advocacy
When the Olympics arrived in Rome in 1960, the Games entered a new era. For the first time, the world wasn’t just reading about the Olympics or seeing still photographs, they were watching them unfold in real time. Rome marked the moment the Olympics became a truly global media event, and with that visibility came new political meaning. For the first time, millions of households could watch events as they happened. Athletes weren’t just competitors anymore: they were global figures, and their victories carried political weight far beyond the stadium.
Television transformed sport into diplomacy. It allowed nations to project new images of themselves and gave athletes a platform they never had before. In many ways, this set the stage for the athlete activism that would explode in the 1960s and 1970s. Italy itself saw the Games as a chance to redefine its national identity. Just fifteen years after the fall of Mussolini’s fascist regime, the country wanted to present a modern, democratic image rooted in culture, history, and European cooperation. Rome’s ancient monuments became the backdrop for a new narrative: a nation reborn.
The most iconic moment of Rome came from Abebe Bikila, an Ethiopian marathon runner who entered the race barefoot and finished it as one of the most symbolic athletes in Olympic history. Bikila won gold barefoot under the Arch of Constantine—an ancient monument built by the empire that once colonized North Africa. His victory was more than athletic excellence; it was a quiet, powerful moment of post-colonial pride. Ethiopia was one of the few African nations still free during the colonial era. Bikila’s win became a symbol of African resilience and independence at a time when dozens of African nations were just beginning to decolonize. His run carried a political meaning that no speech could capture.
A 20-year-old boxer named Cassius Clay won gold in Rome before the world knew him as Muhammad Ali. Even then, Clay had a charisma and confidence that cameras loved. Rome launched Ali’s global career. And because he later became one of the most politically outspoken athletes in history, opposing the Vietnam War, speaking about racial injustice. His Olympic debut now looks like the moment the world first met a new kind of athlete: someone who would use fame not just for sport, but for influence.
Rome also unfolded during the height of the Cold War, and the medal table became a symbolic battlefield between the United States and the Soviet Union. Every race was read as evidence of ideological superiority: capitalism versus communism, freedom versus control. Television coverage amplified this rivalry. Commentators framed events through political narratives, turning athletic contests into global messaging.
1960 was also the final Olympics where apartheid-era South Africa participated before being expelled. As the Civil Rights Movement grew in the United States and independence movements accelerated across Africa, the IOC faced growing pressure to take a stance. By 1964, South Africa was banned. Rome was the last time the nation competed before athlete activism and global political pressure forced the Olympics to acknowledge racial inequality.
The 1960 Rome Games marked a turning point because they transformed the Olympics into a global media event. With television broadcasting competitions worldwide, athletes became international symbols whose performances carried political meaning. Abebe Bikila’s barefoot marathon win reshaped the image of Africa during a wave of decolonization, while a young Cassius Clay emerged as a charismatic figure who would later redefine athlete activism. Cold War tensions added another layer, turning medal counts into ideological victories between the United States and the Soviet Union. Rome didn’t feature dramatic protests, but it revealed how the Olympics had become a stage where sport, politics, and global identity intersect.