On September 9th in sports history, one significant event took place in 1972 during the Summer Olympics in Munich, West Germany. The USA men's basketball team faced off against the Soviet Union in a highly controversial and dramatic gold medal game.
The game was closely contested throughout, with both teams trading leads. As the final seconds ticked away, the USA held a slim 50-49 lead. The Soviets inbounded the ball and missed a shot, seemingly giving the Americans the victory. However, the referees stopped the game with one second remaining on the clock, amid confusion and protests from the USA team and coaches.
The Soviets argued that they had called a timeout before the final play, which should have stopped the clock. The officials reset the clock to three seconds and gave the Soviet team another chance. They failed to score on the next inbound play, and the USA team began celebrating, believing they had won the gold medal.
Shockingly, the referees again intervened, resetting the clock once more to three seconds. This time, the Soviets executed a long pass and scored a layup just as time expired, giving them a 51-50 victory and the gold medal.
The USA team, feeling they had been cheated, unanimously voted to refuse their silver medals. To this day, the 12 members of that team have never accepted their medals, which remain unclaimed in a vault in Switzerland.
The 1972 USA vs. Soviet Union basketball game remains one of the most disputed and controversial finishes in Olympic history, and September 9th will forever be remembered as the day when the USA team felt they were unfairly denied the gold medal in a stunning upset.
