Скачать с ютуб 6th December 1956: ‘Blood in the Water’ Olympic water polo match between the USSR and Hungary в хорошем качестве

6th December 1956: ‘Blood in the Water’ Olympic water polo match between the USSR and Hungary

The match was a semi-final at the 1956 Melbourne Summer Olympic Games and became famous as a result of the violence that ran throughout the game. It gained its nickname, and abruptly ended, after a Hungarian player was punched so hard by one of the Russians that it drew blood. The match was played just weeks after the USSR’s violent crackdown of the Hungarian Uprising. At the time of the uprising the Hungarian team, who were reigning Olympic champions, were training outside Budapest but were able to hear gunshots and see smoke in the city following the arrival of Soviet tanks on 1 November. Having been moved to communist Czechoslovakia to avoid being caught up in events at home while they completed their training, the Hungarian team only became aware of the scale of the USSR’s response to the uprising after their arrival in Australia. Facing the Soviet Union in the semi-final, they quickly realised that this provided an opportunity to regain some national pride against their oppressors. The game was violent from the start with verbal abuse, kicks and punches being thrown by both sides. The Hungarians were leading 4-0 when Russian Valentin Prokopov punched Hungarian Ervin Zádor in the final quarter. As he climbed out of the pool with blood streaming down his face, the pro-Hungarian crowd went wild. Hungary went on to win gold against Yugoslavia, but many of the Hungarian team didn’t return home after the Games as they instead sought asylum in the West.