Socialist Workers' Sport International - Workers' Olympiads

Workers' Olympiads

The main activity of SASI was the organizing of the International Workers Olympiads, portrayed as a socialist alternative to the 'bourgeois' Olympics. At the Workers Olympiads only the red flag was used, rather than national flags.

• The first Workers' Olympiad was held in Frankfurt am Main, Germany, in 1925. There were around 150,000 spectators. A world record was broken in the 100 meter women's relay race. The summer Workers Olympiad had been preceded by winter games the same year, in Schreiberhau, in which twelve national delegations had participated.
• The second Workers' Olympiad was held in Vienna, Austria, in 1931. 80,000 athletes took part in the games, which had around 250,000 spectators. The games were larger than the 1932 Los Angeles Olympics, both in number of participants and spectators.
• A winter Workers' Olympiad was held in Mürzzuschlag, Austria, in 1931. Like the summer event, the winter Workers Olympiad was larger (in number of participants and spectators) than the 1932 Lake Placid Olympics.
• The third Workers' Olympiad was held in Antwerp, Belgium in 1937. For the first time, non-SASI organisations could send delegates. A delegation from the Soviet Union took part, and won the football final. Around 50,000 people watched the final day of the Workers Olympiad, and 200 000 took part in the closing rally. A winter Workers Olympics was however not held.
• A fourth Workers' Olympiad was planned to be held in Helsinki, Finland in 1943, but never materialized.