International Workers' Olympiads

International Workers' Olympiads were an international sporting event arranged between 1925 and 1937 by Socialist Workers' Sport International (SASI). It was an organisation supported by social democratic parties and International Federation of Trade Unions. Workers' Olympiads were an alternate event for the Olympic Games. The participants were members of workers’ sports clubs and associations mostly from Europe.^[1]

The first Worker's Olympiad was the winter games held in 1925 at the German town of Schreiberhau which today is a part of Poland. Winter games were followed by summer Olympiads at Frankfurt am Main. No national flags were used at the Workers' Olympiads but a red flag of international workers' movement instead.^[1] Best athletes were awarded with diplomas, they did not receive medals like athletes in the Olympic Games.^[2] Olympic Villages were not built, the athletes from different countries stayed at private accommodation of local families.^[1]

International Workers' Olympiads were more than just a games for the top athletes. The festival was based on a mass participation, it did not restrict entry on the grounds of sporting ability. 1931 Workers' Summer Olympiad in Vienna was the largest event with the participation of 100,000 athletes from 26 countries. The Vienna Workers' Olympiad attracted some 250,000 spectators. It was much bigger event than the 1932 Summer Olympics at Los Angeles, both in number of participants as well as spectators.^[3] Praterstadion (now Ernst-Happel-Stadion) was constructed between 1929 and 1931 for the 1931 Olympiad.^[4]

The last Workers' Olympiad at Antwerp in 1937 was a joint event with the Red Sport International organized Spartakiads.^[5]

Olympiads, hosts and number of participating countries

Olympiad	Date	Host	Number of countries
1925 Winter Olympiad	January 31 – February 2, 1925	Schreiberhau	4
1925 Summer Olympiad	July 24 – 28, 1925	Frankfurt am Main	11
1931 Winter Olympiad	February 5 – 8, 1931	Mürzzuschlag	7
1931 Summer Olympiad	July 19 – 26, 1931	Vienna	26
1937 Winter Olympiad	February 18 – 21, 1937	Janské Lázně	7
1937 Summer Olympiad	July 25 – August 1, 1937	Antwerp	15
1943 Summer Olympiad	Cancelled due to World War II	Helsinki	–

Participating countries and federations

Note: the table below is incomplete. Only the participating countries of 1925 and 1937 Winter Olympiads and 1925 Summer Olympiads are correct.

Country	Federations	W25	S25	W31	S31	W37	S37
Czechoslovakia	Czechoslovakian Workers' Gymnastic Association	×	×	×	×	×	×
Finland	Finnish Workers' Sports Federation	×	×	×	×	×	×
Austria	Arbeiterbund für Sport und Körperkultur in Österreich	×	×	×	×
Germany	Arbeiter-Turn- und Sportbund	×	×	×	×
Switzerland	Schweizerischen Arbeiter-Turn- und Sportverbandes		×	×	×	×	×
France	Fédération sportive et gymnique du travail		×	?	×	×	×
Poland	Polish Workers' Sport Federation		×	?	×	×	×
Latvia			×	×	×		?
Belgium	Association Francophone du Sport Travailliste Belge Arbeidersvoetbalbond		×		×		×
Great Britain	British Workers' Sport Federation National Workers' Sports Association		×		×		×
Free City of Danzig			×		?
Denmark	Dansk Arbejder Idraetsforbund			?	×	×	×
Hungary				?	×	×	×
Norway	Arbeidernes Idrettsforbund			?	×		×
Mandatory Palestine	Hapoel				×		×
Estonia	Estonian Sports Association Kalev				×		?
Netherlands	Nederlandse Arbeiders SportBond				?		×
Soviet Union							×
Spanish Republicans							×

Sports

Summer Olympiads

Winter Olympiads

References

1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 "A workers' Olympics?". Workers' Liberty. 1 August 2012. Retrieved 1 July 2013. 
2. ↑ Seppo Hentilä: "Työväen Urheiluliitto ja kansainvälinen työläisurheilu" (in Finnish). Retrieved 1 July 2013.
3. ↑ Roni Gechtman: "Socialist Sports in Yiddish – The Bundist Sport Organization Morgnshtern in Interwar Poland". Retrieved 2 July 2013.
4. ↑ "Wiener Praterstadion - Ernst-Happel-Stadion - Historische Sportstätte der Stadt Wien" (in German). City of Vienna. Retrieved 1 July 2013. 
5. ↑ John Nauright & Charles Parrish (ed.): "Sports Around the World – History, Culture and Practice" (p. 463). Retrieved 11 July 2013.