1988 Summer Olympics

Seoul was chosen to host the Summer Games through a vote held on 30 September 1981, finishing ahead of Nagoya, Japan. ==Highlights==

(athlete), Chong Son-man (teacher) and Son Mi-jong (dance student) during the lighting of the 1988 Summer Olympic cauldron • Soviet Vladimir Artemov won four gold medals in gymnastics. Daniela Silivaş of Romania won three and equalled compatriot Nadia Comăneci's record of seven perfect 10s in one Olympic Games. • This was the first Olympic Games where women's sailing was its own event. It was won by Americans Allison Jolly and Lynne Jewell. • Canadian Ben Johnson won the 100-metre final with a world-record time of 9.79 seconds, but was disqualified after he tested positive for stanozolol. Johnson has since claimed that his positive test was the result of sabotage. • Phoebe Mills won an individual bronze medal on the balance beam, shared with Romania's Gabriela Potorac, making history as the first medal (team or individual) ever won by a US woman in artistic gymnastics at a fully attended games. • The USSR won their final team gold medals in artistic gymnastics on both the men's and women's sides with scores of 593.350 and 395.475 respectively. The men's team was led by Vladimir Artemov, while Elena Shushunova led the women's team. • Lawrence Lemieux, a Canadian sailor in the Finn class, was in second place and poised to win a silver medal when he abandoned the race to save an injured competitor in mortal peril. He finished in 21st place, but was recognized by the International Fair Play Committee with the Pierre de Coubertin World Trophy honoring his bravery and sacrifice. • American diver Greg Louganis won back-to-back titles on both diving events despite striking his head on the springboard during his third-round dive and suffering a concussion. • Christa Luding-Rothenburger of East Germany won the silver medal in the women's sprint event in cycling. Combined with the two medals she won in speed skating in the Winter Games in Calgary, she became the first athlete to win medals in two Olympics held in the same year; this feat is no longer possible due to the current scheduling of the Olympic Games. • Anthony Nesty of Suriname won his country's first Olympic medal by winning the men's 100-metre butterfly, prevailing over American Matt Biondi by .01 of a second (thwarting Biondi's attempt to match Mark Spitz's record seven golds in one Olympics). Nesty was the first black person to win an individual swimming gold. and Janet Evans (three). • Baseball were demonstration sports. The opening ceremony featured a mass demonstration of taekwondo with hundreds of adults and children performing moves in unison. • This was the last time the United States was represented by an all-amateur basketball team that did not feature NBA players; the team won the bronze medal after losing to the Soviet Union (that was represented by veteran professionals) which went on to win the gold medal. • Women's judo was held for the first time, as a demonstration sport. • Bowling was held as a demonstration sport, with Kwon Jong Yul of South Korea and Arianne Cerdeña from the Philippines winning the men's and women's gold medals, respectively. • Table tennis was introduced at the Olympics, with China and South Korea both winning two titles. beating Gabriela Sabatini of Argentina in the final. Graf became the first person to win all four Grand Slams and the Olympic gold in a calendar year, known as the golden slam. • Two Bulgarian weightlifters were stripped of their gold medals after failing doping tests, and the team withdrew after this event. • Soviet weightlifter Yury Zakharevich won the men's heavyweight (up to 110 kg class) with a snatch and clean and jerk for a total. Zakhareivich had dislocated his elbow in 1983 attempting a world record and had it rebuilt with synthetic tendons. • Indonesia gained its first medal in Olympic history when the women's team won a silver medal in archery. ==Ceremonies==

Live doves were released during the opening ceremony as a symbol of world peace, but a number of the doves were burned alive or suffered major trauma by the lighting of the Olympic cauldron. As a result of protests following the incident, the last time live doves were released during the opening ceremony was in 1992 in Barcelona, at the start of the ceremony. Balloon doves were released in 1994 Winter Olympics and the 1998 Winter Olympics and paper doves were used at the Atlanta Ceremony in 1996. These were also the last Summer Olympic Games to hold the opening ceremony during the daytime. The opening ceremony featured a skydiving team descending over the stadium and forming the five-colored Olympic Rings, as well as a mass demonstration of taekwondo. The skydiving team trained at SkyDance SkyDiving and had hoped the opening ceremony appearance would set the stage for skydiving becoming a medal event by 2000. ==Domestic historical significance==

The idea for South Korea to place a bid for the 1988 Games emerged during the last days of the Park Chung Hee administration in the late 1970s, as hosting the Olympics was a big opportunity to bring international attention to South Korea. But before that, it was necessary to prove the country's capacity, as South Korea was seen as an exotic and risky destination for large events. The project continued to run even after President Park's assassination in 1979. With the successful staging of Miss Universe 1980, and the subsequent decision to host the 1986 Asian Games in Seoul, Chun Doo-hwan, Park's successor, submitted Korea's bid to the IOC in September 1981, in hopes that the increased international exposure brought by the Olympics would legitimize his authoritarian regime amidst increasing political pressure for democratization and less rigidity in state policies. Further, he hoped it would provide protection from increasing threats from North Korea, and showcase the economic strength that the country was experiencing to the world. Seoul was awarded the bid on 30 September 1981, becoming the 16th nation in the Summer Olympics, as well as the second Asian nation (following Japan in the 1964 Summer Olympics) and the first mainland Asian nation to host the Olympics. Influenced by the model of 1964 Summer Olympics held in Tokyo, which served as a rite of passage for the Japanese economy and re-integration of Japan in the international community in the post-war era, the South Korean government hoped to use the Olympics as a "coming-out party". The Olympics gave a powerful impetus to the development of South Korea's relations with Eastern Europe, the Soviet Union and with China. In January 1982, South Korea's curfew that had been in place since 1945 was lifted. In utilizing media events theory, Larson and Park investigated the Seoul Olympics as a form of political communication. They revealed the significance of South Korea's military government throughout the period of the Olympic bid and preparation, followed by the many advantages of the hosting the Games: rapid economic modernization, social mobilization and the legitimization of the military dictatorship. ==Homeless camp expansion==

Existing camps for "vagrants" (homeless persons) were ramped up before the 1988 Olympics. An Associated Press article states that homeless people and alcoholics, "but mostly children and the disabled" were arrested and sent to these camps to prepare for the Olympics. In addition, a prosecutor had his investigation into the Brothers Home camp limited at a number of levels of government "in part out of fear of an embarrassing international incident on the eve of the Olympics." In 1975, the previous president of South Korea had begun a policy of rounding up vagrants. According to government documents obtained by the Associated Press, from 1981 to 1986 the number of people held increased from 8,600 to more than 16,000. Police officers often received promotions based on the number of vagrants they had arrested, and owners of facilities received a subsidy based on the number of people held. There were multiple reports of inmates raped or beaten, and sometimes beaten to death. ==Boycott==

The games were boycotted by North Korea and its allies Cuba, Nicaragua, Ethiopia, and Madagascar. North Korea had insisted upon co-hosting the Games, something that had been encouraged by Cuban president Fidel Castro, who called for North Korea to be considered joint host of the Games. On 8 and 9 January 1986 in Lausanne, Switzerland, the IOC President chaired a meeting of the North and South Korean Olympic Committees. North Korea demanded that eleven of the 23 Olympic sports be carried out on its territory, special opening and closing ceremonies, and a joint organizing committee and a united team. The negotiations were continued into another meeting, but were not successful. North Korea then announced its boycott on September 3, 1988. The North Korean Central News Agency stated "this will leave another stain on Olympic history", and that "the 24th Olympic Games will be inevitably another crippled Olympiad where not all Olympic member states will participate". Nicaragua had previously announced its intention to boycott on May 20, 1987. Moises Hassan Morales, the Nicaraguan NOC president, stated "if the 1988 Olympics are not carried out in Pyongyang and Seoul, the two Korean capitals, Nicaragua will not attend this event". Cuba made its boycott announcement on January 16, 1988, where it stated "Cuba deeply laments this decision, but our people and our athletes live by profound ethical norms and a great sense of honor". Ethiopia announced on January 20, 1988, that it would boycott the 1988 Summer Olympics in solidarity with North Korea, Cuba, Nicaragua, and Madagascar, which had all criticized the decision disallowing North Korea to jointly organize the Games. The Ethiopian NOC said "at a time when the Korean people, who are divided against their will, are struggling for peaceful negotiations, Ethiopia strongly objects to the Olympic Games being conducted in South Korea which further strengthens disunity", adding that Ethiopia would participate "if the decision to keep the games in South Korea were reversed". The Seoul Olympic Organizing Committee (SLOOC) closed the receipt of final entry applications for athletics on September 8, 1988. Among the 161 NOCs which officially notified their intention to participate in the Olympics, Madagascar failed to send in an entry form by the closing date, thus, its athletes did not compete at the Games. According to the SLOOC, Madagascar did this "in support of North Korea's co-hosting request". Albania and the Seychelles did not respond to the invitations sent by the IOC. ==Official theme song==

es used during the 1988 Summer Olympics Torch Relay The Seoul Olympic Organizing Committee (SLOOC) also produced and distributed an official song of the Seoul Games to publicize the Games to all National Olympic Committees, encouraging their participation and consolidating the idea of harmony and friendship of the entire world through the song. "Hand in Hand" was commissioned for the Italian composer Giorgio Moroder and the American songwriter Tom Whitlock, and was performed by local group Koreana. ==Venues==

in Seoul in autumn • Seoul Sports Complex venues • Seoul Olympic Stadium – opening/closing ceremonies, athletics, equestrian (jumping individual final), football (final) • Jamsil Indoor Swimming Pool – diving, modern pentathlon (swimming), synchronized swimming, swimming, water polo • Jamsil Gymnasium – basketball, volleyball (final) • Jamsil Students' Gymnasium – boxing • Jamsil Baseball Stadium – baseball (demonstration) • Olympic Park venues • Olympic Velodrome – cycling (track) • Olympic Weightlifting Gymnasium – weightlifting • Olympic Fencing Gymnasium – fencing, modern pentathlon (fencing) • Olympic Gymnastics Hall – gymnastics • Olympic Tennis Center – tennis • Mongchon Tosong – modern pentathlon (running) • Other venues in metropolitan Seoul • Seoul Equestrian Park– equestrian (all but jumping individual final), modern pentathlon (riding) • Han River Regatta Course/Canoeing Site Course – canoeing, rowing • Saemaul Sports Hall – volleyball preliminaries • Hanyang University Gymnasium – volleyball preliminaries • Changchung Gymnasium – judo, taekwondo (demonstration) • Seoul National University Gymnasium – badminton (demonstration), table tennis • Royal Bowling Center – bowling (demonstration) • Dongdaemun Stadium – football preliminaries • Hwarang Archery Field, Nowon District – archery • Taenung International Shooting Range, Taenung – modern pentathlon (shooting), shooting • Streets of Seoul – athletics (20 km/ 50 km walk, marathon) • Jangchung Gymnasium – taekwondo (demonstration), judo • Venues outside Seoul • Sangmu Gymnasium, Seongnam – wrestling • Daejeon Stadium, Daejeon – football preliminaries • Daegu Stadium, Daegu – football preliminaries • Busan Stadium, Busan – football preliminaries • Gwangju Stadium, Gwangju – football preliminaries • Suwon Gymnasium, Suwon – handball • Seongnam Stadium, Seongnam – field hockey • Busan Yachting Center, Busan – sailing • Tongillo Road Course – cycling (individual road race, road team time trial) Existing facilities modified or refurbished in preparation for the Olympic Games. New facilities constructed in preparation for the Olympic Games. ==Cost==

According to The Oxford Olympics Study data is not available to establish the cost of the Seoul 1988 Summer Olympics. The cost of the stadium was 491 billion won, approximately US$354 million. ==Sports==

The 1988 Summer Olympics featured 23 different sports encompassing 31 disciplines, and medals were awarded in 237 events. In the list below, the number of events in each discipline is noted in parentheses. • Aquatics • • • • • • • • • • • Road (3) • Track (6) • • Dressage (2) • Eventing (2) • Show jumping (2) • • • • • Artistic (14) • Rhythmic (1) • • • • • • • • • • • • Freestyle (10) • Greco-Roman (10) shows a silver medal he won in the 10m air pistol competition at the 1988 Summer Olympics. Demonstration • • Women's • • • ==Calendar==

:All times are local KST (UTC+10) Note: between May 8 and October 9, 1988, all the clocks in the country were advanced by one hour as a test of the possibility of adopting the daylight summer time in the country in the future. This advance also enabled the development of a sports calendar in which the main events were scheduled to be broadcast in major Western markets in television prime time. ==Participating National Olympic Committees==

Athletes from 160 nations competed at the Seoul Games. Aruba, American Samoa, Brunei, Cook Islands, Maldives, Vanuatu, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, and South Yemen made their first Olympic appearance at these Games. Guam made their first Summer Olympic appearance at these games having participated in the 1988 Winter Olympics in Calgary. In the following list, the number in parentheses indicates the number of athletes from each nation that competed in Seoul: • When the team from the Dominican Republic marched in during the Parade of Nations, the superimposed map erroneously showed the location of Cuba, a nation that did not take part at the Games. Number of athletes by National Olympic Committee 8,453 athletes from 159 NOCs ==Medal table==

These are the top ten nations that won medals at the 1988 Games. ==Mascot==

The official mascot for the 1988 Summer Olympic Games was Hodori. It was a stylized tiger designed by Kim Hyun as an amicable Amur tiger, portraying the friendly and hospitable traditions of the Korean people. Hodori's female version was called Hosuni.{{cite web The name Hodori was chosen from 2,295 suggestions sent in by the public. It is a compound of ho, the Sino-Korean bound morpheme for "tiger" (appearing also in the usual word horangi for "tiger"), and dori, a diminutive for "boys". ==Broadcasting==

In the United States, NBC became the telecast provider hereafter for the Summer Games, after a five-Olympics run by the American Broadcasting Company from 1968 to 1984. NBC's coverage was their first sporting event to feature the new Quantel Cypher to generate the on-screen graphics. However, the network would continue to use Chyron Corporation for the rest of the year with Quantel being used again for the 1988 World Series. The Cypher would be implemented permanently starting with Super Bowl XXIII in January 1989. ==Doping==

In 2003, Wade Exum, the United States Olympic Committee's director of drug control administration from 1991 to 2000, released documents that showed Carl Lewis had tested positive three times at the 1988 United States Olympic trials for minimum amounts of pseudoephedrine, ephedrine, and phenylpropanolamine, which were banned stimulants. Bronchodilators are also found in cold medication. Due to the rules, his case could have led to disqualification from the Seoul Olympics and suspension from competition for six months. The levels of the combined stimulants registered in the separate tests were 2 ppm, 4 ppm and 6 ppm. Lewis defended himself, claiming that he had accidentally consumed the banned substances. After the supplements that he had taken were analyzed to prove his claims, the USOC accepted his claim of inadvertent use, since a dietary supplement he ingested was found to contain "Ma huang", the Chinese name for Ephedra (ephedrine is known to help weight loss). The highest level of the stimulants Lewis recorded was 6 ppm, which was regarded as a positive test in 1988 but is now regarded as negative test. The acceptable level has been raised to ten parts per million for ephedrine and twenty-five parts per million for other substances. According to the IOC rules at the time, positive tests with levels lower than 10 ppm were cause of further investigation but not immediate ban. Neal Benowitz, a professor of medicine at UC San Francisco who is an expert on ephedrine and other stimulants, agreed that "These [levels] are what you'd see from someone taking cold or allergy medicines and are unlikely to have any effect on performance." ==See also==