Romanian athletes record remarkable successes at 1984 Olympics despite Eastern Bloc boycott

The Soviet Union, along with 15 other Eastern Bloc countries, boycotted the 1984 Summer Olympics held in Los Angeles as a response to the United States-led boycott of the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow.

The 1980 boycott by the United States and its allies was in protest against the Soviet Union's invasion of Afghanistan in 1979. In retaliation, the Soviet Union and its allies decided to skip the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles.

The political tensions of the Cold War era and the use of the Olympics as a platform for political statements led to these back-to-back boycotts, with each superpower and their allies participating or abstaining from based on political positions.

However, there were three notable exceptions in 1984, notably China, which participated in its first Olympic Games, Tito's Yugoslavia, and Nicolae Ceaușescu's Romania.

In fact, in the summer of 1984, Romania was the only country in the Warsaw Pact that participated in the summer Olympics in Los Angeles.

Romania and the USSR
In retrospect, historians attribute Romania's participation in the American Olympics to the interface between sports and politics.

Romania had been present in Moscow in 1980, because of the "comradely" friendship between the two countries.

Four years later, however, Romanian-Soviet relations had cooled off.

Apart from the fact that Romani's economy was in crisis at the time and needed hard currency - the Los Angeles Olympics were seen as a way of generating that, Ceaușescu, the then president of Romania, was also hoping that participation in the games would improve the country's international profile.

Peter Ueberroth, the head of the organizing committee of the American Olympics at the time,played on that. He did everything to convince the Romanians – and other communist states, including China– to come to the American Olympics.

An Olympics without the presence of thousands of talented athletes was, in his mind, inconceivable, both in terms of sports and finances.

"The Soviet boycott and that of the USSR allies were decided after exclusive contracts with ABC television had been concluded," historian Adrian Cioroianu told RFI in an interview.

Following negotiations between the International Olympic Committee, the Romanian Olympic Committee, and the communist authorities in Bucharest – and with the tacit approval Nicolae Ceaușescu – tens of thousands of dollars were paid for the travel, accommodation, and living expenses of Romanian athletes. By some estimates, the sum involved was close to120,000 dollars.

Romania's participation
Romania's decision to participate in Los Angeles had a knock-on effect and was followed by China and Yugoslavia.

Its participation was also crowned with unexpected and unprecedented successes.

Romania won international praise for going to Los Angeles despite the Soviet boycott. Romanian athletes were applauded as they made their entrance at the Coliseum Stadium in the 'City of Angels', with the then president, Ronald Regan, in the stadium.

The 1980s were a major success for Romanian Olympians. In Moscow in 1980, they won 25 medals, including six gold.

However, just  four years later in Los Angeles ,the team of 124 Romanian athletes ranked second in the medal count, after the American hosts, with a total of 53 medals, including 20 gold. They also became Olympic team champions in gymnastics - a first for Romania.

In fact, following this, gymnastics become Romania's flagship sport and a source of discord and animosity with the USSR. After Nadia Comăneci in Montreal and Moscow, Ecaterina Szabo shone in Los Angeles winning five medals, including four gold, much to the annoyance of the USSR.

In addition to gymnastics, Romania would also excel in Los Angeles in other disciplines such as rowing and canoeing with Ivan Patzaichin, in athletics with Doina Melinte and Maricica Puică, and in weightlifting with Nicu Vlad.