The Story of Vincent Matthews, Wayne Collett and the Forgotten 1972 Olympic Protest

At the 1972 Olympic Games in Munich, Germany, Americans Vincent Matthews and Wayne Collett won Gold and Silver respectively in the 400m. During the award ceremony, while at the top of the podium, Matthews and Collett chose to ignore the US National Anthem as it played and simply stand on the podium, fidgeting, looking around and not acknowledging the anthem. Matthews and Collett were banned from the remainder of the 1972 Games as well as from participating in future Olympics as well.

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