Flames in the Dark: Gold Metals and Iron Fists at the 1936 Berlin Olympics (August 1936)

August 1936. The world descends upon Berlin for the Olympics—a spectacle meticulously crafted to showcase the Reich’s power and prestige. But behind the gleaming stadiums and choreographed pageantry, a darker truth festers.

In this gripping episode of Strife! History’s Conflicts, we expose the brutal reality hidden beneath the Olympic flame. From Jesse Owens’ earth-shattering victories to the cruel exclusion of Jewish athletes like Gretel Bergmann, we unravel how the Games became a battleground for propaganda, defiance, and survival.

You’ll hear:

The Illusion: How the Nazis scrubbed Berlin clean of persecution—while terror raged just out of sight.

The Rebels: The athletes who shattered Hitler’s myth of supremacy, from Owens’ four gold medals to a German high jumper’s silent protest.

The Cost: What happened when the world looked away—and how the Olympics emboldened the regime’s march toward war.

Adapted from Strife! Europe’s Inevitable and Unavoidable Descent into World War 2 by John Huber, this is the story of the Olympics that weren’t about sports at all. They were about lies, resistance, and the warning the world ignored.

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