7 – Boycott of the Soviet Union at the Moscow Summer Games (1980)
The escalating Cold War conflicts between the United States and the Soviet Union became more prominent after the Soviets invaded Afghanistan in 1979. Many other countries also felt that the invasion was wrong, and all this tension resulted in a huge boycott of the 1980 Summer Games in Moscow.
Athlete, who are so briefly at their peak, were forced to sacrifice their dreams as the heads of state of 80 nations decided to pull their athletes out of the competition, to protest the Soviet Unions military tactics. Only 67 countries competed in the Moscow Games, and the Soviet Union swept the competitions, gathering 80 gold medals and 115 silver and bronze medals.
Many people feel that the boycott of the Olympics in Moscow rang the death knell for the Soviet Union, and signaled the beginning of a new era.