Sportowy wymiar zimnowojennej konfrontacji politycznej na przykładzie rywalizacji w klasyfikacji medalowej igrzysk olimpijskich

The aim of this article is to present one of the main dimensions of sports being used for political reasons – the Olympic Game s Medal Table. In the Cold War Era two geopolitical groups of states searched for ways of confrontation that would allow them to prove their supremacy, but they preferred to avoid military solutions. Sport seemed to be a good solution. Rivalry in the Olympic Games Medal Table was one of the most important dime nsions of this clash, as it was a good tool of presenting overall power of a state. At first, the course of joining the world's sport and Olympic Movement by the Soviet Union was presented, as before WWII this country preferred to stand apart due to ideological reasons. Finally its leaders perceived political advantages of participating in the world’s sport and the USSR eventually debuted in the Olympic Games in 1952 in Helsinki. That moment inaugurated rivalry in the Olympic Games medal table between the East and West, which lasted till the end of the Cold War. The main thesis of the article is that the sport rivalry can be used as an important dimension of political confrontation. In the aspect of the Olympic Games medal table, the thesis suggests that communist states are privileged to achieve better results due to their political and economic systems.