Deadly Olympics Massacre Saw 17 People Killed Including Five Athletes

A deadly terrorist attack at the Olympics saw 17 people killed, including five athletes.

Back in the summer of 1972, the Olympic Games were being held in Munich, Germany.

That summer, the Olympic Games were overshadowed by a terrorist attack which occurred inside the Olympic Village on September 5, known as the Munich Massacre.

At around 4:30am, eight Palestinian terrorists, representing the militant group Black September, broke into the Olympic Village using stolen keys.

As per Britannica, the eight terrorists were disguised as athletes as they forced their way into the Israeli Olympic team camp.

The attackers were looking to enter Apartment 1 in the Israeli team building, and were met by wrestling referee Yossef Gutfreund and wrestling coach Moshe Weinberg.

It was claimed that Weinberg was shot while fighting the attackers; he was also forced to lead the terrorists to the rooms of the remaining members of the Israeli team, having been held at gunpoint.

Eventually, the terrorists managed to kill two members of the Israeli team, Weinberg and weightlifter Yossef Romano.

They also gathered a total of nine hostages.

The reason for the attack was to demand 'the liberation of more than 200 Palestinians held in Israeli prisons, the release of Andreas Baader and Ulrike Meinhof of the Red Army Faction from German prisons, and the provision of an aeroplane to fly them to a safe destination in the Middle East'.

The attack in 1972 happened within the Olympic Village. Image: Getty

At around 10pm, the terrorists brought the hostages into buses that transported them to waiting helicopters.

The helicopters took the terrorists and the hostages to Fürstenfeldbruck Air Base, 15 miles (25 km) west of the Olympic Village.

At the air base, the German police's plan to rescue the Israelis failed to materialise, and a gun battle commenced.

In the end, all nine hostages were killed, as were five of the terrorists and one policeman.

Following the attack, the Olympic Games were suspended for a total of 34 hours.

A mass was also held at the main stadium to pay tribute to the victims.

Despite the terrorist attack, the Games continued as International Olympic Committee President Avery Brundage famously said: "The Games must go on!"