The following is an article that was featured in Valley Scene Magazine... 

 

For Most, "Munich" Was A Movie, For Others, A Memory

Interview with 1972 Olympic Games Gold Medalist Gerald Tinker

By

Sal Rodriguez

 

After two marriages and two daughters. After the tragic deaths of two sisters and one half-brother. After being the first black football player at Memphis State. After a Green Bay Packer season, cut short by a career-ending knee injury. Gerald Tinker still loves his mama, and longs for his hometown of Coconut Grove, Miami.

I sat with Gerald, as he reflected on his youth, when he and his cousin, gold and silver medalist Larry Black, represented the United States of America in Munich, Germany…

 

Which came first, you receiving the medal, or the hostages?

The hostages. Larry had won a silver medal that day. We went out that night, celebrating. We came back about 3 A.M. Our military met us saying, "We've had an incident in The Village. We're gonna escort you to your dormitory."

(Security consisted of men with blue jackets, but no guns. They didn't want an overpowering military or police presence.)

They wanted to keep it casual. This was Germany's coming-out party. They didn't want to over-militarize it. We found out later what had happened. We stayed in our rooms. They were talking about moving Mark Spitz from where he was, getting him on a plane, and back to the U.S. as quick as possible. They asked us if we were interested in going home. That wasn't a hard question: we were there to get medals. Our coaches took that information back to the Olympic Committee.

Where were your living quarters, in relation to the Israeli athletes?

We were close. The Olympic Village was a large community, but you could see the area in which this was going on. If you wanted to watch the negotiations, you walked down to the recreation area. People were sitting on the ground, on ping-pong and chess tables, watching.

When they shutdown the games, were you thinking, "I'm going to lose my opportunity."?

A lot of athletes felt they were going to lose their opportunity. We didn't know which direction this thing was going. But, we made it clear, very clear, we're here to compete. Even though these things were happening, we had no control of that. This is a significant time. This is The Olympic Games! Let's get it done!

How were you affected emotionally? Were you afraid?

I wasn't affected emotionally. There was nothing any of the athletes could do about it. Afraid? Sure, you're afraid, especially when you find out someone's died. And when you hear about terrorists in the village? Sure, you're shaken up.

Did you see other athletes start to deteriorate? Did any athletes leave?

There were a thousand reactions. Some people were solemn. Some people were frantic, wanting to get out, and wanting to get home.

Some of them prior to their events?

Yes. There were Muslim countries there that had Jewish or Israeli people in their communities. You had Egyptians there and Syrians, as well. None of them knew what would happen next. The spirit of the games were, I would say, temporarily dismissed. But, the following day, what was lost was regained, after the memorial service.

Were you offended by the terrorists? Did you feel that they were attacking the Olympic spirit?

Attacking the Olympic spirit? I don't think so. I think it was a chance to showcase their plight to the world. They had this chance to have the eyes of the world upon them and they took advantage of it. This is one of the ways to get the world's attention, to focus on you and your problems. Is this the way it's done? Well, to them it was. I think the terrorists got more from this than they ever thought they would get.

After the memorial service, the games resume, and you win the gold medal...in which event?

4x100 relay. My cousin, Larry, ran in the relay with me. It was the first time, in the history of mankind, for a team with cousins, to run in the same relay, get the gold medal, and tie a world's record.

We were told that immediately after your event, if you wanted to go home, you could. That's what we did. They asked people if they wanted to stay for the closing ceremonies. The only thing I wanted to close was the jet door.

As soon as you won, you received your medal, they played The National Anthem, and you were out of there?

We were ready to go and get out of there man, yeah.