An endless Olympic Chain By Karl Lennartz Germany’s biggest popular newspaper BILD marked its 60th anniversary by highlighting a number of stories. Amongst the "sensations" was the story of a chain produced by the 1936 Olympic Organizing Committee of the Olympic Games in Berlin. The IOC Members were supposed to wear it then and at future Games as a symbol of office. The article suggested that the chain had belonged to Theodor Lewald. He had been President of the Organising Committee and a Member of the IOC Executive until 1938. Lewald had died in 1947. As the article claimed that the chain was unique, and in addition contained a series of errors, I decided along with Jürgen Buschmann, the Director of the Carl and Liselott Diem Archive, to write to the author in the following terms: which could be worn by its members and recognized by “Dear Mr. Reuth, we have read with great interest everybody Secretary-General Carl Diem, for whom the IOC your article ‘BILD finds the Olympic Chain of the Nazi was “the high senate of physical culture”3 had his eye on Games’ in the edition of 23/24 June 2012, which was a professorial tenure at a university. But as no academic distributed to all households. The contribution is easy gown would be accepted, Diem proposed a large golden to read and informatively written. Unfortunately this chain. The IOC agreed to this.4 is not one of BILD-Zeitung’s ‘discoveries’. Little of your The Berlin sculptor Walter E. Lemcke 5, who also contribution is correctly presented, starting with the designed the Olympic Bell of 1936, was charged with identification of those in the photo. The arrow indi- creating it. Together with Lewald he settled on a bronze cates IOC President Baillet-Latour and not Lewald, chain with six medallions upon with athletes of antiquity who is on the right. The chains are not made of gold, were depicted. These include discus and javelin but of gilded bronze. throwers, mounted torch bearers, two wrestlers, armed You have probably been misled by the dealer, who, runners, jumpers with halteres. The lower end of the in order to get more money, described the chain as chain is formed by the Olympic rings in enamel, on which extremely rare. You would have done better to ask a large medallion hangs, an imitation of a gem with the Olympic historians or read up the relevant research head of Zeus. Inscribed on the other side is “XI Olympiad literature. But then, as it would no longer have been a Berlin 1936”. There would been enough room to engrave ‘discovery’, the essay would not have been published ten further Olympic Games. in BILD-Zeitung.” Although at that time the IOC had 67 Members, only 60 chains were produced. These were however sufficient to What is the truth about these chains? 1 First of all some decorate the 50 Members who were present in Berlin. remarks about their origin: at the very first Olympic There are numerous photos proving that they used Games in 1896 those IOC Members who were present the chains at official events, including the Opening and other officials received a badge, of which only a few Ceremony. survive.2 From this, a tradition developed. At the Olympic In addition one can conclude that the chains there- Games and IOC Meetings Members wear a special badge, after passed into the possession of the IOC, were kept initially made of metal and later of cloth. in Lausanne and handed out to those IOC Members The Organizing Committee for the 1936 Games in present.6 At the 1937 meeting in Warsaw this decision Berlin, which was anxious to have a neat appearance was however rescinded. Like the Olympic flag the chains for ceremonial matters, discussed with the IOC during were to remain at the site of the last Games until the the 1934 congress in Athens the question of an insignia next celebration. The decision ran: JOH 3 | 2012 An endless Olympic Chain 53 In a special edition to mark their 60th anniversary, BILD ran a story claiming to have found Theodor Lewald's Olympic chain. In their photo, they mistakenly identified IOC President Baillet- Latour, not Lewald. Opposite page: the chain of honour created for IOC Members by the Berlin craftsman Walter E. Lemcke. “Olympic chains: it was resolved to wear the Olympic already asked the Berlin municipal authorities about chains only at festive events during the Olympic Games this, probably at the behest of the London Organizing and not at meetings. The city in which the Olympic Committee. Games were celebrated keeps them until the next Diem promised Edström that he would also start Olympic Games, as happens with the Olympic flag.” 7 looking and approached the Mayor of Berlin. In fact Diem found the chains in the cellar of the city savings Thus the chains stayed in Berlin. On the last day of the bank. According to his account he found “the flag in an Olympic Games they were handed over by Diem along inconspicuous chest and nine of the 60 chains.”11 with the Olympic flag to the Berlin Mayor Julius Lippert. On 25 September 1946 Diem reported to Stockholm During the WW II they were in a safe in the Berlin city “that that Olympic flag has been found undamaged savings bank. and that the chains of honour were also found, I am still Directly after the end of the war Diem attempted to checking if they are all there. If not, the missing ones will re-establish contact with the IOC leadership. He volun- be manufactured again.”12 Edström wrote thanking Diem teered to be a helper in organisational and ceremonial for the information on 11 October 13 and informed him on questions for the 1948 London Games. In a letter to the 8 November that the flag and the chains “will be picked IOC President of the time J. Sigfrid Edström, dated 5 June up from your house by the English authorities”.14 1946, he mentioned the flag and chains.8 He feared that On 17 November 1946, the British military authori- these might have got lost during bombing raids, but did ties , acting on behalf of Olympic Organising Committee not see this as a permanent loss. Quite the contrary: Chairman Lord Burghley, asked Diem about the wherea- “Since I own an example of the chains, they could be bouts of the flag and chains. Thereupon Diem informed produced anew without much difficulty”. According to the occupying power that the articles sought were in the this there were, including Diem’s private chain more care of the Berlin municipal authority which had its seat than 60 examples. in the Soviet sector.15 This fact aroused the anger of the It is not certain whether Edström ever received the German IOC Member Duc Adolf Friedrich zu Mecklen- letter, for in a communication dated 31 July 1946 he burg, who at the end of the war had fled to the British asked Diem about the chains: “Do you know if they have zone of occupation. In his answer to Diem of 11 Decem- been destroyed?”9 In his answer Diem informed him on ber 1946 he spoke of a “confiscation” and threatened to 15 August that the British military administration had make an official complaint to Edström.16 54 Diem, who was very conscious of his own importance which was found in the winter of 1945/6 during the and pointed out that the handover of insignia was ac- removal of rubble from a property. The ownership of cording to Olympic regulations, the responsibility the the chain is unknown, but it probably did not belong previous host city. The British authorities chose to ignore to Lewald, who had a different address. And finally his remarks. On 29 December 1946 Berlin’s governing another chain was offered at auction by Ingrid O’Neil Mayor Dr. Otto Ostrowski handed over the Olympic flag during the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta for at least to the British liaison officer Lieutenant Colonel Mander.17 10,000 US dollars.24 Provenance unknown. Diem was infuriated that the handover of the flag, In total then there are six known chains but that does about which he had found out the same day, had taken not rule out the existence of more chains. It is possible place without him. He wrote to Edström: “You will real- that some became spoils of war during the Soviet ad- ise that the recovery of this Olympic property in such a vance, they may have been looted or otherwise fallen way does not correspond to Olympic usage. We expect into private hands. you to compensate for this infringement in a suitable The BILD editorial team did reply to my letter. They said way. I personally feel myself freed of any responsibility that the Olympic chain had been bought from a dealer in any case.”18 who could not or would not give any information about In Diem's autobiographical writings this episode read the previous owner. They said he had guaranteed its like an adventure story: “The sixty golden chains of the authenticity. This is difficult to ascertain as there have Olympic Committee were however confiscated as spoils recently been many authentic looking imitations which of war and sent to Moscow to establish if they contained have been offered for sale. uranium nuclei. Only six of the sixty were still in Berlin in 19 a dusty condition.” 1 Cp. Lennartz, Karl, “More on the Olympic Chains: Setting the Record According to Diem’s account he had also got in touch Even Straighter”, in: “Olympika.