1980 Opening of the Moscow Olympics
35 years ago, on July 19, 1980, the XXII Summer Olympic Games opened in Moscow. Athletes from 65 countries, including the United States, Canada, Turkey, South Korea, Japan, Germany and China, boycotted the Moscow Olympics because of the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan. Some athletes from Great Britain, France and Greece came to the Games individually with the permission of their Olympic committees, but the teams from Great Britain and France were much smaller than usual.