US Edition1936 'Nazi' Games T-shirt sales cause stir but IOC says it must protect trademark
The IOC sold out a limited run of T-shirts featuring the 1936 Berlin Olympics poster amid criticism from Holocaust groups highlighting Nazi propaganda use.
- On Sunday, the International Olympic Committee listed a 1936 Berlin Olympics T‑shirt on its official online shop that sold out within hours, citing trademark protection.
- Adolf Hitler's Nazi regime used the 1936 Games as a propaganda showcase promoting Aryan superiority while excluding Jewish athletes and targeting the 800 Roma in Berlin.
- The shirt reproduces Franz Wurbel's original 1936 poster showing a laurel‑crowned male figure, Olympic rings, Brandenburg Gate, and lists event dates Aug. 1‑16, 1936, priced at $47.
- Holocaust remembrance organisations and German media condemned the sale and some called for it to be stopped, while the IOC said the Olympic Museum in Lausanne explains the historical context within its Heritage Collection.
- Beyond the sale, experts asked whether aesthetic appreciation of the Games can be separated from the horror that followed, amid a rise in antisemitism and broader concerns about history manipulation, Holocaust advocacy groups said.
103 Articles
103 Articles
Official sales of T-shirts featuring the poster for the 1936 Berlin Olympics, known as the Nazi Games, have caused a stir, but the International Olympic Committee (IOC) defended the move on Sunday, claiming its primary concern was protecting its trademark from potential uncontrolled use. Read more...
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) justified its decision to put on sale t-shirts commemorating the Olympic Games held in Berlin in 1936, under the Nazi regime, by saying it was "to protect copyrights so that they cannot be misused."
1936 'Nazi' Games T-shirt sales cause stir but IOC says it must protect trademark
Official Olympic sales of T-shirts emblazoned with the poster of the 1936 Berlin Olympics, known as the "Nazi Games", have caused a stir but the International Olympic Committee defended the move on Sunday, saying it was mainly concerned with protecting its trademark from potential uncontrolled use.
The Committee's official website offers t-shirts that celebrate past editions of the Games. Even those of Berlin '36
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