Three seconds of Alexander Belov that shocked the world. "three seconds that shocked the world" from two angles - cinematic and historical Finale
Ivan Edeshko made a perfect pass across the entire court, and Alexander Belov, jumping above the two Americans guarding him, received the ball and accurately placed it in the basket. 51:50 and our team has gold.
Alexander Belov (in red) receives the same transmission
Formula for success
1. The angle of departure of the ball at the moment of Edeshko’s pass is 40°. Stick to the 36-50° range: increasing or decreasing the angle forces you to apply more force.
2. The pass should require 70-75% of maximum force. If this indicator is higher, marriage will increase.
3. Edeshko’s passing range is 27 m 51 cm. To repeat it, train passes of 30–39 meters, then shorter ones will be easier.
Reception
Alexander Belov (height 200 cm) received the ball at a height of 305 cm. “Receiving any pass from a long distance is difficult, especially when there are two defenders nearby. It’s important to try to both jump and land in balance.”, says CSKA defender and 2012 Olympic bronze medalist Anton Ponkrashov. The 10th and 14th numbers of the US team did not succeed, so in a second the first of them will fall on the floor, and the second will fly off the court, and Belov will score the ball without any interference.
How to pass across the court
1.
“It’s difficult to make a pass like that from the spot. Therefore, you need, like Ivan Ivanovich, to make a slight acceleration and jump, and so that the leg opposite the hand to which you pass the ball is in front.”, advises Ponkrashov. This way you will increase the transmission power.
2. Passing the ball with two hands (from the chest or from behind the head) will be more difficult, so it is better to actually pass with one hand.
3. There is also a so-called baseball pass, which is given from a place: you make a swing, turning your body and bringing the ball behind your head, and then you throw it with your whole body like a javelin. This technique requires more physical strength and not everyone can do it.
Interesting review of the film "Upward movement", from my regular reader Dmitry Kondrashov
So...
About the film
(link in vk)
For as long as I can remember, I have always been indifferent to basketball.
However, the film “Moving Up”, based on the legendary story of the confrontation between the USSR and the USA in the finals of the 1972 Olympic Games in Munich, made me radically change my attitude towards this greatest and original sports discipline, which for many professional athletes is a real philosophy, and for the multi-million army of basketball fans - religion. Contrary to the latest “film masterpieces” of the modern Russian film industry of a patriotic nature, such as “Legend No. 17”, a remake of the film “Crew”, “Viking”, etc. - this film exceeded all our wildest expectations.
"Upward movement"- indeed, one of the few, in my memory, worthwhile Russian-made films, telling about the outstanding pages of Soviet sports, the formation of the national school of basketball, a real TEAM, an unbending will to win, and most importantly, about the athlete’s desire not to become famous himself, but to glorify, first of all , his country, whose coat of arms is embossed in gold thread on his scarlet playing jersey.
The plot, in addition to the grandiose battle between two sports superpowers, is based on the family drama of the head coach of the USSR national basketball team, Vladimir Garanzhin (the screen prototype of Vladimir Petrovich Kondrashin).
His son, Shurka, is a wheelchair user who has lost the ability to walk, but there is hope for his recovery; he needs an operation, which was not performed in the union at that time, only in the West. However, there is no evidence from Kondrashin’s wife on this matter (she was generally against this film).
However, I will give below the opinions of the real heroes of the film, from whom this film chronicle was written; in addition, I will also present a number of sports facts and interesting points regarding this epoch-making battle, as well as the events that preceded it, both in the Soviet and world basketball and compare all the available episodes from life with what happened on the screen. But first things first. So, first, the cinematic component. Putting his son on his feet is the main life goal of coach Garangin, who, of course, was played great (but not flawlessly) by Vladimir Mashkov (in general, it must be admitted, Mashkov is in his best traditions: “The Thief”, “Liquidation”, “Motherland”, etc. .gave the picture a certain nerve, a certain charisma, drive and, of course, drama). However, during the film epic we learn that the team in the life of a Soviet specialist means no less than his own family, or rather the sports team and close relatives - this is one big family of coach Garanzhin.
From the first frames, the picture literally captivates the viewer. On the eve of the Olympics, the head coach of the USSR national basketball team is changing.
The newly minted mentor Garanzhin ignites the team again, revives it, through the introduction of innovative methods of training athletes, based on his many years of observations and developments, sets a new vector of development. The fixed idea is to beat the founders of basketball, the Americans, who by that time, in the entire history of their performances at the Olympic Games, had never suffered defeat. An adventurous and seemingly impossible task, given the strength and power of the Stars and Stripes. Plus, there is a tense political situation between the two countries, caused by the Cold War, which is now in its third decade. The Soviet sports and party leadership (Garmash, Basharov, Smolyakov) predictably finds itself perplexed by the ambitions of the head coach, creating all sorts of obstacles and hedging at every step, trying to simultaneously keep a “finger on the pulse” and at the same time “spread straws for themselves.” “in case of a fiasco of the country’s main team (an unprecedented search of all team members at customs, the presence of informants in the team, and other “cultural enlightenment work” of that time). But, as people say, “the eyes fear, but the hands do.”
Kirill Zaitsev as the attacking midfielder of the USSR national team, Sergei Belov
Strenuous, intense physical activity alternates with thoughtful tactical training - the Garanzhin method in action. And the result was not long in coming; the Soviet Union basketball team won one victory after another. First, we win gold medals at the European Championship, defeating the Yugoslav national team in the match for 1st place, then we go to Sao Paulo (Brazil) for the Intercontinental Basketball Cup, where in the decisive match we defeat the hosts of the tournament.
From left to right:
Georgian actor Irakli Mikava in the role of the attacking defender of the USSR national team, Zurab Sakandelidze; Russian actor Ivan Kolesnikov in the role of forward of the USSR national team, Alexander Belov; Georgian actor Otar Lortkipanidze as the attacking defender of the USSR national team, Mikhail Korkiya (Mishiko)
Thus, the “red machine” confidently moves towards its main championship in history, where in the final, in one of the most spectacular and memorable matches in the entire history of the Olympic movement, it overthrows the hitherto invincible Americans from the throne. A separate topic is, of course, the technical component of the film, special effects, and atmosphere on the screen. “Moving Up” was filmed in the best traditions of modern action films. I will share my own emotions. When there were only a few minutes left before the end of the final match, ours were still leading, but the Americans began to rapidly reduce the gap in the score, the camera captures the Soviet fans in the stands and they throw a painfully familiar, dear cry - “puck!”, “puck!”, At this moment I also wanted to jump to my feet and chant with them...
Kuzma Saprykin as the point guard of the USSR national team, Ivan Edeshko
And finally, the apotheosis of the film (the winning throw of Alexander Belov in the last seconds of the final match with the Americans), the authors tried to convey using the “Mannequin Challenge” technique, when for 55 seconds in the gym where the final of the USSR-USA Olympic Games is taking place, time stops, everyone around freezes (players, coaches, technical staff, spectators in the stands), and the camera hovers over the arena dome and films everything that happens.
In addition, the positive sense of humor of its creators adds to the positive atmosphere of the film. For example, in my opinion, a fictitious episode of a “yard fight” between our guys and local basketball fans from American gateways, which happened during the USSR national team’s tour of the USA, was successfully interspersed into the general outline, within the framework of the head coach’s strategic idea (matches with student teams for experience of personal meetings with the founders of basketball).
A friendly match with fans of street basketball in the American slums, in the back, in the center, former basketball player and now actor Alexander Ryapolov as the center of the USSR national team, Alzhan Zharmukhamedov
Also, the Georgian wedding smiled, which, according to the director’s plan, our athletes attended in full force to support the groom and part-time team partner Mikhail Korkiya (Mishiko), and at the same time train in the mountains to maintain athletic shape and game tone.
Georgian wedding Mishiko
The detective component was not ignored either. They touched upon the main “information bomb” of the 1972 Olympic Games in Munich - the hostage-taking in the Olympic village, as well as the failed spy immigration to his relatives in the West, the obstinate Lithuanian Modest Paulauskas (Modya), who at the last moment changed his mind and remained faithful to the national team and its coach ( another director's idea).
Friendly match with the US student team, as part of the overseas tour of the USSR national team
And finally, about the dramaturgy, which made the viewer truly feel. I was personally convinced that there was not a single person in the hall who would be left indifferent to the sincere tears of gratitude of the head coach, to whom the national team players give their bonuses, having learned that he secretly donated all his personal savings (accumulated for his son for an operation) for treatment their terminally ill teammate. A curtain. Applause. Most people have wet eyes.
A fairy tale in places? Maybe. The film has enough fiction and spectacular scenes that are now so revered by the public, and the young actors, at times, openly overact. But this does not negate the main thing - the film was a great success and this is recognized by many, including the participants of that super final, who seemed to look 45 years younger, having relived everything that happened on the screen.
About history
(link in vk)
And now it's time to tell about what really happened.
This year marks 46 years since that significant date for all domestic sports - the golden Olympic triumph of the Soviet Union basketball team over their counterparts from the United States of America. The founders of basketball, the Americans, had no equal in the world for quite a long time. However, in the late 40s of the 20th century, the star of the USSR national team began to rise on the world stage. Our team rapidly gained momentum and soon became the strongest on the European continent.
USSR national team 1972, Sitting: (from left to right) Modestas Paulauskas (Modya), Mikhail Korkia (Mishiko), Zurab Sakandelidze, Ivan Edeshko, Sergei Belov, standing: Alzhan Zharmukhamedov, Gennady Volnov, Anatoly Polivoda, Sergei Kovalenko, Alexander Belov, Ivan Dvorny and Alexander Boloshev.
At four Olympics in a row (from 1952 to 1964), the Soviet Union basketball team won silver, second only to the Americans. In 1959, at the World Cup in Chile, our team beat everyone, including the Americans, and actually took first place, but did not become the winner of the world championship. The team was disqualified for refusing a match with the Taiwanese national team for political reasons.
Relations between the USSR and the PRC were friendly, and the party leadership forbade our athletes to participate in the match against the island that had been separated from China. In 1963, at the World Championships in Brazil, the USSR team took third place, defeating the Americans 75:74. And in 1967, in Montevideo (Uruguay), Soviet basketball players became world champions for the first time in their history. True, we lost to the US team then - 58:59.
For many years, our team was coached by Alexander Yakovlevich Gomelsky, a legend of Russian basketball; his players respectfully called him “dad”. He actually built this wonderful sport from scratch. After the Soviet team took third place first at the 1968 Olympics in Mexico City and then at the 1970 World Championships in Yugoslavia, Gomelsky was removed from his post as head coach for unsatisfactory results.
Honored Coach of the USSR, Alexander Yakovlevich Gomelsky ("dad")
The preparation of the USSR national team for the 1972 Olympics in Munich was entrusted to the shoulders of his eternal rival in the national championship, Vladimir Petrovich Kondrashin, whom, in turn, the students called “father”.
Both coaches competed in the USSR Championship for a long time, Gomelsky coached CSKA Moscow, Kondrashin coached Spartak St. Petersburg. Under Kondrashin, the national team's play became more diverse in tactical formations.
Master of Sports, Honored Coach of the USSR national team, Vladimir Petrovich Kondrashin (“father”).
The atmosphere in the team returned to normal, the players, after a number of past failures, calmed down and managed to loosen up. The path to the dream match with the Americans lay through everyday, hard, monotonous work. The Soviet specialist tried to take a new, creative approach to the training process, introducing a number of unique techniques that were ahead of their time, incl. and his own invention, based on more powerful, contact basketball (similar to overseas), in addition, an innovation with a large number of substitutions during the match was successfully implemented.
Also, under Vladimir Petrovich, the main character of the 1972 Olympic Games final in Munich, Alexander Belov, truly revealed himself and sparkled. In a word, Kondrashin managed to breathe a second life into the Soviet basketball team; the team had something to surprise its potential rivals. Unlike the director's version, the USSR national team, led by Kondrashin, achieved its first successes in the international arena already in 1970 in Turin (Italy), winning the Universiade. Then, she won gold medals at the 1971 European Championship in Germany, beating the Yugoslav team in the final - 69:64.
The main start for our team - the 1972 Olympic tournament took place in Munich from August 27 to September 9. At the initial stage, the participating teams were divided into two groups of 8 teams. The teams that took 1-2 places in their groups advanced directly to the semi-finals of the competition. Ours reached the semi-finals from first place in the group, having won 7 victories in 7 matches (the teams of Senegal, Philippines, Poland, Germany, Puerto Rico, Yugoslavia and Italy were beaten).
In the parallel group, the Americans achieved a similar result of victories in each match. On September 7, in the semi-finals of the Olympic tournament, the USSR national team beat the Cuban national team, not without difficulty, after the first 20 minutes the team from Liberty Island even led by one point, but in the second half of the match our guys managed to tip the scales in their favor, the final the score is 67:61. In the other semi-final, the Stars and Stripes, without any problems, beat the Italian team - 68-38.
The final of the basketball tournament of the Olympic Games in Munich USSR - USA. According to the rules of that time, the match consisted of two halves of 20 minutes, three-pointers did not exist at that time, and it was also forbidden to score from above. In the last 3 minutes of the game, it was mandatory to cross the center line in at least 10 seconds, and there was no “zone” rule. In addition, in the event of a violation of the rules, the team that received the right to free kicks could refuse them and simply retain possession of the ball, this allowed them to play for time at the end of the match.
For the convenience of the overseas television audience, the final match began late in the evening of September 9, 1972, at 23:50 local time. Throughout the match, the USSR national team had an advantage, often the gap in the score reached 10 points. Without exaggeration, the number 10 of the Soviet Union national team, Sergei Belov, who scored 20 points during the match, was a blast on the floor that evening! The Americans were clearly discouraged and did not expect such agility from our basketball players. 9 minutes before the end of the match, the advantage of the USSR national team again reached 10 points.
The experienced coach of the US national team, Henry Aiba, gives the instruction - “do not spare the opponent,” and the Americans begin to put pressure, play aggressively, applying total pressure throughout the entire court, and a minute before the end, the advantage of the USSR national team was reduced to one point, our players were tired and began to get nervous and make mistakes. Eight seconds before the final siren, the Soviet Union team led 49:48. Ours are in attack, after the play, the team-mates passed the ball to Alexander Belov, and he, in turn, after a series of feints and an unsuccessful attempt to shoot from under the hoop, passes back and gets hit by a “blocked shot” by American Tom McMillan. The Americans intercepted and our team had to foul to save the match, but Zurab Sakandelidze “rescued”, but Juglas Collins scored both free throws.
The score on the scoreboard, for the first time in the entire match, is in favor of the Americans - 49:50. At that same second, the coach of the USSR national team, Vladimir Kondrashin, asked for a time-out, but the judges did not notice this (or pretended to) and in the end they did not give it. Then, after heated arguments with the judges' table, our team was given a time-out. The referee stopped the match with only three seconds left to play. During the pause, Kondrashin reassures the guys: “Why are you worried? Time is running out! You can win and then lose again.” And instead of Alzhan Zharmukhamedov, he releases Ivan Edeshko, remembering that he has a filigree passing technique, perfected while playing handball. After the break, substitute Edeshko put the ball into play; he passed to Paulauskas, who in turn passed to Alexander Belov, who was under the shield, but missed.
And at that moment the final siren sounded, joyful Americans poured onto the site and began to frantically celebrate their victory. As it turned out later, we rejoiced too early... The stopwatch made a mistake. According to one version, the stopwatch was started immediately after Ivan Edeshko’s pass, and according to the rules of basketball, the time after the ball is put into play starts when the ball touched one of the players on the field, according to another version: he mixed up the buttons (the stopwatch read 50 seconds) and the final siren sounded only to stop the meeting and set the correct time on the stopwatch.
An interesting fact: this idiot, who was lost in time, was called Joseph Blatter, the same old Sepp who, 25 years later, would take the post of FIFA president. The bickering began again, this time with the participation of representatives of both teams. Serious passions raged, the Americans refused to go out and finish the match, considering themselves winners by right.
They were called to order by the Secretary General of the International Basketball Federation, Dr. William Jones, who demanded that they follow the rules of basketball. And the Stars and Stripes coach Henry Aiba eventually managed to persuade his players to continue the match, incl. and the words that a simple formality remains - 3 seconds, victory is in our pocket anyway.
William Jones
In the end, the referees managed to restore order on the site, clear it of fans and resume the game. The referee handed the ball to Ivan Edeshko, and in front of him, number 13 of the US team, the tall Tom McMillen, stood like a rock with his hands raised. However, then, after the referee’s gesture symbolizing the wall (and in fact, the referee meant that you cannot raise your hands over the line of the court, thus depicting the border), the American stepped aside, taking this as a referee’s remark and released him, thereby most, space for our player.
Without thinking twice, the point guard of the USSR national team sends a “homing” pass across the entire court under the ring to Alexander Belov, who at that moment was being held by two Americans, James Forbes and Kevin Joyce. This is how Belov himself describes this fateful moment of the match: “There were two Americans. Number ten is a little closer to the center than me, number fourteen is between the front and me, closer to me. I showed a feint movement, then turned sharply and rushed towards the shield. The pass was great. And he found himself under the shield all alone. I even turned around: there was no one. And I threw the ball very carefully with my right hand.”
Exactly. And that’s it, the siren sounds about the end of the match. VICTORY, our commentator Irina Eremina exclaims loudly into the microphone! And at the same moment, overwhelmed with joy, the players of the USSR national team arrange a pile of mala under their ring. After the match, the Americans filed a protest. All night while the proceedings were going on, our players were in suspense. As a result, the protest was rejected: three votes against, two for.
It is curious that one of the judges who made the decision was Hungarian by nationality. His parents died in 1956, when Soviet tanks entered Budapest, and, nevertheless, the voice of this referee was among those who spoke out in favor of preserving the victorious result for the USSR national team.
By the way, the Americans still consider themselves winners; not only did they refuse to receive silver medals, but they also bequeathed their descendants not to do this under any circumstances. However, at the same time, they still admitted that Belov should have been held tighter.
Dedicated to the legendary basketball match and the victory of the Soviet team at the Olympics in Munich in 1972. The outcome of the match between the USSR and the USA was decided in the last seconds. “Championship” journalists were able to attend the closed press screening and were among the first to see what the creators of “Crew” and “Legend 17” did.
In order to be more objective, we went to the premiere together with the curator of the “Basketball” section, Nikita Zagday. In our review, we will present two positions: a person who does not understand basketball and frantically took out his phone every 15 minutes to check the too wildly twisting plot with facts from Wikipedia, and a person who knew exactly what was happening in those last few seconds on the court, and came to the hall in order to understand whether the film turned out “about basketball” or is it just a beautiful artistic and commercial picture.
A non-basketball look at the movie “Moving Up”
The whole film kept me feeling: “Well, this couldn’t really happen!” Therefore, the hand reached for the phone to once again double-check the facts studied on the eve of the premiere. In my review, I will try to focus on those facts that could hook the most ordinary viewer who came to the cinema. Personally, as a person who is not very deeply immersed in basketball topics, I was most worried about the question: “What was it really like?”
About the plot of the film: 1970 - the head coach of the USSR national basketball team is replaced, with the wording “the Soviet government does not forgive losses.” The legendary Gomelsky is being replaced by the not yet so famous coach of the Leningrad “Spartak” Vladimir Petrovich Garanzhin (the prototype is the real coach of the national team Vladimir Petrovich Kondrashin). Everything changes with him: from the composition to the training methods and playing tactics. The national team has not just an ambitious, but, at first glance, an unattainable goal - to beat the invincible Americans at the Olympics in Munich in 1972.
How was it really?
Matches between US and USSR athletes in all sports have always been of a principled nature. The US national basketball team was considered the favorite before the 1972 Games tournament. Since 1936, that is, since basketball appeared in the program of the Summer Games, American athletes have never lost.
Against the background of the main plot, several complex and at the same time dramatic lines unfold, which make this film lively and fulfilling. The son of Vladimir Petrovich needs an expensive operation abroad, the only chance to convince the Soviet government to sign all the exit sheets is to become a hero, to do something impossible and important for all Soviet sports.
How was it really?
The son of the legendary coach Vladimir Kondrashin, Yuri, really needed an expensive operation; he has been confined to a wheelchair all his life. Diagnosis: cerebral palsy.
Photo: Still from the film “Moving Up”
In parallel with this, the plot revolves around the center of the national team, Alexander Belov. During a trip to training camp in America, he is diagnosed with a rare disease - heart sarcoma, doctors give him from six months to a couple of years to live.
How was it really?
After the Olympics in Munich, Belov lived for another six years. The famous athlete was treated by a whole group of eminent professors, who established the cause of his illness: armored mesh. A disease when lime, like a shell, covers the heart muscle from year to year. Eventually the person stops breathing. The disease was incurable, and the doctors knew it very well. Belov's coach Vladimir Petrovich Kondrashin tried to find a doctor in the USA who could cure his talented student, but this attempt was unsuccessful. When Belov became very ill, he wrote a letter to his friend Vanya Rozhin that he would bequeath the Olympic medal to the coach (at that time medals were given only to players).
Photo: Still from the film “Moving Up”
The motto of the last years of Belov’s life became the phrase “As long as you’re alive, anything is possible.” This permeates the entire plot of the film. The victory of the national team in the last seconds of the match becomes not just a victory for the country, but something more personal for each hero of that very game. Then not just the outcome of the fight was decided, but destinies were decided.
But these are not all plot lines and twists and turns; there was also a place in the film for a beautiful love story between Alexander Belov and Alexandra Svechnikova (prototype of the heroine - basketball player Alexandra Ovchinnikova). And Georgian feasts with Zurab and Mishiko ( Mikhail Korkiya And Zurab Sakandelidze- “Georgian tandem” - players of the USSR national team).
And the infamous “Olympic terrorist attack”, which took the lives of 11 people from the Israeli team. My colleague will talk about this in more detail in his review.
You need to watch all this, you need to feel it and carry it through yourself, and if you tell it in advance, then it won’t be interesting to watch. The main thing I would like to note when talking about the film is that it turned out to be honest both towards us and towards the American team. Unlike the caricatured hockey players in “Legend 17,” “Moving Up” gave credit to both teams, there was no goal to show the Americans in an unfavorable angle, the goal was to convey the atmosphere of the battle of champions against champions, the best against the best.
A basketball look at the film “Moving Up”: a story that had to be invented
Nikita Zagday, curator of the “Basketball” section, tells
“Red car”, “Soviet sport”, “played for the country” and other stereotypical cliches can be safely thrown out of your head when you go to the cinema to see “Moving Up”. Everything you need to know about this film is that it is not about basketball.
This was exactly my biggest fear. Because I knew how carefully the creators approached basketball stories. Director Anton Megerdichev delved into the topic so much that he began watching thematic television magazines and studying basketball news. Ivan Edeshko acted as a consultant and was practically responsible for the accuracy of the invoice.
Photo: Still from the film “Moving Up”
The author of that very pass, the hero of the main episode and one of the creators of the victory is an accomplice in the film adaptation! Basketball people took part in the filming. From European champion 2007 Nikolai Padius to the heroes of Moscow street venues. And there were serious concerns that it would just be a sports film for an extremely narrow audience. For the filming of the film, a basketball court was assembled practically from polystyrene foam. To film stunts without killing actors and stunt doubles on the hard parquet. But all this, as it turned out, is just an illustration for another story.
- Munich 72 is not just a sports fairy tale with a happy ending. It's something more. To begin with, this is simply one of the most incredible Olympic tales. It is no coincidence that the Americans still have not taken the silver medals, as if adding a few more touches to that mystical story. But even in this legend there are a thousand more hidden scenario lines that don’t even need to be invented.
- Munich is a tragedy with political overtones. Terrorists shoot the Israeli team and change Olympic sports. Political overtones (but for some reason under the slogan “sport is beyond politics”), security – all these are perhaps the most important aspects of each subsequent Olympics.
- Munich is the starting point for world basketball. In 1972, the Americans lost for the first time. And a confrontation within the Cold War was born. USSR versus USA. The way basketball looks now is the aftermath of that very battle. The result of all this is the emergence of the “dream team” 20 years later, and the globalization of basketball. 3 seconds didn’t just turn the world upside down, they shook it up, but didn’t mix it right away.
- Munich gave birth to a real coaching confrontation. Gomelsky created that same team. But Kondrashin was able to win the Olympics with her. And then domestic basketball was actually divided into two camps. For the sake of fairness, Gomelsky won gold at the Games only in 1988. Putting an end to the basketball chapter called “Soviet vs. USA.”
Photo: Still from the film “Moving Up”
- This victory practically formalized Sergei Belov legend status. Without this gold, his greatness was a little less bright. No matter how dominant a basketball player of his time he was, only victories make him great. And 20 points in the final against the invincible Americans is perhaps the main feat in Sergei Belov’s career.
- Alexander Belov- the author of the winning throw and the owner of an incurable disease. Only life itself could invent such a story. To become the hero of the main episode in the history of Olympic basketball and die at the age of 26.
- Ivan Edeshko. A point guard with a height of 195. This was years ahead of his time. And the not so fast, but tall playmaker appeared in the national team precisely on the initiative of Vladimir Kondrashin. Know-how from the early 70s. The Magic Johnson of his time! The result is the same pass. Another story.
- Modestas Paulauskas. One of the first Lithuanian legends. I almost escaped from the USSR. But he stayed and won the Olympics. Another story that deserves to be filmed.
- Vladimir Kondrashin. The one who was not afraid of bold experiments and prepared separately for the match with the Americans. He bet on Edeshko. He put two Georgians Sakandelidze and Korkia together in the final for the first time, raising the level of passion to an incredible level.
Photo: Still from the film “Moving Up”
This is the story of people. Those for whom basketball was the meaning of life, and for some just a job. The directors of Moving Up didn't choose the story. They mixed it all up and intertwined it with each other. Knitted costumes of Soviet athletes, and excellent scenery. A bit of party politics, which was an important part of “amateur sports” at the time. And incredible stories of people. Different nationalities, born in villages, cities, in different cultures and otherwise accepting the common flag of the USSR.
After watching the film, clumsily containing my delight, I wanted to do only one thing - dial Ivan Edeshko’s number and ask two questions. Ivan Ivanovich answered the call immediately.
- How accurately are the characters of the players of that team conveyed?
- Slightly exaggerated, but nothing was invented. That's pretty much how it was.
- Is the chronology of the final match of the Olympics an artistic move?
- What are you talking about?! We talked it over, discussed and debated so many times. The filmmakers wanted to convey the emotions and mood of that time as accurately as possible. Of course, basketball is shown differently. But the point is true. We won that match and almost lost ourselves. Sergei Belov was great. None of the Americans could stop him. All this is shown, and there is some justice in this. Of course, we didn’t score with such frills, but they explained it to me as a desire to show all the brightness of basketball. So if you don’t focus on all this acrobatics, then yes. The film is more documentary than fiction.
Now that the film is ready for premieres, the producers are engaged in serious promotion. And this is not just using the tools of the domestic film industry with billboards in the center of Moscow. This is truly a basketball story. The actors go to matches, together with Alzhan Zharmukhamedov and Ivan Edeshko they arranged an autograph session at a Euroleague match. And it was incredibly touching. Edeshko together with the actor who played Ivan Ivanovich. The film's actors have already played several exhibition matches. The pre-screening for film critics was held in parallel for the “basketball party.” And if harsh film critics cynically and coldly praised the film, then inexperienced viewers could hardly hold back their tears. Some because basketball deserves the big screen. And others - because of the awareness of the scale of the personalities of that feat. 3 seconds is not just an episode of the final match. This is the icing on the cake of great drama.
For a while, basketball became more than just the basis for a great movie. It has become part of something bigger than just a sport with the hashtag “best ball game.”
Exactly 45 years ago, on September 10, 1972, at the XX Olympic Games in Munich, an event occurred in 3 seconds that shocked the entire sports, and not only, world.
Matches between US and USSR athletes in all sports have always been of a principled nature. The US national basketball team was considered the favorite before the 1972 Games tournament. Since 1936, that is, since basketball appeared on the summer games program, American athletes have never lost. They won gold 7 times in a row and extended their unbeaten streak to the final match with the USSR to 63 games. Since 1952, basketball players of the USSR waged a stubborn fight against them. In 1952, 1956, 1960, 1964, they met the US team in the finals of the games. In 1968, the USSR team won bronze. Outside the Olympic Games program, the USSR team managed to beat the US team, for example, at the 1959 World Championships.
It should also be noted that, according to the principles declared by Pierre de Coubertin, only amateur athletes could take part in the Olympic Games. In the USSR, a contradictory situation arose when the formal status of an amateur was held by athletes whom Western experts classified as professionals. American correspondent Frank Saraceno called Soviet athletes of that time quasi-professionals, emphasizing their uncertain position.
The confrontation on the sports field was in many ways a continuation of the political conflict at the height of the Cold War. Many US viewers believed that the XX Olympic Games were openly anti-American.
Preparing teams
The US team that came to the Olympics was the youngest in history. Typically, American players participated in the Olympic Games only once, since the US basketball team was recruited each time from scratch from players from the country's student teams aged 20-21. Performance at the Games influenced the results of the draft and the future career of a professional player. There was no clear leader among the players. Rising American basketball and UCLA star Bill Walton did not take part in the games. But even without him, the team of the founders of basketball was a serious force. The tallest basketball player of the Games, Tommy Burleson, played on the US national team - 223 cm (according to other sources, 218 cm).
Henry Iba was chosen as the coach of the US team for the third consecutive games. The famous sports expert was the head coach of the Oklahoma State University basketball team from 1934 to 1970. In 1972 he turned 68 years old. Aiba was considered a conservative, a prudent and cautious supporter of playing from defense, which in general was historically uncharacteristic of the style of play of the US national team.
The young US team was opposed by an experienced USSR team, led by leaders Sergei and Alexander Belov. The core of the team has already been played for about 7 years. Soviet athletes participated in the games many times. So, for USSR national team veteran Gennady Volnov, this was already the fourth tournament of this rank. US national team assistant coach John Bach called that USSR team a “great team.” However, the Soviet team was not tasked with winning the tournament - 2nd place would have been considered a completely satisfactory result.
From 1966 to 1970, Gomelsky was the coach of CSKA and the USSR national team. After the 1970 World Cup, which was unsuccessful for the national team, he was replaced as coach of the national team by Vladimir Kondrashin, the coach of Leningrad Spartak. The strengths of the Soviet coach were his knowledge of psychology, the ability to achieve goals with limited resources and the ability to influence the outcome of the game with precise substitutions of players.
The teams' path to the final
The gold medal in the basketball tournament was the last medal awarded in the entire Olympic tournament. The games went quite well for the USSR team and by that time it already had 49 gold medals to its name. Team USA was behind in the unofficial team standings, but the political context was important. 1972 was the year of the 50th anniversary of the USSR.
Both teams reached the final without any problems. At the group stage, the US team had a relatively difficult match with the Brazilian team, in which it lost during the match, but then broke the enemy’s resistance and won 61:54. The USSR national team had a difficult match in the group stage with the Puerto Rican national team. At the end of the heated meeting, only 9 players in two teams scored 5 personal comments. As a result, the USSR basketball players won 100:87 (Belov scored 35 points). The USSR national team met worthy resistance from an inconvenient opponent - the Cuban national team - in the semi-finals. During the match, the Soviet athletes even lost 6 points, but the Cuban basketball players did not calculate their strength, received too many fouls and eventually lost 61:67.
The final. Progress of the game.
The whistle to start the game sounded at 23:50 local time on September 9 (in Moscow it was already 0:50 on September 10). The late start of the game was due to the desire to ensure a more convenient showing of the game in North America.
The match began with cautious reconnaissance; the players were noticeably nervous and took a long time to get into the rhythm of the game. The debut went to the USSR national team; by the third minute it was leading 5:0. The fastest player of the USSR national team, Zurab Sakandelidze, succeeded in making sharp passes and interceptions, and Sergei Belov was playing. Throughout the game, the USSR national team led by about 4-8 points, not allowing the enemy to get close. The first half ended with the score 26:21.
12 minutes before the end of the meeting there was a clash between Mikhail Korkia and Dwight Jones. Both players were sent off for the remainder of the match. Jones, according to USSR national team coach Bashkin, meant more to the American team than Korkia to the Soviet team - he was a key player. The referee determined the ball was held and played it between the players. After Belov and Brewer took off, Brewer landed poorly and hit his head on the floor. I had to call a doctor. As assistant coach John Bach recalled, Brewer received a blow unnoticed by the judges in a collision with Belov and was no longer able to continue the match after the injury. 9 minutes before the end, the advantage of the USSR national team reached 10 points. Here Henry Ibe's team finally gathered. 6 minutes before the end they put the Soviet players under heavy pressure. Through the efforts of Ratliff, Joyce and Bantom, the advantage began to melt and with a minute left it was already one point. The players of the USSR national team were tired and began to get nervous. Trying to get two point guards out didn't help either. Sergei Belov and Sakandelidze missed from the free throw line four times in the end. However, thanks to successfully taken free throws by captain Modestas Paulauskas, the slight advantage was still retained in the final seconds.
Last 8 seconds of the match
Eight seconds before the end of the match, the USSR national team led the score 49:48. Alexander Belov picked up the ball after McMillen's block and found himself pressed to the baseline. Being under pressure from the enemy, as Belov himself recalled, he was already falling into touch. According to Douglas Collins, all Belov had to do was not immediately pass the pass, but stand still or pass the pass as close as possible to the final siren to Sergei Belov, who was standing next to him. But instead, Alexander unexpectedly passed the ball to the closed Sakandelidze and the ball was intercepted by Collins near the center line. The American player rushed towards the opponent's backboard and had already taken two steps before throwing.
Sakandelidze had no choice but to foul. He caught up and threw the enemy leaving him onto the platform, pushing him under the shield. The calculation was that Collins, taking free throws, could miss. In addition, time would have been stopped for free throws, which would have allowed a calmer decision to be made or a timeout to be taken. Collins crashed into the base of the backboard but was able to get up. Henry Iba said that “if he can stand on his feet, he can throw.” The American basketball player confidently scored both goals from the free throw line. The US team took the lead for the first time in the match, 50:49.
After Sakandelidze's foul and Collins' first shot (and before the second was executed), Vladimir Kondrashin asked for a time-out. However, the siren sounded too late, when Collins was already holding the ball and preparing for the second throw, which was clearly audible in the broadcast recording, but neither the players nor the referees on the field paid attention to it. After Collins successfully completed the second throw, the referee gave the ball to Alzhan Zharmukhamedov to continue play. At that moment, assistant coach of the USSR national team Bashkin rushed to the referee's table, trying to figure out why the referees did not stop the game and give a time-out. As a result of subsequent events, the players of the USSR national team put the ball into play three times.
First ball in play
There are 3 seconds left on the official stopwatch. Zharmukhamedov received the ball from the referee and put it into play with a pass to Sergei Belov. The USSR national team striker began dribbling, but then Renato Rigetto stopped the game because the Soviet coach Bashkin ran to the referee's table and made a big noise. Bashkin and Kondrashin, with words and signs, demanded that they be given a time out. There was 1 second left on the official stopwatch.
A member of the Soviet delegation, Yuri Ozerov, who was sitting on the podium, went for help to FIBA Secretary General William Jones (Great Britain) who was sitting near the playing field. They knew each other well (Ozerov was the coach of the USSR national team for a long time). Jones responded and asked the judges to give the USSR team a time-out.
American players McMillen No. 13 and Henderson No. 6 begin their victory celebrations prematurely.
Second ball put into play
The break is over. The referees handed the ball to Edeshko, who passed it to Paulauskas, who was standing somewhat closer to the center of the court, to the left of the three-second zone. McMillen actively prevented Edeshko from entering the ball. Paulauskas tried to pass to Alexander Belov, who was standing under the American team's hoop, but missed, and the ball hit the backboard and bounced into the field. However, even before Paulauskas threw the ball, the siren sounded. As even American sources admit, the siren clearly sounded before the three seconds that should have remained on the stopwatch.
Spectators and players for the most part mistook it for a siren signaling the end of the match. Spectators poured onto the site and began to celebrate together. Soviet television commentator Nina Eremina reported that the match was lost. Meanwhile, it unexpectedly turned out that the official stopwatch showed 50 seconds. Timekeeper Joseph Blatter did not immediately figure out the buttons regulating the time of the game, and the referees on the field did not pay attention to the fact that the time had not yet been set and gave the command to start the attack.
William Jones again intervened in the game, also approaching the referee's table. He sided with the Soviet team, showing that they should get their three seconds and finish them off as expected. According to Sports Illustrated's Gary Smith, Jones forced match referee Righetto to roll back the game's clock despite his protests. Assistant coach Don Haskins suggested that Henry Ibe lead the team off the court, letting them know that the match had already been won. Aiba decided not to go into confrontation, saying that he was not going to miss the gold just because “I was too lazy to move my ass.”
The judges restored order on the court and removed all outsiders from it.
Alexander Belov puts the winning ball of the USSR national team into the basket.
Third kick-in
Edeshko received the ball from the referee again. This time, the center of the US national team McMillen behaved differently - obeying the judge’s gesture, he did not stop him (within the rules) from putting the ball into play. According to Ivan Edeshko, the American player did not understand the bad English referee and decided that he was telling him not to interfere with putting the ball into play. McMillen recalled that he understood everything perfectly and the judge, against all the rules, simply forced him to leave and not interfere with the Soviet player. Ivan Edeshko put the ball into play with a cross-court pass to Alexander Belov, who was held by Team USA numbers 10 and 14.
Alexander moved away from the defenders with a feint, indicating a dash forward and back, turned around and carefully put the ball in the basket.
After this, the final siren sounded. The final score was recorded 51:50 in favor of the USSR team.
Award ceremony in the Olympic basketball tournament. The “silver” step of the podium is empty - American athletes did not come to the awards ceremony.
Immediately after the end of the match, the American side filed a protest, trying to appeal the results of the match. The FIBA Board, which met that same night, reviewed all the circumstances of the match. The board vote ended with three votes to two in favor of the decision to leave the match score 51:50 in favor of the USSR team in force. American players and coaches saw in this decision the consequences of the political lobby of the socialist bloc in the FIBA apparatus. Representatives of socialist countries (Cuba, Hungary, Romania) voted “for”. “Against” representatives of capitalist countries (Puerto Rico, Italy). According to another version, the voting results remained secret. Hungarian referee Ferenc Hepp, who headed the appeal jury, recalled: “The fairest decision would probably be to replay the final match. But the Soviet delegation would hardly have agreed to this, and there was no time left for a second fight. In the end they came to the conclusion that the issue should be resolved by secret ballot. After its completion, I looked at the cards and announced that the result of the match - 51:50 in favor of the USSR team - was confirmed. The Soviets won fair and square, and I voted for them. Let it remain a secret how the other jury members voted.”
Soviet basketball players waited all night for a possible replay. Then, on the second attempt, we went to the awards ceremony the day after the match and after the meeting, and not in the Rudi-Sedlmayer-Halle, but in another room. The “silver” step of the pedestal was empty. Team USA players held a secret team vote and decided not to attend the awards ceremony and refuse to accept their silver medals.
In October 1972, US Olympic Committee executive director Arthur Lentz sent a second formal protest to the IOC about the results of the game, without obtaining a response from FIBA.
According to Arthur Lenz, one of the judges, the Brazilian Rigetto, refused to sign the final protocol and verbally stated that the result of the match was achieved contrary to the rules of the game of basketball. This is often mentioned in the memoirs of American players and in journalistic investigations of the consequences of the game. However, Gabdlnur Mukhamedzyanov (one of the Soviet referees who served the 1972 Olympic tournament) reports in an interview that he personally saw Rigetto’s signature on the protocol and only then realized that the USSR team had officially won the match. Referee Renato Righetto never again refereed a match at international level after the 1972 games. In 2007, his name was inducted into the FIBA Hall of Fame.
Despite numerous protests, the result of the match was finally entered into the official protocols of the Olympic Games. The winner of the basketball final of the XX Olympic Games is the USSR national team.
The basketball world knows many bright names who have shown and continue to show courage and perseverance on the sports field, whose contribution to the development of the game is invaluable, but the name of this athlete will forever remain in the history of Soviet and world basketball.
Alexander Belov, a man who lived only 26 years, is an outstanding basketball player whose services are invaluable. He could delight and surprise the sports world for a very long time. His journey has just begun, and today basketball fans can only remember the athlete’s achievements, his successes and failures, and, of course, the memorable victory at the 1972 Olympics in Munich. The unforgettable three seconds forever inscribed the athlete’s name in the history of basketball.
Alexander started playing basketball at the age of 11. Spartak coach Vladimir Kondrashin became not only a mentor for the boy, but also replaced his father. A talented coach and a gifted student created a wonderful sports tandem that reached extraordinary heights. Kondrashin was the first to notice in a boy with a difficult character, outstanding abilities, perseverance, and the will to win, so necessary for success. The coach saw that Alexander had a wonderful future, a sports career, popular recognition and love.
Leningrad Spartak accepted Belov into the main team when he turned 16 years old. Even then the athlete proved himself well. His fans adored him, his friends envied his jumping and lightness, but he studied, invented, experimented, and found new beautiful “tricks.” At the age of 18, the master enters the national team, its main composition. At the age of 20, the whole world learns about him.
This amazing game between the US national teams and the Munich Olympics is still the stuff of legends. Someone managed to see the game at that time, someone is watching and reviewing the recordings, and US basketball players still do not agree with the victory of the Soviet team. But it really happened. And three seconds, which turned the sports world upside down, immediately made Alexander famous.
Before Munich, the Soviet team had never won an Olympic medal in the top tier. The US team had no equal, but only thanks to the well-coordinated play of the Russians did the USSR and US teams reach the finals. The Soviet team played no worse than the champions, and at the end of the match they led 49:48. There were only 8 seconds left. However, due to a foul, the American team won two shots. 49:50. The siren sounded.
The American players ran onto the court and began accepting congratulations. Everyone thought that the USA were champions again. And the union managed to announce its loss. However, there was a small problem. For technical reasons, the siren sounded a full three seconds earlier. The game continued. Three seconds left.
Basketball player I. Edeshko threw the ball from under the ring, which flew across the entire court. An excellent jump by Sasha and the ball ended up in his hands. Dodging the Americans, in the remaining fractions of seconds he put the ball directly into the opponent’s basket. The siren sounds. The USSR wins with a score of 51:50, becoming the Olympic champion for the first time in the history of world basketball.
In 1976, after the Olympics in Montreal, heart problems began. He could no longer devote himself to the game to the end; pain in his chest prevented him from doing so. And the nasty incident that happened to him at customs, and the subsequent scandals in the press, deprivation of titles and regalia, leaving the national team and Spartak, played their ominous role. He was deprived of training, he began to drink, which only worsened his illness. Despite the fact that Alexander was called up to the national team in 1978, a medical examination made a terrible diagnosis. The athlete was buried in St. Petersburg. His name is also in the FIBA Hall of Fame. Didn't make it, didn't finish the game.
