We all know the story of “Miracle on Ice”, where college students of the United States beat the best hockey team in the world. At the time the Soviets were the best team in the world and the United States beat them for a gold medal in the 1980 Winter Olympics. We could look at the point of view that everyone knows. The United States was going through tough times with the Cold War and we were in a political and economic battle with the Soviet Union. The win in Lake Placid symbolically showed the United States defeating the "Red Menace". Causing us, United States citizens, to rally around the win to uplift our spirits while our patriotism towards our country grew stronger. It's a story that has been told before. There is a story behind the scenes that most people do not know about when they hear the words “Lake Placid”. That story is the effect Russia had on hockey and how Lake Placid was viewed by the Soviet Union.
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Russian hockey started at a young age. Under the rule of Stalin, hockey rinks were built in every corner of Russia. The reason being is that Russia showed their strength as a country through sports and athletics. Stalin focused on sports and wanted kids to play a sport at a young age. Since Russia is very cold for most of the year they adopted hockey from Canada. Hockey was very knew to Russia, so Stalin hired Tarasova as the head coach for their national team. Tarasova is now considered the “Godfather of Russian hockey”, but at the time he had never heard of hockey or even watched the sport being played. This fresh look at hockey allowed Tarasova to come up with ideas that were never thought of before. he incorporated other sports with hockey. In a way the communist Russia caused a new development of hockey that no one had ever thought of.
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The hockey players for the Soviet Union were signed onto a twenty five year contract. They could not leave the team or go anywhere. Causing them to live, breath and eat hockey. With Tarasova as head coach he trained the Soviet players in unique ways. His idea was to change the sport from an individual player game into a more team based game. At the time Canada was the most elite at hockey and their style of hockey was played as individuals. Single Players dangling with the puck while the other four players watched. Tarasova first came up with the idea that the men without the puck are more deadly than the man with the puck. So he developed weaving drills and passing drills that were based around this type of hockey. Tarasova was also the first to develop off ice training. The one month of the year when it was summer, there were no ice rinks, so they had to train off ice.
During this time period of the 70s the Soviet team was dominating teams in Europe. From 1963 to 1972 the Soviet team won every hockey competition available, including three gold medals. Tarasova wanted to play Canada to see who was the more dominate hockey team. Even though the Soviet Union won three gold medals all ready, the best Canadian players were not allowed to play in the Olympics. This was because at the time professional players apart of the NHL could not play in the Olympics. Tarasova wanted to show the world that they were the best. But the Soviet government did not approve of this and fired Tarasova as coach because they were afraid that if they lost, it would hurt Soviet Union’s hockey reputation. the Soviet Union eventually played Canada but this time under a new coach, Viktor Tikhonov. They played a seven game series to see who was going to be the best team. Canada lost the first three games, which was shocking to most Canadians, because they were so used to being so dominate. In the end Canada won the series, but it showed that the Soviets were becoming a world power in hockey.
During this time period of the 70s the Soviet team was dominating teams in Europe. From 1963 to 1972 the Soviet team won every hockey competition available, including three gold medals. Tarasova wanted to play Canada to see who was the more dominate hockey team. Even though the Soviet Union won three gold medals all ready, the best Canadian players were not allowed to play in the Olympics. This was because at the time professional players apart of the NHL could not play in the Olympics. Tarasova wanted to show the world that they were the best. But the Soviet government did not approve of this and fired Tarasova as coach because they were afraid that if they lost, it would hurt Soviet Union’s hockey reputation. the Soviet Union eventually played Canada but this time under a new coach, Viktor Tikhonov. They played a seven game series to see who was going to be the best team. Canada lost the first three games, which was shocking to most Canadians, because they were so used to being so dominate. In the end Canada won the series, but it showed that the Soviets were becoming a world power in hockey.
Soviet government did not approve of this and fired Tarasova as coach because they were afraid that if they lost, it would hurt Soviet Union’s hockey reputation. the Soviet Union eventually played Canada but this time under a new coach, Viktor Tikhonov. They played a seven game series to see who was going to be the best team. Canada lost the first three games, which was shocking to most Canadians, because they were so used to being so dominate. In the end Canada won the series, but it showed that the Soviets were becoming a world power in hockey.
By the time the Winter Olympics came around in Lake Placid, the Soviet team was the best in the world. The Soviet Union played a friendly game against the U.S. hockey team before the Olympic games. The score ended with the Soviet Union winning 12 to 3. By the time the final game was played for Olympic gold the Soviet Union was over confident. This played a big part in the defeat of the Soviet Union. The United States saw the win as a miracle, because they beat the big bad Russian hockey players. The Soviet Union players felt shameful losing to the United States, but they did not see it as a miracle. The Soviet hockey team went on to win the world championship three years in a row from 1981 to 1983 and they also gold in 1984 and 1988. The United States after the 1980 Winter Olympics went on to only win two medals in the Olympics and both medals were only silver. The sad thing is that the “Miracle on Ice” is the only thing people think about when they hear about the Soviet Union Hockey team. People do not see them as the most dominate hockey team in the world, they saw them as losers to amateur college kids.
By the time the Winter Olympics came around in Lake Placid, the Soviet team was the best in the world. The Soviet Union played a friendly game against the U.S. hockey team before the Olympic games. The score ended with the Soviet Union winning 12 to 3. By the time the final game was played for Olympic gold the Soviet Union was over confident. This played a big part in the defeat of the Soviet Union. The United States saw the win as a miracle, because they beat the big bad Russian hockey players. The Soviet Union players felt shameful losing to the United States, but they did not see it as a miracle. The Soviet hockey team went on to win the world championship three years in a row from 1981 to 1983 and they also gold in 1984 and 1988. The United States after the 1980 Winter Olympics went on to only win two medals in the Olympics and both medals were only silver. The sad thing is that the “Miracle on Ice” is the only thing people think about when they hear about the Soviet Union Hockey team. People do not see them as the most dominate hockey team in the world, they saw them as losers to amateur college kids.
The story that most people do not know is that the Soviet Union team during that time did not like their coach and wanted to separate from the team. Tikhonov did not have a love for the game like their past head coach,Tarasova, did. He was a perfect example of a Russian stereotype. He was cold, tough, and showed no emotion, timing every drill and line change to perfection. The hockey team played together 11 months out of the year and were stuck in army barracks isolated from the world. Many of the hockey players wanted to leave the Soviet Union team, but they were committed to the team because of the contract that they signed with the military. They were stuck in isolation and shame. The only player that was pushing for freedom was the Soviets best player and national hero, Viacheslav Fetisov. He wanted to change how Russian players can play hockey, by having the freedom to play in the NHL. He and his fellow teammates openly rebelled against the Soviet government. The Soviet Union government agreed to let Fetisov go after they won the 1988 Olympics. That time came and past, but the government did not free him from the military. The next year he quit the team and argued with the Minister of Defense to let him leave Russia. The Minister of Defense finally gave in, but was really angry with Fetisov, because they saw Fetisov as a traitor to his country. Fetisov signed the papers and left Russia. He was the first citizen released from the army to be a free man. He opened the door for other Russian hockey players. To him that was the true miracle. As a defense-man for the Detroit Red Wings, he helped lead the team to back-to-back championships in 1997 and 1998 (Wall Street Journal).
Even though the United States saw the Soviet Union in a negative light. The people of Soviet Russia were not all bad people as the United States portrayed. The Cold War and the Soviet Union intervention in Afghanistan caused United States citizens to show hatred towards the Russians, which in turn that hatred transferred towards sports. The Soviet Union strength in hockey team did not help promote a friendly image when they entered the 1980 Winter Olympics. The United States win against one of the greatest teams, as symbolic as that win was for many United States citizens, really did not mean a whole bunch to Soviet Union players. The change in the Soviet Union hockey organization was founded by national hero, Fetisov breaking away from the government and being allowed to play in NHL. It was the Soviet Union's own doing that caused one of the greatest teams in hockey history to split apart. The cold tough demeanor of the Soviet Union hockey team caused players to leave and cause the pride for the sport to fade away. |