• Melbourne 1956

Melbourne 1956 - Quick Hits

Betty Cuthbert became the golden girl of the Games by winning three golds © PA Photos

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The Black Spider shines
The Soviet Union won the football tournament riding on the talents of their gifted goalkeeper Lev Yashin a man who went on to become a legend in the game and was known as the "Black Spider."

Heatwave
For the opening ceremony the sun was blazing in Melbourne and 225 people collapsed, among them the leader of the American delegation.

The battle in the pool
Hungarian water-polo player Ervin Zador came out of the swimming pool with his face covered in blood during the semi-final match between the Soviet Union. Hungary would go on and beat the Soviet Union 4-0 in the bitterly contested game. The referee eventually stopped the clash after several incidents in which players exchanged blows. The public largely supported the Hungarians, whose homeland had just been invaded by the Soviet military.

In the final, Hungary would go on and win the gold medal defeating Yugoslavia 2-1. The USSR received the bronze medal.

Support for Hungary
Two notable Hungarian champions were absent from the Games - the imprisoned swimmer Geza Kadas, and the decathlete Hegedus, who had been killed on the barricades during the Soviet invasion of Hungary. The Australian public cheered wildly for the Hungarian delegation during the opening ceremony while they were reserved in receiving the Americans who had refused to intervene in the dispute.

Getting a medal and more
American hammer-thrower Harold Connolly left Melbourne with something extra to go with his gold medal and a new Olympic record - a wedding ring and a new wife. During the Games, Connolly drew international attention for his deepening friendship with Czech discus champion Olga Fikotova. The Iron Curtain relented and the couple were joined by 40,000 well-wishers at their civil ceremony in Prague. They later moved to the USA, where they divorced in 1973.

The start of something special
The American basketball team was led by Bill Russell who went on to become one of the greats in the NBA and helped the Boston Celtics win 11 NBA titles.

Treble top
Hungarian boxer Laszlo Papp pulled off the rare feat of winning his third straight boxing gold medal.

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