals - the United States.
Hockey dominance
Together with other sports, hockey was actively developing in the USSR in the years 60-80. The Soviet ice squad is a separate reason for pride. So far, no national team has been able to repeat the record of the Soviet hockey players - to win international championships for 14 years in a row!
At the end of the win-win series, the national team did not cease to please the Soviet fans with loud victories. Hockey players became world champions from 1973 to 1975, from 1978 to 1983, in 1986, 1989 and 1990. Think about these numbers: of the 28 world championships that have passed over these golden 30 years, 20 have won our compatriots. Only once in 30 years the Soviet Union team did not enter the top three. Fantastic result! In the years 60-80, attitude to sport in the USSR changed. A photo taken at one of the world championships clearly demonstrates this.
Success accompanied the Soviet hockey players at the Olympic Games. The national team rose to the highest step of the podium 7 times.
Super series Canada-USSR in 1972
A series of fights of the national teams of our country and Canada became the most important event for hockey sports of the USSR in the years 60-80. In eight games, it was necessary to decide whose hockey is better: Canadian power style or Soviet fast layout, backed up by positional play.
The parties reached an agreement that the first 4 games will be held in Canada, and the final 4 in the Soviet Union. One of the conditions for the upcoming competition was the absence in the list of professional NHL players playing for the maple leaf country. However, no one was surprised when, contrary to the agreement on a series of games, only professional players announced.
The whole world expected a confrontation between the founding fathers of hockey and the most titled amateur team in the world at that time. And the world was clearly betting on the Canadian national team. For example, one American journalist publicly vowed to eat his own article if Soviet athletes could win at least one game against Canadian pros. No one believed that he would soon have to fulfill his promise by using a “dish” in combination with chicken broth.
The first of the games in the series is rightfully considered the most dramatic for the founders of hockey and one of the best domestic masters. Coming to the ice with absolute confidence in their own victory, the heavy artillery from the NHL was not ready to lose the first game with a score of 7: 3. The world was in shock, but the Canadian team suffered the most shock. Although a month later the series ended with the victory of the Canadian national team with the smallest one-puck advantage achieved in the last minutes of the third period, world hockey has changed forever, as has attitude to sports in the USSR.
Achievements of Soviet Volleyball Players
The successes of the volleyball team, as well as the teams in other sports in the USSR in the years 60-80, can be briefly characterized as follows: the strongest team in the world.
The fact that from 1977 to 1983, Soviet male volleyball players won only gold in all tournaments says a lot. The Olympic sport of 1964 and 1968 preceded such a clear dominance of Soviet sports in international competitions.
Great sporting past and faith in a brighter future
Even though our compatriots on the world stage are not always able to win prizes, even if not in every competition the Russian anthem sounds and the national flag flutters, may officials look for ever new excuses to prevent Russian athletes from competing, and not to take away Russia's great sports past. One can only be proud of him and increase victories in the present. Go Russia!