Simpler Times: Moscow Shines at the 1980 Summer Olympic Games

Jul 25, 2016 - 05:24 pm

Soviet dancers and gymnasts tower high over the field at Moscow’s Lenin Stadium during a rehearsal for the 1980 Moscow Olympics' opening ceremony. The games officially opened July 19. AP

Misha the Bear Cub, the 1980 Moscow Olympics mascot, appears on a large signboard next to a map of venues for the Moscow Olympic Games. AP

Marathon runners cross Red Square in Moscow during the Summer Olympic Games. Thousands turned out to line streets beneath the copulas of St. Basil's Cathedral which rise above the square. AP

Novodevichy Monastery looms high over the Moscow skyline to provide a historic backdrop for the Olympic flame, burning brightly in Lenin Stadium. The flame was lit on July 19, to officially open the 1980 Summer Olympic Games in the Soviet capital. AP

Basketball players during the Czechoslovakia vs. India match at the 1980 Moscow Olympic Games. AP

A hurdle goes flying as Soviet Aleksander Romankov (L) accidentally grabs the arm of the East German runner at the men’s 110-meter finals at the Moscow Olympic Games. AP

A giant balloon of Olympic Mascot Misha the bear, suspended by smaller, helium-filled balloons, stands on the field of Lenin Stadium during his final appearance at the closing ceremony of the 1980 Moscow Summer Olympic Games on Aug. 3, 1980. AP

With Russia's Olympic woes dominating the headlines, The Moscow Times looks back on a happier era of Soviet sporting glory at the 1980 Summer Olympic Games.

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