1984 Stanley Cup playoffs, Division Semifinals, Clarence Campbell Conference, (S2) Calgary Flames vs. (S3) Vancouver Canucks
This was the third playoff series meeting between these two teams. Both teams split their prior two meetings in the past two seasons. Calgary won last year's Smythe Division Semifinals 3–1.


1984 Stanley Cup playoffs, Division Finals, Prince of Wales Conference, (A3) Quebec Nordiques vs. (A4) Montreal Canadiens
This was the second playoff series meeting between these two teams. Quebec won the only previous meeting 3–2 in the 1982 Adams Division Semifinals.


1984 Stanley Cup playoffs, Division Finals, Prince of Wales Conference, (A3) Quebec Nordiques vs. (A4) Montreal Canadiens
Game six of this series is referred to as the Good Friday Massacre.


1984 Stanley Cup playoffs, Division Finals, Prince of Wales Conference, (P1) New York Islanders vs. (P2) Washington Capitals
This was the second playoff series meeting between these two teams. This was a rematch of last year's Patrick Division Semifinals, in which New York won 3–1.


1984 Stanley Cup playoffs, Division Finals, Clarence Campbell Conference, (N1) Minnesota North Stars vs. (N2) St. Louis Blues
This was the fifth playoff series meeting between these two teams. St. Louis won three of the previous four meetings, including their most recent in the 1972 Stanley Cup Quarterfinals in seven games.


1984 Stanley Cup playoffs, Division Finals, Clarence Campbell Conference, (S1) Edmonton Oilers vs. (S2) Calgary Flames
This was the second playoff series meeting between these two teams. This was a rematch of last year's Smythe Division Finals, in which Edmonton won in five games.


1984 Stanley Cup playoffs, Division Finals, Clarence Campbell Conference, (S1) Edmonton Oilers vs. (S2) Calgary Flames
Lanny McDonald scored the overtime winner for Calgary in Game 6.


1984 Stanley Cup playoffs, Conference Finals, Prince of Wales Conference Final, (P1) New York Islanders vs. (A4) Montreal Canadiens
This was the third playoff series meeting between these two teams. Montreal won both prior meetings, including the most recent meeting in six games in the 1977 Stanley Cup Semifinals.


1984 Stanley Cup playoffs, Conference Finals, Clarence Campbell Conference Final, (S1) Edmonton Oilers vs (N1) Minnesota North Stars
This was the first playoff series meeting between these two teams.


1984 Stanley Cup playoffs, Stanley Cup Finals
This was the third playoff series meeting between these two teams. New York won both previous meetings, and was a rematch of New York's four-game sweep in last year's Stanley Cup Finals.


1984 Stanley Cup playoffs, Stanley Cup Finals
The Islanders attempted to match the 1950s Montreal Canadiens and win the Stanley Cup five consecutive times, against the Edmonton Oilers attempting to win the franchise's first championship. The Islanders lost the first game at home 1-0, but bounced back to defeat the Oilers 6-1 in the second game. Edmonton took over the series from that point, winning the next three games, all played in Edmonton.


1984 Stanley Cup playoffs, Player statistics, Goaltenders
This is a combined table of the top five goaltenders based on goals against average and the top five goaltenders based on save percentage, with at least 420 minutes played. The table is sorted by GAA, and the criteria for inclusion are bolded.


1984 Star World Championships
The 1984 Star World Championships were held in Vilamoura, Portugal in 1984.


1984 Star World Championships, Results
Legend: DNF – Did not finish; DNS – Did not start; DSQ – Disqualified; PMS – Premature start; YMP – Yacht materially prejudiced;


1984 State of Origin series
The 1984 State of Origin series was the third time the annual three-game series between the representative rugby league football teams of New South Wales and Queensland was played entirely under "state of origin" selection rules. With Queensland wrapping up the series in the first two matches it produced the first dead rubber finish and an infamous opening minute brawl in game II.


1984 State of Origin series, Game I
The New South Wales attitude to State of Origin had changed somewhat for the 1984 series, with the Blues squad being excused from their club duties the weekend prior to the first match and undergoing an intensive training camp, signalling the NSWRL's commitment to taking the series seriously. Canterbury-Bankstown halfback Steve Mortimer was originally selected as the Blues halfback, but withdrew with a hamstring injury. Mortimer later confirmed he had actually faked the injury as he wasn't happy with the selection of long-time rival Peter Sterling on the bench.


1984 State of Origin series, Game I
Mortimer felt that with Sterling's Parramatta team mate Ray Price as team captain, he would not have a voice or be able to run the team on the field as he wished to. Sterling was elevated to the starting line up after Mortimer's withdrawal with St George's Brian Hetherington selected as the reserve back.


1984 State of Origin series, Game I
Queensland were motivated by the announcement that New South Wales coach Frank Stanton had been appointed as Australian national coach for the upcoming Ashes series against Great Britain. Queensland's own coach and favoured Origin son, Arthur Beetson was being dumped in favour of Stanton and notwithstanding that Stanton was merely returning to the helm having previously steered the national side on two triumphant Kangaroo tours, the Maroons were keen to avenge the honour of Beetson who had been dumped as Australian coach following the Kangaroos 19-12 loss to New Zealand at Lang Park in 1983.


1984 State of Origin series, Game I
The Maroons won the match 29-12 with Manly-Warringah winger Kerry Boustead achieving the rare Origin honour of scoring three tries. Mal Meninga had a poor night with the boot, only kicking 2 goals from 8 attempts. It was rumoured that this ultimately cost him a place in the Australian team for the first Ashes test with NSW goal kicking winger Ross Conlon winning a spot on the wing.


1984 State of Origin series, Game II
Game II was played on a cold and wet night that saw almost 30,000 cram into the Sydney Cricket Ground, signalling that the New South Wales public had finally embraced the Origin concept. The mud, rain and tolerant eye of referee Barry Gomersall combined to form an explosive mix. Progress was arduous in the SCG quagmire and handling almost impossible.


1984 State of Origin series, Game II
Blues prop Steve Roach triggered an all-in brawl in the second tackle of the match with players trading blows for more than a minute afterwards in three separate melees. The sight of Chris Close, his jumper torn off, going blow-for-blow with New South Wales lock Ray Price became an enduring Origin image. When order was finally restored, Gomersall merely awarded a penalty against the Blues (which he had already called just as the fight started) and allowed play to continue.


1984 State of Origin series, Game II
Both sides dug in for a slogging defensive contest and not surprisingly, when Gomersall called a halt for half-time, neither side had scored. So bad were conditions, Blues second-rower Noel Cleal attempted a line drop out only for the ball to stick in the gluey mud and trickle a metre forward. In contrast, Wally Lewis had earlier kicked a drop out some 40 metres downfield which drew a glare from Gomersall, especially as a quarter line drop out from Lewis just 10 minutes into the game had barely travelled 10 metres.


1984 State of Origin series, Game II
Lewis later admitted that he had distracted Gomersall by calling for his team to stay onside. When Gomersall looked away to check, Lewis kicked the ball but caught it before it hit the ground. The deadlock was only broken when Mal Meninga landed a penalty goal. shortly afterwards Queensland prop Greg Dowling scored a memorable Origin try. Lewis had been peppering the New South wales line with his searching kicks and chipped ahead, aiming for the in-goal area.


1984 State of Origin series, Game II
In a moment of good fortune for the Maroons the ball struck the cross-bar and Dowling who had been following through, took an extraordinary catch on his finger tips centimetres from the rain soaked ground and plunged across the line in a splash of mud to score and give Queensland an 8-0 lead.


1984 State of Origin series, Game II
The Blues responded with a penalty goal to winger Ross Conlon reducing the Queensland lead to a converted try but when Maroon centre Gene Miles powered his way over the line from dummy half, the Queensland lead extended to 14-2 and there was no way back for the Blues.


1984 State of Origin series, Game III
With the series decided in Sydney, game III at Lang Park became a dead-rubber but was significant for the selection of Canterbury Bulldogs half-back Steve Mortimer as captain of New South Wales for the first time after Ray Price had elected to stand down from representative football following the third Ashes Test.


1984 State of Origin series, Game III
New South Wales selectors took the opportunity to blood a number of young players for the first time like Chris Mortimer, Pat Jarvis and Peter Wynn who along with Mortimer would play dominant roles in the Blues revival of 1985.


1984 State of Origin series, Game III
Mortimer inspired New South Wales to a 22-12 victory which avoided the embarrassment of a series whitewash and earned for himself the man of the match award.


1984 State of the Union Address
The 1984 State of the Union Address was given by the 40th president of the United States, Ronald Reagan, on Wednesday, January 25, 1984, at 9 p.m. EST, in the chamber of the United States House of Representatives to the 98th United States Congress. It was Reagan's third State of the Union Address and his fourth speech to a joint session of the United States Congress. Presiding over this joint session was the House speaker, Tip O'Neill, accompanied by George H. W. Bush, the vice president.


1984 State of the Union Address
The speech lasted 43 minutes and 2 seconds and contained 4931 words. The address was broadcast live on radio and television.


1984 State of the Union Address
The Democratic Party response was delivered by Senator Joe Biden (DE), Sen. David Boren (OK), Senator Carl M. Levin (MI), Senator Max S. Baucus (MT), Senator Robert Byrd (WV), Senator Claiborne Pell (RI), Senator Walter Huddleston (KY), Rep. Dante B. Fascell (FL), Rep. Tom Harkin (IA), Rep. William Gray (PA), House Speaker Thomas O’Neill (MA), and Rep. Barbara Boxer (CA).


1984 State of the Union Address
Samuel Pierce, the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, served as the designated survivor.


1984 Stella Artois Championships
The 1984 Stella Artois Championships was a men's tennis tournament played on grass courts at the Queen's Club in London in the United Kingdom that was part of the 1984 Volvo Grand Prix. It was the 82nd edition of the tournament and was held from 11 June until 18 June 1984. First-seeded John McEnroe won the singles title, his fourth at the event after 1979–1981.


1984 Stella Artois Championships, Finals, Doubles
Pat Cash /  Paul McNamee defeated  Bernard Mitton /  Butch Walts 6–4, 6–3


1984 Stella Artois Championships – Doubles
Brian Gottfried and Paul McNamee were the defending champions but they competed with different partners that year, Gottfried with Mike Leach and McNamee with Pat Cash.


1984 Stella Artois Championships – Doubles
Gottfried and Leach lost in the first round to Andy Kohlberg and David Pate.


1984 Stella Artois Championships – Doubles
Cash and McNamee won in the final 6–4, 6–3 against Bernard Mitton and Butch Walts.


1984 Stella Artois Championships – Singles
Jimmy Connors was the defending champion but lost in the semifinals to John McEnroe.


1984 Stella Artois Championships – Singles
John McEnroe won the singles title at the 1984 Queen's Club Championships tennis tournament defeating compatriot Leif Shiras in the final 6–1, 3–6, 6–2.


1984 Stevenage Borough Council election
The 1984 Stevenage Borough Council election took place on 3 May 1984. This was on the same day as other local elections. One third of the council was up for election; the seats which were last contested in 1980. The Labour Party retained control of the council, which it had held continuously since its creation in 1973.


1984 Stevenage Borough Council election, Overall results
All comparisons in vote share are to the corresponding 1980 election.


1984 Stinkers Bad Movie Awards
The 7th Stinkers Bad Movie Awards were released by the Hastings Bad Cinema Society in 1985 to honour the worst films the film industry had to offer in 1984. As follows, there was only a Worst Picture category with provided commentary for each nominee, as well as a list of films that were also considered for the final list but ultimately failed to make the cut (26 films total).


1984 Stockholm Open
The 1984 Stockholm Open was a men's tennis tournament played on indoor hard courts and part of the 1984 Volvo Grand Prix and took place at the Kungliga tennishallen in Stockholm, Sweden. The tournament was held from 29 October through 5 November 1984. First-seeded John McEnroe won the singles title, his third at the event after 1978 and 1979.


1984 Stockholm Open, Finals, Doubles
Henri Leconte /  Tomáš Šmíd defeated  Vijay Amritraj /  Ilie Năstase, 3–6, 7–6, 6–4


1984 Stockholm Open – Doubles
Anders Järryd and Hans Simonsson were the defending champions, but did not partner together this year. Järryd partnered Stefan Edberg, losing in the quarterfinals. Simsonsson partnered Cássio Motta, losing in the quarterfinals.


1984 Stockholm Open – Doubles
Henri Leconte and Tomáš Šmíd won the title, defeating Vijay Amritraj and Ilie Năstase 3–6, 7–6, 6–4 in the final.


1984 Stockholm Open – Singles
Mats Wilander was the defending champion, but lost in the final this year.


1984 Stockholm Open – Singles
John McEnroe won the title, defeating Wilander 6–2, 3–6, 6–2 in the final.


1984 Sugar Bowl
The 1984 Sugar Bowl was the 50th edition of the college football bowl game, played at the Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana, on Monday, January 2. Part of the 1983–84 bowl game season, it matched the third-ranked Auburn Tigers of the Southeastern Conference (SEC), and the #8 Michigan Wolverines of the Big Ten Conference. Favored Auburn was shut out until the third quarter, but rallied with three field goals to win 9–7.


1984 Sugar Bowl
New Year's Day was on Sunday in 1984, and the college bowl games were played the following day.


1984 Sugar Bowl, Game summary
The game kicked off shortly after 7 p.m. CST, televised by ABC, at the same time as the Orange Bowl on NBC.


1984 Sugar Bowl, Game summary
The only scoring in the first half was on a four-yard touchdown run by Michigan quarterback Steve Smith. It was set up by a 19-yard completion from Smith to Triando Makray, and 38 yards rushing by Rick Rogers. The Wolverines finished the first quarter with a 116–61 differential in yardage and took that 7–0 lead into halftime.


1984 Sugar Bowl, Game summary
Auburn used a tremendous Wishbone rushing attack throughout the game and attempted only six passes. They finished with 301 rushing yards on 21 first downs, with 130 yards by Bo Jackson, the game's MVP. Midway through the third quarter, Auburn kicker Al Del Greco made a 31-yard field goal to get the Tigers on the scoreboard and the quarter ended with Michigan leading 7–3. In the fourth quarter, Del Greco added two more field goals, of 32 and 19 yards, the latter in the last half-minute, to seal a 9–7 victory for Auburn.


1984 Sugar Bowl, Aftermath
Despite Auburn's victory and a loss in the Cotton Bowl by No. 2 Texas earlier in the day to Georgia (whom Auburn beat in Athens on November 12), the Tigers were not voted national champions in either of the final wire service polls. The #5 Miami Hurricanes vaulted past Auburn to the top spot with their 31–30 victory over top-ranked Nebraska in the Orange Bowl; Auburn remained at third in both final polls.


1984 Summer Olympics
The 1984 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXIII Olympiad and also known as Los Angeles 1984) were an international multi-sport event held from July 28 to August 12, 1984, mainly in Los Angeles, California, United States. It marked the second time that Los Angeles had hosted the Games, the first being in 1932. California was the home state of the incumbent U.S. President Ronald Reagan, who officially opened the Games. These were the first Summer Olympic Games under the IOC presidency of Juan Antonio Samaranch.


1984 Summer Olympics
The 1984 Games were boycotted by a total of fourteen Eastern Bloc countries, including the Soviet Union and East Germany, in response to the American-led boycott of the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow in protest of the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan; Romania was the only Eastern Bloc state that opted to attend the Games. Albania, Iran and Libya also chose to boycott the Games for unrelated reasons. Despite the field being depleted in certain sports due to the boycott, 140 National Olympic Committees took part in the 1984 Games, a record number at the time. The United States won the most gold and overall medals, followed by Romania and West Germany.


1984 Summer Olympics
The 1984 Summer Olympics are widely considered to be the most financially successful modern Olympics, serving as an example on how to run a model Olympic games. As a result of low construction costs, due to the use of existing sport infrastructure, coupled with a reliance on private corporate funding, the 1984 Games generated a profit of over $250 million. On July 18, 2009, a 25th anniversary celebration of the 1984 Games was held at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. The celebration included a speech by former Los Angeles Olympic Organizing Committee president Peter Ueberroth, as well as a re-enactment of the lighting of the Olympic cauldron. Los Angeles will host the Summer Olympics for the third time in 2028.


1984 Summer Olympics, Host selection
After the terrorist attack at the 1972 Summer Olympics, the significant financial debts of Montreal (1976), and various boycotts by National Olympic Committees, few cities by the late 1970s were willing to bid for the Summer Olympics. Only two cities (Tehran and Los Angeles) made serious bids for the 1984 Summer Games, but before the final selection of a "winning" city in 1978, the bid from Tehran was withdrawn as a result of Iran's policy changes following the Iranian Revolution and a change in the country's ruling system. Hence, the selection process for the 1984 Summer Olympics consisted of a single finalized bid from Los Angeles, which the International Olympic Committee (IOC) accepted. The selection was officially made at the 80th IOC Session in Athens on May 18, 1978.


1984 Summer Olympics, Host selection
Los Angeles had unsuccessfully bid for the two previous Summer Olympic Games (1976 and 1980, which went to Montreal and Moscow, respectively). The United States Olympic Committee (USOC) had submitted at least one bid for every Olympics since 1944 but had not succeeded since the Los Angeles Olympics in 1932, the previous time only a single bid had been issued for the Summer Olympics.


1984 Summer Olympics, Torch relay
The 1984 Olympic Torch Relay began in New York City and ended in Los Angeles, traversing 33 states and the District of Columbia. Unlike later torch relays, the torch was continuously carried by runners on foot. The route covered more than 9,320 mi (15,000 km) and involved 3,636 runners. Noted athlete O. J. Simpson was among the runners, carrying the torch up the California Incline in Santa Monica.


1984 Summer Olympics, Torch relay
Gina Hemphill, a granddaughter of Jesse Owens, carried the torch into the Coliseum, completed a lap around the track, then handed it off to the final runner, Rafer Johnson, winner of the decathlon at the 1960 Summer Olympics. With the torch, he touched off the flame which passed through a specially designed flammable Olympic logo, igniting all five rings. Johnson became the first person of African descent to light the cauldron in Olympic history. The flame then passed up to the cauldron atop the peristyle and remained aflame for the duration of the Games.


1984 Summer Olympics, Music
John Williams composed the theme for the Olympiad, "Olympic Fanfare and Theme". This piece won a Grammy for Williams and became one of the most well-known musical themes of the Olympic Games, along with Leo Arnaud's "Bugler's Dream"; the latter is sometimes attached to the beginning of Olympic Fanfare and Theme. Composer Bill Conti also wrote a song to inspire the weightlifters called "Power". An album, The Official Music of the XXIII Olympiad—Los Angeles 1984, featured three of those tracks along with sports themes written for the occasion by popular musical artists including Foreigner, Toto, Loverboy, Herbie Hancock, Quincy Jones, Christopher Cross, Philip Glass, Paul Engemann and Giorgio Moroder.


1984 Summer Olympics, Music
The Brazilian composer Sérgio Mendes also produced a special song for the 1984 Olympic Games, "Olympia," from his 1984 album Confetti. A choir of approximately one thousand voices was assembled of singers in the region. All were volunteers from nearby churches, schools and universities.


1984 Summer Olympics, Music
Etta James performed "When the Saints Go Marching In" at the Opening Ceremony.


1984 Summer Olympics, Music
Vicki McClure, along with the International Children's Choir of Long Beach, sang "Reach Out and Touch".


1984 Summer Olympics, Music
Lionel Richie performed a 9-minute version of his hit single "All Night Long" at the closing ceremonies.


1984 Summer Olympics, Highlights, Arts Festival
The 1984 Summer Olympics was preceded by the 10-week-long adjunct Los Angeles Olympic Arts Festival, which opened on June 2 and ended on August 12. It provided more than 400 performances by 146 theater, dance and music companies, representing every continent and 18 countries. It was organized by then-CalArts President Robert Fitzpatrick.


1984 Summer Olympics, Highlights, General
The Los Angeles Olympic Organizing Committee named Ernie Barnes "Sports Artist of the 1984 Olympic Games". LAOOC President Peter V. Ueberroth said Barnes and his art "captured the essence of the Olympics" and "portray the city's ethnic diversity, the power and emotion of sports competition, the singleness of purpose and hopes that go into the making of athletes the world over." Barnes was commissioned to create five Olympic-themed paintings and serve as an official Olympic spokesman to encourage inner-city youth.


1984 Summer Olympics, Medals awarded
The 1984 Summer Olympic program featured 221 events in the following 21 sports:


1984 Summer Olympics, Medal count
These are the top ten nations that won medals at the 1984 Games.


1984 Summer Olympics, Participating National Olympic Committees
Athletes from 140 states competed at the 1984 Summer Olympics. Eighteen states made their Olympic debut: Bahrain, Bangladesh, Bhutan, British Virgin Islands, Djibouti, Equatorial Guinea, The Gambia, Grenada, Mauritania, Mauritius, North Yemen, Oman, Qatar, Rwanda, Western Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga, and the United Arab Emirates. Zaire had previously competed at the 1968 Summer Olympics as Congo-Kinshasa. The People's Republic of China made its first appearance in a Summer Olympics since 1952, while for the first time the Republic of China team participated under the politically contrived name of Chinese Taipei.


1984 Summer Olympics, Participating National Olympic Committees
The Soviet Union led the Warsaw Pact members and other Communist countries in a boycott of the Los Angeles Olympics, in retaliation for the U.S.-led boycott of the Moscow Olympics four years earlier (over the Soviet Union's invasion of Afghanistan in 1979). The pretexts for the 1984 Soviet-led boycott were concerns over security, "chauvinistic sentiments" and "an anti-Soviet hysteria ... being whipped up" in the United States.


1984 Summer Olympics, Participating National Olympic Committees
However, a handful of communist countries disregarded the boycott and attended the Games anyway, among them Yugoslavia (host of the 1984 Winter Olympics), the People's Republic of China, and Romania (the only Warsaw Pact country that had opted to ignore the Soviet demands). The Romanian team received a particularly warm reception from the United States; when the Romanian athletes entered during the opening ceremonies, they were greeted by a standing ovation from the spectators, who were mostly U.S. citizens. This would turn out to be Romania's most successful Olympic Games – they won 53 medals, including 20 golds.


1984 Summer Olympics, Participating National Olympic Committees
In the table below, the number of athletes representing each state is shown in parentheses.


1984 Summer Olympics, Boycotting countries
Fifteen countries took part in the Soviet-led boycott of the 1984 Summer Olympics:


1984 Summer Olympics, Boycotting countries
Albania, Iran and Libya also boycotted the Los Angeles Olympics, citing political reasons, but these countries were not a part of the Soviet-led boycott. Albania and Iran were the only two countries to boycott both the 1980 and 1984 Summer Games.


1984 Summer Olympics, Boycotting countries, Soviet doping plan
Documents obtained in 2016 revealed the Soviet Union's plans for a statewide doping system in track and field in preparation for the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles. Dated prior to the country's decision to boycott the Games, the document detailed the existing steroids operations of the program, along with suggestions for further enhancements. The communication, directed to the Soviet Union's head of track and field, was prepared by Dr. Sergei Portugalov of the Institute for Physical Culture. Portugalov was also one of the main figures involved in the implementation of the Russian doping program prior to the 2016 Summer Olympics. Filmmaker and director of 2017 movie Icarus Bryan Fogel has said that stricter doping controls might have been the main reason for the Soviet boycott.


1984 Summer Olympics, Financial success of Los Angeles as host city
Following the news of the massive financial losses of the 1976 Summer Olympics in Montreal, the only two cities to express a genuine interest in hosting the 1984 Games were Los Angeles and New York. Given that only one city per country is allowed to bid for any one Games, the USOC vote for the American bid city was effectively the deciding vote for the 1984 Olympics host city.


1984 Summer Olympics, Financial success of Los Angeles as host city
In this case, the Los Angeles bid received 55 votes compared with New York's 39 votes – this is the closest that the city of New York has ever come to being selected to host the Olympic Games, coming closer in 1984 than they did in their 2012 bid (when they lost to London).


1984 Summer Olympics, Financial success of Los Angeles as host city
The low level of interest among potential host cities for the 1984 Games had been viewed as a major threat to the future of the Olympic Games. However, after the financial success of the Los Angeles Games, cities began to show a renewed interest in bidding to become host again. The Los Angeles and Montreal Games are seen as examples of best and worst practice when organizing the Olympics and serve as valuable lessons to prospective host cities.


1984 Summer Olympics, Financial success of Los Angeles as host city
Ambitious construction projects for the two previous Summer Olympics, Montreal 1976 and Moscow 1980, had burdened organizers with substantial debts as expenses greatly exceeded revenues. Furthermore, the 1976 and 1980 Olympics were entirely government-funded. Unlike Montreal and Moscow, Los Angeles 1984 was privately funded, with strict controls imposed on expenditure; rather than constructing new venues with overly ambitious designs, the organizers chose instead to utilise existing venues and facilities wherever possible. The main example of this was the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, which was also the Olympic Stadium for the 1932 Summer Olympics. The only two new venues constructed specifically for the 1984 Summer Olympics were secured with the backing of corporate sponsors: the Olympic Velodrome was largely funded by the 7-Eleven corporation and the Olympic Swim Stadium by McDonald's.


1984 Summer Olympics, Financial success of Los Angeles as host city
In addition to corporate support, the Olympic committee also used the income from the exclusive television rights, and for the first time these contracts would prove to be a significant source of revenue. Adjusted for inflation, the Los Angeles Games secured twice the amount of income received by the 1980 Moscow Summer Olympics and four times that of the 1976 Montreal Summer Olympics.


1984 Summer Olympics, Financial success of Los Angeles as host city
Following the success of the 1984 Games, the Los Angeles OCOG, led by Peter Ueberroth, used the profits to create the LA84 Foundation for promoting youth sports in Southern California, educating coaches and maintaining a sports library.


1984 Summer Olympics, In popular culture
The games were the subject of the 1983–84 United States commemorative coin series.


1984 Summer Olympics, In popular culture
McDonald's ran a promotion titled, "When the U.S. Wins, You Win" where customers scratched off a ticket with the name of an Olympic event on it. If the U.S. won a medal in that event, then they would be given a free menu item: a Big Mac for a gold medal, an order of french fries for a silver medal, and a Coca-Cola for a bronze medal. The promotion became more popular than expected due to the Soviet boycott which led to the U.S. winning far more Olympic medals than expected.


1984 Summer Olympics, In popular culture
This promotion was parodied in The Simpsons episode "Lisa's First Word", where Krusty Burger runs a similar offer. The promotion was intended to be rigged so that prizes would only be offered in events dominated by the Eastern Bloc, but the Soviet-led boycott causes Krusty to personally lose $44 million. He vehemently promises "to spit in every fiftieth burger," to which Homer retorts "I like those odds!" Chief Wiggum also exclaims that he could kiss Carl Lewis, who won four gold medals at the Games.


1984 Summer Olympics, In popular culture
On NCIS, Tim McGee has an obsession with jet packs, stemming from having attended the 1984 Olympic ceremony as a child and having Bill Suitor fly over his head in his jet pack. This storyline is based on the real experience of executive producer and writer Jesse Stern.


1984 Summer Olympics, In popular culture
Pop-punk band Bowling for Soup references the games in the song "I Can't Stand LA". During a section showing appreciation for the city, the song states, "thank you for hair metal and the '84 Olympics."


1984 Summer Olympics, In popular culture
Jilly Cooper's novel Riders has a storyline set at the show jumping event at the 1984 Summer Olympics.


1984 Summer Olympics, In popular culture
In the Seinfeld episode "The Gymnast", Jerry dates a woman who competed in the 1984 Olympics and won a silver medal for Romania.


1984 Summer Olympics, In popular culture
In the same week that the Games began, British pop star Howard Jones released a single called Like to Get to Know You Well which eventually made number 4 on the UK Singles Chart and number 49 on the Billboard Hot 100 in the USA. On the sleeve, the record was "dedicated to the original spirit of the Olympic Games".


1984 Summer Olympics boycott
The boycott of the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles followed four years after the American-led boycott of the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow. The boycott involved 14 Eastern Bloc countries and allies, led by the Soviet Union, which initiated the boycott on May 8, 1984. Boycotting countries organized another major event, called the Friendship Games, in July and August 1984. Although the boycott led by the Soviet Union affected Olympic events that were normally dominated by the absent countries, 140 nations still took part in the games, which was a record at the time.


1984 Summer Olympics boycott, Announcement of boycott
The USSR announced its intentions to boycott the 1984 Summer Olympics on May 8, 1984, citing security concerns and "chauvinistic sentiments and an anti-Soviet hysteria being whipped up in the United States." A US official said the country had ignored suggestive comments by the Soviet Union in the weeks building up to the announcement and that, in spite of all the indications, the United States was "absolutely dumbfounded" when the official announcement arrived.


1984 Summer Olympics boycott, Announcement of boycott
After the announcement, six more nations joined the boycott, including Bulgaria, East Germany (on May 10), Mongolia and Vietnam (both May 11), and Laos and Czechoslovakia (both May 13). China formally confirmed that it would be present at the games in Los Angeles, while Laos and Czechoslovakia announced their decision to boycott the event.


1984 Summer Olympics boycott, Announcement of boycott
Later, Afghanistan also announced its boycott, becoming the eighth country to join the boycott of the 1984 Summer Olympics. Even later, Hungary (May 16) and Poland (May 17) became the ninth and tenth Communist countries to join the boycott. Hungary claimed the lives of its athletes would be put in danger if they were to spend time in Los Angeles. On the other hand, Poland said that the United States was engaging in a "campaign aimed at disturbing the Games".


1984 Summer Olympics boycott, Announcement of boycott
On May 24, Cuba became the eleventh country to announce its participation in the boycott, making front-page news in the United States because it was a "serious blow to boxing and baseball". South Yemen was the twelfth country to remove itself from the event (May 27); the Los Angeles Times stated that this was due to their "Marxist" connections. North Korea was the thirteenth nation to boycott the 1984 Olympics. Ethiopia became the first African state to participate in the boycott, followed by Angola.


1984 Summer Olympics boycott, Announcement of boycott
Iran had earlier decided to boycott the 1984 Summer Olympics because of "United States interference in the Middle East, its support for the regime occupying Jerusalem, and the crimes being committed by the U.S.A. in Latin America, especially in El Salvador". Iran and Albania were the only countries to not attend both the 1980 Moscow and the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics.


1984 Summer Olympics boycott, Announcement of boycott
Libya also boycotted the Olympics after Libyan journalists were refused entry into the United States in July, after Libya announced the ban upon US exports to Libya in 1983 and a renewal of bans upon travel to Libya by holders of US passports. Libya and Ethiopia were the only nations to boycott both the 1976 Montreal and 1984 Los Angeles Games.


1984 Summer Olympics boycott, Announcement of boycott
In addition, Albania did not attend any games from 1976 to 1988, although there was no official explanation for their absence at the 1976 Montreal Olympics and 1988 Seoul Olympics. Politically, Albania allied with China after the Sino-Soviet split, remaining antagonistic towards the Soviet Union; however, it also opposed China's rapprochement with the United States in the late 1970s, resulting in the Sino-Albanian split. A similar antagonism towards both superpowers existed in Iran since 1979. This resulted in Iran and Albania boycotting both the 1980 and 1984 Olympics independently without endorsing the boycott on the opposing side.


1984 Summer Olympics boycott, Revenge hypothesis
Jimmy Carter declared that the United States would boycott the 1980 Olympic Games in Moscow, with 65 other countries joining the boycott. This was the largest Olympic games boycott ever. In 1984, three months before the start of the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, the Soviet Union declared it would "not participate" in the Games.


1984 Summer Olympics boycott, Revenge hypothesis
The Soviets cited a number of reasons, namely the commercialization of the games which, in their opinion, went against the principles of the Olympic movement (indeed the XXIII Olympiad ended up being the first Olympics since 1932 to make a profit by a host country) and a claimed lack of security for their athletes. The issue of commercialization did gather some criticism from foreign delegations, who were unfamiliar with this trend in the Olympic movement.


1984 Summer Olympics boycott, Revenge hypothesis
However, the IOC later declared the Games "a model for future Olympics" due to a surplus of US$223 million for the hosts, exclusively private funding (unlike Moscow Olympics that were state-funded), and relying on existing venues instead of building new ones. The majority viewed the boycott as more of a retaliatory move by the Soviets.


1984 Summer Olympics boycott, Revenge hypothesis
Most of the world's media interpreted the Soviet boycott as retaliation for the US boycott of the 1980 Moscow Games, which had been in response to the 1979 Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, whereas the Soviet media repeated the government line that the boycott was a safety measure to protect their own athletes.


1984 Summer Olympics boycott, Revenge hypothesis
However, no threat to Eastern Bloc athletes was ever discovered, and the athletes from the Eastern Bloc country that did attend the 1984 games in Los Angeles—Romania—encountered no problems, and in fact were widely cheered above all other visiting nations at the Opening Ceremonies when they marched into the Coliseum. Romania ended up finishing third in overall medal count at the Games.


1984 Summer Olympics boycott, Revenge hypothesis
Among those subscribing to the "revenge hypothesis" was Peter Ueberroth, the chief organizer of the 1984 L.A. Games, who expressed his views in a press conference after the boycott was announced, on the same day that the Olympic torch relay in the United States began in New York City. U.S. President Ronald Reagan later stated his belief that the Soviets feared some of their athletes might defect.


1984 Summer Olympics boycott, Revenge hypothesis
As well, the Reagan Administration agreed to meet all of the demands of the Soviet Union in turn for the Soviet Bloc's attendance at the 1984 Olympics, marking an exception to Reagan's generally "hawkish" Cold War foreign policy. As more countries withdrew, the IOC announced on the deadline week that it would consider extending the deadline for entry into the Olympics.


1984 Summer Olympics boycott, Revenge hypothesis
The three top medal winners from the 1980 Games (which was the subject of a boycott by sixty six nations) in Moscow were among the boycotters, and media analysis noted this would weaken the field of competitors in a number of sports. However, it was later disclosed that both the Soviet Union and East Germany boosted their performances with the help of state-run steroid programs.


1984 Summer Olympics boycott, Soviet doping plan
Documents obtained in 2016 revealed the Soviet Union's plans for a statewide doping system in track and field in preparation for the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles. Dated prior to the country's decision to boycott the Games, the document detailed the existing steroids operations of the program, along with suggestions for further enhancements. The communication, directed to the Soviet Union's head of track and field, was prepared by Dr. Sergei Portugalov of the Institute for Physical Culture. Portugalov was also one of the main figures involved in the implementation of the Russian doping program prior to the 2016 Summer Olympics. Filmmaker and director of 2017 movie Icarus Bryan Fogel has said that stricter doping controls might have been the main reason for the Soviet boycott.


1984 Summer Olympics boycott, Boycotting countries
Listed in the chronological order of their withdrawal, not by alphabetical or any geographical order.


1984 Summer Olympics boycott, Boycotting countries
Three other countries also boycotted the games, citing political reasons, but were not part of the Soviet-led boycott:


1984 Summer Olympics boycott, Boycotting countries
Further to this, Kampuchea was largely unrecognized, and in any case would not have been allowed to compete.


1984 Summer Olympics boycott, Non-boycotting Marxist-Leninist countries
Seven communist and socialist countries, four from Africa, did not join the Soviet-led boycott and instead sent teams to the 1984 Summer Olympics.


1984 Summer Olympics boycott, Alternative events
The Soviets organized the Friendship Games, a full-scale multi-sport event, for boycotting countries. The Games were contested in 22 Olympic disciplines (all except association football and synchronized swimming), and in non-Olympic table tennis, tennis, and sambo wrestling. The Soviet Union dominated the medal table, winning 126 gold and 282 total medals.


1984 Summer Olympics closing ceremony
The closing ceremony of the 1984 Summer Olympics took place at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum in Los Angeles, California, on August 12, 1984 at 8 p.m. local time.


1984 Summer Olympics closing ceremony, Preparation and pre-ceremony
The 23,000 square foot stage on center pitch, about a third of the size of the field, cost $500,000 ($1.2 million in 2020). Pre -constructed in four weeks, it arrived and was installed in 12 hours by 300 workers. One ring of the lower level served as a pit for the 60-member Los Angeles Olympic Symphony Orchestra, while the three other rings were filled with water six inches deep.


1984 Summer Olympics closing ceremony, Preparation and pre-ceremony
The ceremony was directed by David Wolper and Tommy Walker. They also hired producer Daniel Flannery and his production company. Flannery was the conceptualist working directly with Wolper and Walker. Once the ceremonies were conceived, the Los Angeles Olympic Organizing Committee (LAOOC) contracted Flannery to produce them and his firm to supervise the special effects and special lighting of the ceremony. This included designing the famous spaceship and alien. Flashlights were given to all 92,000 attendees, with three interchangeable colors: red, white and blue. The Coliseum announcer was Charles Corsen.


1984 Summer Olympics closing ceremony, Preparation and pre-ceremony
In a pre-recorded interview during the ABC broadcast, International Olympic Committee president Juan Antonio Samaranch declared to journalist Peter Jennings that the games scored a "10" out of 10.


1984 Summer Olympics closing ceremony, Preparation and pre-ceremony
The marathon began at 5:00 p.m.,2h45 before the start of the ceremony, and the finish line was the Coliseum. Some of the last runners staggered in with cheers from the crowd. as the protocol determines,the Marathon award ceremony was held during the ceremonies, with Portugal's Carlos Lopes being awarded the gold. His national anthem was played.


1984 Summer Olympics closing ceremony, Preparation and pre-ceremony
Traditionally,until this games, the final equestrian event was also held at the Olympic stadium on the day of the closing ceremony. However,due the a change on the schedule Los Angeles held the event the day before at another location, so as not to damage the coliseum field or stage preparation. Instead, the three medal winners rode in on horseback and paraded to the medal podium during the pre-ceremony. After the U.S. anthem was played for gold medal winner Joseph Fargis, they took a victory lap again on horseback around the coliseum, to cheers from the crowd.


1984 Summer Olympics closing ceremony, Ceremony
As in the opening ceremony, city church bells rang to commence the start of the ceremony.


1984 Summer Olympics closing ceremony, Ceremony, Parade of Nations
In previous Olympic Games, only six athletes from each country's delegation were allowed to attend the closing ceremony. In 1984, for the first time ever, the LAOOC allowed all athletes wishing to attend to do so, resulting in over 6,000 athletes marching into the stadium. The 1984 "Olympic Fanfare and Theme", composed by John Williams, was performed in the Coliseum peristyle by the 750-member Olympic All American Marching Band. Other songs were performed while the flag bearers, country name placards and, finally, the athletes of 140 nations marched en masse.


1984 Summer Olympics closing ceremony, Ceremony, Anthems and gift exchanges
The national anthems of Greece (by tradition), the United States (the host nation) and then South Korea (the next host city) were played. On center stage, Los Angeles mayor Tom Bradley was joined by IOC president Juan Antonio Samaranch and the Mayor of Seoul, South Korea, Yom Po-hyun, for the Antwerp flag transfer, which was passed from Bradley to Samaranch to Po-hyun. American children of different races gifted Korean children silver Olympic coins and in exchange the Korean children gifted the American children traditional Korean jewelry boxes. Ludwig van Beethoven's "Ode to Joy" was then performed by the symphony.


1984 Summer Olympics closing ceremony, Ceremony, Seoul performance
Seoul, the host city of the 1988 Summer Olympic Games, performed a traditional Buchaechum. The dance was performed by the Seoul City Dance Theater, who were joined by the 1988 Olympic mascot Hodori, the Asian tiger. The Dance Theater of Harlem then performed the Stars and Stripes ballet by George Balanchine to reciprocate.


1984 Summer Olympics closing ceremony, Ceremony, Speeches and closing declaration
LAOOC president Peter Ueberroth delivered a speech, and IOC president Samaranch delivered a speech in English, awarding the Olympic Order in Gold to Ueberroth. Samaranch then declared the Games of the XXIII Olympiad in Los Angeles closed and, in accordance with tradition, called upon the youth of the world to assemble four years from now in Seoul to celebrate the Games of the XXIV Olympiad. The Olympic flag was lowered by selected citizens of Los Angeles, while the Olympic Hymn was performed and sung by the symphony. Four loud firework booms sounded and military trumpeters appeared above the cauldron. Actor Richard Basehart read from the Greek lyric poet Pindar's Ode to Olympians. As Basehart read the last refrain, the Olympic flame was then extinguished.


1984 Summer Olympics closing ceremony, Ceremony, Entertainment
During the start of the entertainment section, the Coliseum announcers informed the audience to set their flashlights to blue and turn them on at the count of three. As the blue lights came on, the symphony played the introduction ("Einleitung") of Thus Spoke Zarathustra by Richard Strauss. A flying UFO then appeared above the stadium. The stage lit up and "spoke" to the spaceship with lights in dueling form, using a sequence of notes from the "Olympic Fanfare and Theme", similar to the ending of the 1977 film Close Encounters of the Third Kind.


1984 Summer Olympics closing ceremony, Ceremony, Entertainment
The Coliseum arches glowed and the peristyle lit up from behind and simulated the spaceship landing. A laser show within the Coliseum commenced. At the end, a 7-foot tall "alien" appeared above the parapet of the cauldron and announced that the city and humanity had kept "the ideals of the Olympics", declaring, "I salute you".


1984 Summer Olympics closing ceremony, Ceremony, Fireworks show
The fireworks show was a salute to every Olympic city. Each city was announced to the audience, followed by a quick anecdote, and each city's national folk music was played by the symphony to accompany the display.


1984 Summer Olympics closing ceremony, Ceremony, Concert section
Lionel Richie performed an extended version of his No. 1 hit song "All Night Long", accompanied by breakdancers. Confetti rained on the stadium with large scale balloons. Athletes remained on the field and danced as American pop music played. A large display of fireworks followed and ended the show, along with "Auld Lang Syne". The ceremony ended at midnight.


1984 Summer Olympics closing ceremony, Anthems
All anthems were performed by the Olympic All American Marching Band.


1984 Summer Olympics commemorative coins
In 1983 and 1984, the United States Mint issued a series of commemorative coins to commemorate the 1984 Summer Olympic games held in Los Angeles. These coins were authorized by Public Law 97-220.


1984 Summer Olympics commemorative coins, Silver dollar
The first coin of the series was the 1983 silver dollar, which was the first commemorative dollar issued by the US Mint since the Grant Memorial gold dollar of 1922. Public Law 97-220 authorized 50,000,000 Los Angeles XXIII Olympiad dollars to be minted in 1983 and 1984. The obverse of the 1983 dollar features a discus thrower, while the reverse features an eagle. A total of 642,571 uncirculated 1983 dollars were minted at the Philadelphia, Denver, and San Francisco Mints, plus 1,577,025 proof dollars minted at San Francisco.


1984 Summer Olympics commemorative coins, Silver dollar
The silver dollar was redesigned in 1984, featuring the gateway to the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. The designer of this coin was Robert Graham, who had also designed the gateway that appeared on the coin. A total of 451,304 uncirculated 1984 dollars were minted at the three mints, plus 1,801,210 proof dollars minted at San Francisco.


1984 Summer Olympics commemorative coins, Gold eagle
A ten-dollar gold coin (a.k.a. Eagle) was released in 1984. This coin features male and female Olympic torch runners. Of the 2,000,000 coins authorized by Public Law 97-220, a total of 497,478 uncirculated coins were minted at the four mints (a majority at the West Point Mint), and a further 75,886 proof coins were minted at West Point.


1984 Summer Olympics medal table
The 1984 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXIII Olympiad, were a summer multi-sport event held in Los Angeles, California, United States, from July 28 to August 12. A total of 6,829 athletes from 140 nations participated in 221 events in 21 sports.


1984 Summer Olympics medal table
Overall, 47 nations received at least one medal, and 25 of them won at least one gold medal. Athletes from host nation United States won the most medals overall with 174 and the most gold medals with 83. The former record was the largest overall medal haul for that nation since the 1904 edition; the latter record was the highest gold medal tally at a single Games and the most for a host nation. It marked the first time the United States led the medal count in both gold and overall medals since 1968.


1984 Summer Olympics medal table
Many writers and sports commentators noted that the absence of the Soviet Union and various other Eastern Bloc nations stemming from a boycott contributed to the highly skewed medal results favoring the United States. Romania won the second most gold medals (20) and the third most total medals (53) marking its highest medal tally in history. West Germany won the third most gold medals, with 17, and the second most total medals, with 59.


1984 Summer Olympics medal table
Runner Carl Lewis and gymnast Ecaterina Szabo won the most gold medals at the games with four each. Gymnast Li Ning won the greatest number of medals overall, winning six in total. Marathon runner Carlos Lopes of Portugal won the first Olympic gold medal for that nation. Algeria, Dominican Republic, Ivory Coast, Syria, and Zambia won their nation's first Olympic medals.


1984 Summer Olympics medal table, Medal table
The medal table is based on information provided by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and is consistent with IOC convention in its published medal tables. By default, the table is ordered by the number of gold medals the athletes from a nation have won, where each nation is an entity represented by a National Olympic Committee (NOC). The number of silver medals is taken into consideration next and then the number of bronze medals.


1984 Summer Olympics medal table, Medal table
In the boxing and judo events, two bronze medals are awarded in each weight class. Two gold medals (and no silver medals) were awarded for first place ties in the women's uneven bars, women's balance beam, and men's rings gymnastics events. Four silver medals (and no bronze) were awarded in the men's vault gymnastics competition. Two bronze medals were awarded for third-place ties in both the women's 100 metre hurdles and the men's pole vault competitions.


1984 Summer Olympics national flag bearers
During the Parade of Nations portion of the 1984 Summer Olympics opening ceremony, athletes from each country participating in the Olympics paraded in the arena, preceded by their flag. The flag was borne by a sportsperson from that country chosen either by the National Olympic Committee or by the athletes themselves to represent their country.


1984 Summer Olympics national flag bearers, Parade order
As the nation of the first modern Olympic Games, Greece entered the stadium first; whereas, the host nation of the United States marched last. Other countries entered in alphabetical order in the language of the host country (English), according with tradition and IOC guidelines.


1984 Summer Olympics national flag bearers, Parade order
Whilst most countries entered under their short names, a few entered under more formal or alternative names, mostly due to political and naming disputes. The Republic of China (commonly known as Taiwan) entered with the compromised name and flag of "Chinese Taipei" under T so that they did not enter together with conflicting People's Republic of China (commonly known as China), which entered as the "People's Republic of China" under C.


1984 Summer Olympics national flag bearers, Parade order
A record of 140 nations entered the stadium with a combined total of 7,078 athletes. Eighteen nations made their Olympic debut, namely Bahrain, Bangladesh, Bhutan, British Virgin Islands, Djibouti, Equatorial Guinea, Gambia, Grenada, Mauritania, Mauritius, North Yemen, Oman, Qatar, Rwanda, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga, and the United Arab Emirates. The People's Republic of China made its first appearance at the Summer Olympics since 1952, while the Republic of China participated for the first time under the name Chinese Taipei as a result of the IOC agreement.


1984 Summer Olympics national flag bearers, Parade order
Thirteen countries, namely Afghanistan, Angola, Bulgaria, Cuba, Czechoslovakia, Ethiopia, German Democratic Republic, Hungary, Laos, Mongolia, Democratic People's Republic of Korea, Poland, and Vietnam, were part of the Soviet Union boycott of these Games. Apart from the People's Republic of China (a communist country that had warmer relations with the United States rather than with the Soviet Union, following the Sino–Soviet split), Romania and Yugoslavia were among the socialist countries to disregard the boycott and attend the Games. Albania, Iran and Libya also did not compete at the Games, citing political reasons.


1984 Summer Olympics national flag bearers, Parade order
Notable flag bearers in the opening ceremony featured the following athletes: six-time Olympian and Star sailor Hubert Raudaschl (Austria); defending Olympic champions Stelios Mygiakis (Greece) in Greco-Roman wrestling, Esko Rechardt in Finn sailing, Angelo Parisi (France) in heavyweight judo, Sara Simeoni (Italy) in women's high jump, Corneliu Ion (Romania) in rapid fire pistol shooting, and Alejandro Abascal in the Flying Dutchman; middle-distance runner and 1976 Olympic champion John Walker; dressage rider Christine Stückelberger (Switzerland); professional basketball player Dražen Dalipagić (Yugoslavia), who led his men's team to capture the gold medal in Moscow four years earlier; and hammer thrower Ed Burke (United States), who competed in his third appearance since the 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico City.


1984 Summer Olympics national flag bearers, List
The following is a list of each country's announced flag bearer. The list is sorted by the order in which each nation appears in the parade of nations. The names are given in their official designations by the IOC.


1984 Summer Olympics opening ceremony
The opening ceremony of the 1984 Summer Olympic Games took place on the afternoon of Saturday, July 28, in the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, Los Angeles. As mandated by the Olympic Charter, the proceedings combined the formal ceremonial opening of this international sporting event (including welcoming speeches, hoisting of the flags and the parade of athletes) with an artistic spectacle to showcase the host nation's culture. The 1984 Games were formally opened by President of the United States Ronald Reagan. The event was conducted in front of 92,516 attendants. The ceremony was a $5 million production, titled Music of America.


1984 Summer Olympics opening ceremony, Officials and guests
Seated in the press box were President of the United States Ronald Reagan and First Lady of the United States Nancy Reagan. International guests included President of the International Olympic Committee Juan Antonio Samaranch, Grand Duke Jean of Luxembourg and Prince Charles. Various celebrities were in attendance, including Linda Evans, Bob Hope, Steven Spielberg, Gene Kelly and Brooke Shields.


1984 Summer Olympics opening ceremony, Proceedings, Countdown and prologue
A countdown clock was used in the stadium to announce the commencement of the ceremony. Church bells and cannons rang throughout the city to announce the start of the games.


1984 Summer Olympics opening ceremony, Proceedings, Countdown and prologue, Welcome
The official ceremony started with the first segment, "Welcome", a song written by Marvin Hamlisch and Dean Pitchford. Over 1,000 volunteers held large, five-foot balloons, each with a ribbon banner attached with the word "Welcome" written in over 100 languages. Bill Suitor flew from the peristyle to the track on the south end via a Bell Aerosystems rocket pack (also known as a jet pack). The performers formed the word "Welcome" on the field, skywriters typed the word "Welcome" in the sky and various volunteers passed out flowers in the aisles to the crowd.


1984 Summer Olympics opening ceremony, Proceedings, Countdown and prologue, Welcome
After the song, the balloons were released into the air and dignitaries were introduced, namely IOC president Samaranch and President Reagan. "Hail to the Chief" was played to introduce President Reagan, followed by the U.S. national anthem and "Fanfare for the Common Man" by Aaron Copland.


1984 Summer Olympics opening ceremony, Proceedings, Artistic program, Music of America
Los Angeles produced an artistic interpretation of the American lifestyle and music called Music of America. The first sequence opened with American Suite, performed by an 800-member marching band consisting primarily of members from colleges in the Los Angeles area. However, there was also at least one member from every U.S. state. They performed American style marching sequences and marching precision.


1984 Summer Olympics opening ceremony, Proceedings, Artistic program, Music of America
The second segment, Pioneer Spirit, depicted the American west at the turn of the 20th century. It consisted of a 410-member ballet group performing a hoedown dance sequence with various props, including wagons and old west towns.


1984 Summer Olympics opening ceremony, Proceedings, Artistic program, Music of America
The third segment, Dixieland Jamboree, depicted a traditional southern U.S. gospel choir featuring 300 members singing "When the Saints Go Marching In", led by Etta James.


1984 Summer Olympics opening ceremony, Proceedings, Artistic program, Music of America
The fourth segment, Urban Rhapsody, featured George Gershwin's "Rhapsody in Blue". 85 grand pianos appeared from the Coliseum's peristyles, followed by the orchestra and over 200 dancers.


1984 Summer Olympics opening ceremony, Proceedings, Artistic program, Music of America
The fifth segment, The World Stage, consisted of a 1940s big band orchestra medley, featuring songs mostly from Broadway, movies and popular music. Among the songs heard in this segment were "Sing, Sing, Sing", "Steppin' Out with My Baby" (from Easter Parade), "One" (from A Chorus Line), the theme from Fame, and the Michael Jackson hit "Beat It". Joining the orchestra were 1,500 dancers.


1984 Summer Olympics opening ceremony, Proceedings, Artistic program, Music of America
The sixth and final segment ended with the entire cast dancing and forming the outlined map of the United States to the strains of "America the Beautiful".


1984 Summer Olympics opening ceremony, Proceedings, Flags of the world
Each seat in the Coliseum had a card placed underneath. At the count of three, each attendant flipped the card skyward and the crowd produced a card stunt, displaying the flags of all participating nations.


1984 Summer Olympics opening ceremony, Proceedings, Parade of Nations
John Williams performed his dedicated theme to the games, "Olympic Fanfare and Theme". Volunteer performers entered the stadium, marching with white Olympic flags. They formed the 1984 Olympic logo, as well as the "Stars in Motion" outline on the field.


1984 Summer Olympics opening ceremony, Proceedings, Parade of Nations
The Antwerp flag was then presented to Los Angeles Mayor Tom Bradley, as Bradley had not been present at the closing ceremonies of the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow four years earlier.


1984 Summer Olympics opening ceremony, Proceedings, Parade of Nations
The parade of 140 National Olympic Committees began with Greece, as per tradition. Speeches were then made by Los Angeles Olympic Organizing Committee president Peter Ueberroth and IOC president Samaranch. For the first time, a sitting U.S. president opened the games in person, as President Reagan declared the competition officially open.


1984 Summer Olympics opening ceremony, Proceedings, Parade of Nations
The Olympic flag entered the stadium, and an instrumental version of the Olympic Hymn was played. Afterward, homing pigeons were released.


1984 Summer Olympics opening ceremony, Proceedings, The cauldron
The same cauldron from the 1932 Summer Olympics (also held in Los Angeles) was used. The orchestra played The Olympian, composed and conducted by Philip Glass. The torch entered the stadium carried by Gina Hemphill, granddaughter of U.S. Olympian Jesse Owens, who circled the track then handed the torch to 1960 Olympic decathlon gold medalist Rafer Johnson, who completed the torch relay as mechanical steps rose from the center of the peristyles.


1984 Summer Olympics opening ceremony, Proceedings, The cauldron
Johnson climbed the stairs and faced the crowd as The Olympian was still being played, then lit the gas powered Olympic rings that connect with the Olympic cauldron, amidst cheers from the crowd. The athletes' and judges' oaths were taken and a children's chorus performed Ludwig van Beethoven's "Ode to Joy".


1984 Summer Olympics opening ceremony, Proceedings, Finale
Local teacher Vicki McClure led the crowd in a performance of the Diana Ross song "Reach Out and Touch (Somebody's Hand)". All attendees were requested to sing along, as the words were displayed on the screens surrounding the stadium. All the volunteers, athletes, and audience members, as well as cast members dressed in traditional native dress from all over the world, joined in. On the big screens, various children in Japan, Australia, Africa and Latin America joined hands, singing along to the song, and a large fireworks finale followed.


1984 Summer Olympics opening ceremony, TV coverage
The ABC network was the official broadcaster of the games in the U.S. and feeder to other networks outside the U.S. Peter Jennings and Jim McKay were the announcers in the U.S., marking McKay's 10th broadcast.


1984 Summer Olympics opening ceremony, Awards and accolades
The broadcast was awarded the Emmy Award for Outstanding Live Sports Special.


1984 Summer Olympics opening ceremony, Legacy
The 1984 opening ceremony was the first to present the "artistic" segment before the "ceremonial" portion of the events,however, this order presented was not followed by all the other host cities, which since then have had more freedom of creation around their opening ceremonies. The ceremony was also the first time a person of African descent lit the Olympic cauldron.


1984 Summer Olympics torch relay
The 1984 Summer Olympics torch relay was run from May 8 until July 28, prior to the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles. The route covered around 15,000 kilometres (9,300 mi) across the United States and involved over 3,600 torchbearers. Rafer Johnson lit the cauldron at the opening ceremony. The Los Angeles Olympic Organizing Committee (LAOOC) tasked Burson-Marsteller, the public relations agency of AT&T, with the organization of the relay. The Youth Legacy Kilometer pioneered the idea of runners being nominated by the public.


1984 Summer Olympics torch relay
The torch relay saw many firsts, including people from all over the country participating and raising millions of dollars that were donated to charities.


1984 Summer Olympics torch relay, Torch
The aluminum torch, designed with a brass finish and leather handle that gave it an antique look, was 56.5 centimetres (22.2 in) long and weighed 1,000 grams (35 oz). Etched on the ring of the torch were the words of the Olympic motto ("Citius, Altius, Fortius") with the Olympic rings between each word. They were manufactured by Turner Industries and each one was numbered.


1984 Summer Olympics torch relay, Torch
During an 800-mile trial run the original design of the torch was found to be flawed. The valve was found to be recessed too deeply inside the bowl of the torch and was extinguished too easily. The type of propane and the valve used for its release were also adjusted to ensure that it would remain lit wherever possible.


1984 Summer Olympics torch relay, Organization
The relay was organized by Burson-Marsteller, the PR agency of AT&T, which also sponsored the relay and provided the majority of the staffing for the events. Runner uniforms were provided by Levi Strauss with Converse supplying the shoes.


1984 Summer Olympics torch relay, Organization
The Los Angeles Olympic Organizing Committee (LAOOC) referred to the relay as being "an overwhelming success", achieving the two goals of spreading the Olympics around the country and providing a legacy for youth sport programs. They estimated that around a quarter of the United States population witnessed the relay.


1984 Summer Olympics torch relay, Organization, Youth Legacy Kilometer
Torchbearers came from a wide variety of backgrounds and the aim was to introduce a level of egalitarianism. The 1984 relay was the first to invite nominations from the public, a system replicated in future relays. It was also the first to charge torchbearers for their participation, with the fee working out at around $3,000 per kilometer. Anybody who could raise the entry fee would be able to sponsor one kilometer and bear a torch themselves or designate a person to do so.


1984 Summer Olympics torch relay, Organization, Youth Legacy Kilometer
The scheme, called the "Youth Legacy Kilometer" (YLK) raised nearly $11 million, all of which was given to charities. YMCA received the largest proportion of the funds, amounting to around $3.9 million. Sections that did not receive sponsorship were completed by volunteers from AT&T. Prior to the 1984 Olympics, only “selected” people were allowed to carry the torch. That changed in LA as in the US any person could become the torchbearer.


1984 Summer Olympics torch relay, Organization, Youth Legacy Kilometer
Caesar's Tahoe Hotel Casino ran a drawing, in which customers could win a place in the relay. The company sponsored 50 kilometers of the Nevada route and gave seven of these runs to winning customers and 42 to local organizations. The remaining kilometer was given to 1976 Decathlon winner Bruce Jenner who had signed a promotional contract with the company.


1984 Summer Olympics torch relay, Organization, Youth Legacy Kilometer
The Hellenic Olympic Committee (HOC), unhappy with what they considered to be the commercialization of the torch relay, threatened to stop the event from happening. Several months of negotiations finally finished in an agreement just days before the planned kindling ceremony. On May 7, 1984, the lighting ceremony took place.


1984 Summer Olympics torch relay, Route
The LAOOC originally hoped that the relay would visit all 50 states and capitals as well as Washington D.C. They realized that this would require a 24-hour-per-day operation and had to reduce the scope of their plans to include 33 states:


1984 Summer Olympics torch relay, Route
The relay officially began on May 8 with Bill Thorpe, Jr., grandson of Jim Thorpe, and Gina Hemphill, granddaughter of Jesse Owens, being given the honor of becoming the first torchbearers. The relay featured 3,636 torchbearers and spanned a distance of around 15,000 kilometres (9,300 mi), at the time the longest distance of any Olympic relay.


1984 Summer Olympics torch relay, Opening ceremony
Rafer Johnson, an Olympic decathlon gold medalist, was the final torchbearer.


1984 Summer Paralympics
The 1984 International Games for the Disabled, canonically the 1984 Summer Paralympics were the seventh Paralympic Games to be held. There were two separate competitions: one in Stoke Mandeville, United Kingdom for wheelchair athletes with spinal cord injuries and the other at the Mitchel Athletic Complex and Hofstra University in Long Island, New York, United States of America for wheelchair and ambulatory athletes with cerebral palsy, amputees, and les autres [the others] (conditions as well as blind and visually impaired athletes).


1984 Summer Paralympics
Stoke Mandeville had been the location of the Stoke Mandeville Games from 1948 onwards, seen as the precursors to the Paralympic Games, as the 9th International Stoke Mandeville Games in Rome in 1960 are now recognised as the first Summer Paralympics. As with the 1984 Summer Olympics, the Soviet Union and other communist countries except China, East Germany, Hungary, Poland and Yugoslavia boycotted the Paralympic Games. The Soviet Union did not participate in the Paralympics at the time, arguing that they have no disabled people (called "invalids" by Soviet officials) in the country. The USSR made its Paralympic debut in 1988, during Perestroika.


1984 Summer Paralympics
The 1984 Paralympic Games were the last Summer Games not to be staged by the same host city as the Olympic Games. Seoul hosted both events in 1988, a pattern maintained thereafter.


1984 Summer Paralympics, Ceremonies
In the opening ceremonies, patchy showers greeted the 14000 spectators packed into the Mitchel Park stadium for the 2pm start of the New York Games opening ceremony on 19 June. New York radio personality William B. Williams introduced everyone with a welcome speech. Entertainers such as Bill Buzzeo and the Dixie Ramblers, Richie Havens, The New Image Drum and Bugle Corps, the ARC Gospel Chorus and the Square Dance Extravaganza followed the introduction speech.


1984 Summer Paralympics, Ceremonies
At the closing ceremonies, Commander Archie Cameron, President of ICC officially closed the games with a short speech acknowledging the athletes and the next host city, Seoul, South Korea. The flag of the games were then lowered and American athletes carried the flags back to the reviewing stand where they were handed over the President of the Organizing Committee, Dr William T. Callahan.


1984 Summer Paralympics, Mascot
The mascot for the 1984 Paralympic Games was Dan D. Lion, which was designed by an art teacher Maryanne McGrath Higgins.


1984 Summer Paralympics, Sports
Competitors were divided into five disability-specific categories: amputee, cerebral palsy, visually impaired, wheelchair, and les autres (athletes with physical disabilities that had not been eligible to compete in previous Games). The wheelchair category was for those competitors who used a wheelchair due to a spinal cord disability. However some athletes in the amputee and cerebral palsy categories also competed in wheelchairs. Within the sport of athletics, a wheelchair marathon event was held for the first time.


1984 Summer Paralympics, Sports
The trials for the two wheelchair events to be held at the 1984 Los Angeles Olympic Games was held in conjunction with the New York Games. However, despite the long and established history of using "paralympic" terminology, in the United States the US Olympic Committee prohibited the Games organizers from using the term. The seventeen contested sports are listed below, along with the disability categories which competed in each.


1984 Summer Paralympics, Medal table
The host nations, Great Britain and the United States, are highlighted. Bahrain,  China, Jordan, Trinidad and Tobago won their first ever medals, with  Luxembourg winning a first ever gold.


1984 Summer Paralympics, Participating delegations
Fifty-four delegations took part in the 1984 Paralympics. Bahrain, China, East Germany, Faroe Islands, Jordan, Liechtenstein, Papua New Guinea, Thailand, Trinidad and Tobago and Venezuela made their first appearances, India and Portugal returned to the Games after a 12-year absence.


1984 Summer Paralympics, Reception at the host cities
Odeda Rosenthal, a professor of humanities at a local community college on Long Island and translator for the Austrian team highlighted a number of problems at the games in a series of articles. She highlighted a number of issues such as poor communication, administrative hiccups and even bus drivers not knowing the routes to scheduled events that even caused some teams to miss events completely. Rosenthal continues by slamming the work by the Police Chief claiming the Chief "took the opposite tack of anything that was suggested to sort out the mess". However, overall reports and the general impression given off by the games was a friendly atmosphere and volunteers trying their hardest under difficult conditions.


1984 Summer Paralympics medal table
The 1984 Summer Paralympics medal table is a list of National Paralympic Committees (NPCs) ranked by the number of gold medals won by their athletes during the 1984 Summer Paralympics, held in Stoke Mandeville, United Kingdom from July 22 to August 1, 1984, and New York City, United States, from June 17 to 30, 1984.


1984 Summer Paralympics medal table, Medal table
The ranking in this table is based on information provided by the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) and is consistent with IPC convention in its published medal tables. By default, the table is ordered by the number of gold medals the athletes from a nation have won (in this context, a "nation" is an entity represented by a National Paralympic Committee). The number of silver medals is taken into consideration next and then the number of bronze medals. If nations are still tied, equal ranking is given and they are listed alphabetically by IPC country code.


1984 Summer Paralympics medal table, Medal table
To sort this table by nation, total medal count, or any other column, click on the  icon next to the column title.


1984 Sun Belt Conference Men's Basketball Tournament
The 1984 Sun Belt Conference Men's Basketball Tournament was held March 2–4 at the Birmingham–Jefferson Civic Center in Birmingham, Alabama.


1984 Sun Belt Conference Men's Basketball Tournament
Hosts UAB upset Old Dominion in the championship game, 62–60, to win their third overall, as well as third consecutive, Sun Belt men's basketball tournament.


1984 Sun Belt Conference Men's Basketball Tournament
The Blazers, in turn, received an automatic bid for the 1984 NCAA Tournament. They were joined in the tournament by fellow Sun Belt member VCU, who received an at-large bid.


1984 Sun Belt Conference Men's Basketball Tournament, Format
There were no changes made to the tournament format from the previous year. All eight conference members were placed into the initial quarterfinal round, with each team being seeded based on its regular season conference record.


1984 Sun Bowl
The 1984 Sun Bowl was a college football postseason bowl game that featured the Tennessee Volunteers and the Maryland Terrapins.


1984 Sun Bowl, Background
Maryland had won their second straight Atlantic Coast Conference title highlighted by their comeback against Miami in which they went on a 42–9 run in the second half to topple the defending champs in Miami. Tennessee had finished tied for 5th in the Southeastern Conference in their 4th straight bowl appearance. This was Maryland's first Sun Bowl since 1978. This was Tennessee's first ever Sun Bowl, and Majors' third Sun Bowl as coach (1971 with Iowa State and 1975 with Pittsburgh).


1984 Sun Bowl, Game summary
Tailback Johnnie Jones gave the Vols an early 7–0 lead on his touchdown plunge from 2 yards out. Fuad Reveiz made it 10–0 on his 24-yard field goal to end the quarter. He added another field goal from 52 yards out to make it 13–0. Tony Robinson threw a touchdown pass to Tim McGee from 6 yards out to make it 21–0. Tommy Neal started the comeback for the Terrapins on his 57-yard touchdown run early in the third quarter to make it 21–6. The Terps soon added a field goal to make it 21–9.


1984 Sun Bowl, Game summary
Rick Badanjek made it 21–16 on his touchdown plunge from a yard out. Ferrell Edmunds caught a 40-yard touchdown pass from Frank Reich to make it 22–21. Pete Panuska gave the Vols the lead on his 100-yard kickoff return with :10 left in the third quarter to make it 27–22, after a missed conversion that would've made it a seven-point lead. With 2:28 to go, Badanjek scored on a touchdown plunge to make it 28–27, after a failed extra point kick. The Vols were driving for the win when Keeta Covington forced the ball loose from Robinson with time expiring, giving Maryland the win. Badanjek ran for two touchdowns, earning MVP honors. Frank Reich went 17-of-28 for 201 yards, with 1 touchdown and interception.


1984 Sun Bowl, Aftermath
Neither team has played in the Sun Bowl since this game.


1984 Super Bowl of Poker
The Super Bowl of Poker (also known as Amarillo Slim's Super Bowl of Poker or SBOP) was the second most prestigious poker tournament in the world during the 1980s. While the World Series of Poker was already drawing larger crowds as more and more amateurs sought it out, the SBOP "was an affair limited almost exclusively to pros and hard-core amateurs."


1984 Super Bowl of Poker
Prior to 1979, the only high dollar tournament a person could enter was the WSOP. 1972 WSOP Main Event Champion and outspoken ambassador for poker Amarillo Slim saw this as an opportunity. "The World Series of Poker was so successful that everybody wanted more than one tournament," he said. Slim called upon his connections and friendships with poker's elite to start a new tournament in the February 1979.


1984 Super Bowl of Poker
Before the SBOP had developed a reputation of its own, many of the most respected names in poker attended the tournament "more to support Slim and take advantage of the very fat cash games the event would obviously inspire." Slim modelled his SBOP after the WSOP with several events and a $10,000 Texas Hold'em Main Event.


1984 Super Bowl of Poker
One of the principal differences between the WSOP and the SBOP was the prize structure. The WSOP's prize structure was flat ensuring more people received smaller pieces of the prize pool. The SBOP typically used a 60-30-10 payout structure. In other words, only the first three places received money and generally in the ratio of 60% to first place, 30% to second place, and 10% to third. This payment schedule predominated the SBOP for the first 5 years of the event, but as the event grew the number of payouts increased while keeping the payout schedule top heavy.


1984 Super Bowl of Poker, 1984 tournament
The 1984 tournament was the first year that a WSOP Main Event Champion won the SBOP Main Event. Stu Ungar who would be one of only two people to win 3 WSOP Main Events, won the first of his three SBOP Main Events in 1984. With his victory, he brought more respect and prestige to the event. Prior to this victory, poker's elite players went to the tournament more with the notion of playing in the associated cash games and to support their friend Amarillo Slim. Stu's victory made the title one that poker's elite sought.


1984 Super Bowl of Poker, 1984 tournament
Lyle Berman, who now serves as the Chairman of the Board of the World Poker Tour and is a member of the Poker Hall of Fame, won the $500 Pot Limit Omaha event.


1984 Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira
The 1984 Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira was the 6th edition of the Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira, the annual Portuguese football season-opening match contested by the winners of the previous season's top league and cup competitions (or cup runner-up in case the league- and cup-winning club is the same). The 1984 Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira was contested over two legs, and opposed Benfica and Porto of the Primeira Liga. Benfica qualified for the SuperCup by winning the 1983–84 Primeira Divisão, whilst Porto qualified for the Supertaça by winning the 1983–84 Taça de Portugal.


1984 Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira
The first leg which took place at the Estádio da Luz, saw Benfica defeat Porto 1–0. The second leg which took place at the Estádio das Antas, saw Porto emulate the first leg result (1–1 on aggregate), which led to the match being replayed one month later over two legs. In the replay, Porto won both matches over the Águias and thus claimed a third Supertaça.


1984 Svenska Cupen Final
The 1984 Svenska Cupen final took place on 20 June 1984 in Helsingborg. The match was contested by Allsvenskan side Malmö FF and Division 2 Södra side Landskrona BoIS. Landskrona played its first final since 1976 and its fourth final in total. Malmö FF played its first final since 1980 and its 14th final in total. Malmö FF won its 12th title with a 1–0 victory.


1984 Swedish Golf Tour
The 1984 Swedish Golf Tour was the inaugural season of the Swedish Golf Tour, a series of professional golf tournaments held in Sweden.


1984 Swedish Golf Tour, Schedule
The season consisted of seven events played between May and September.


1984 Swedish Open
The 1984 Swedish Open was a men's tennis tournament played on outdoor clay courts held in Båstad, Sweden and was part of the Grand Prix circuit of the 1984 Tour. It was the 37th edition of the tournament and was held from 16 July through 22 July 1984. Second-seeded Henrik Sundström won the singles title.


1984 Swedish Open, Finals, Doubles
Jan Gunnarsson /  Michael Mortensen defeated  Juan Avendaño /  Fernando Roese 6–0, 6–0.


1984 Swedish motorcycle Grand Prix
The 1984 Swedish motorcycle Grand Prix was the eleventh round of the 1984 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season. It took place on the weekend of 9–12 August at the Scandinavian Raceway.


1984 Swiss Indoors
The 1984 Swiss Indoors was a men's tennis tournament played on indoor hard courts at the St. Jakobshalle in Basel, Switzerland that was part of the 1984 Volvo Grand Prix. It was the 15th edition of the tournament and was held from 8 October through 14 October 1984. Third-seeded Joakim Nyström won the singles title.


1984 Swiss Indoors, Finals, Doubles
Pavel Složil /  Tomáš Šmíd defeated  Stefan Edberg /  Tim Wilkison 7–6, 6–2


1984 Swiss referendums
Ten referendums were held in Switzerland in 1984. The first three were held on 26 February on introducing tolls for HGVs (approved), introducing tolls for national routes (approved) and a popular initiative "for a real civilian service based on a proof through demonstration" (rejected). The next two were held on 20 May on popular initiatives "against the abuse of bank client confidentiality and bank power" (rejected) and "against the sellout of the homeland" (rejected).


1984 Swiss referendums
Two further referendums were held on 23 September on popular initiatives "for a future without further nuclear power plants" (rejected) and "for a secure, parsimonious and ecologically sound energy supply" (rejected). The final three were held on 2 December on a popular initiative "for an effective protection of maternity" (rejected), a federal resolution on an article in the Swiss Federal Constitution relating to broadcasting (approved) and a popular initiative "for the compensation of victims of violent crimes" (approved).


1984 Sydney bank robbery
The 1984 Sydney bank robbery and hostage crisis was an incident that took place between the hours of 10:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. on 31 January 1984 in George Street, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, when a 35-year-old male went on a bank robbery spree, taking 11 people hostage, before holding police at bay for several hours before finally being shot dead. The event was described as "Australia's most dramatic hostage chase" with "scenes likened to a Hollywood action film."


1984 Sydney bank robbery, Perpetrator
Turkish born 35-year-old Hakki Bahadir Atahan was unemployed at the time of his armed robbery spree and had carried out around 16 or 17 bank robberies between March 1983 and January 1984. Atahan lived an expensive lifestyle renting a luxurious penthouse apartment in Manly, owned several expensive cars and robbed up to three banks a day, amassing over A$150,000 in a year.


1984 Sydney bank robbery, Events
On the morning of 31 January 1984, Atahan had successfully robbed two or three banks before entering the Commonwealth Bank in George Street, Sydney. Due to the earlier robberies, police were on high alert and quickly responded to the Commonwealth Bank robbery with dozens of heavily armed tactical police from both the Tactical Response Group (TRG) and the Special Weapons & Operations Section (SWOS), forming a perimeter. During negotiations, Atahan fired at least two shots from a pistol and released all the bank's customers. Some time later, Atahan released four female bank staff whilst keeping five male staff as hostages.


1984 Sydney bank robbery, Events
Some two-and-a-half hours later, Atahan ended negotiations and emerged from the bank encircled by the five hostages, each of whom was forced to place a hand atop the robber's head. This tactic caused confusion and prevented police marksmen from obtaining a clear view, and thus depriving them of the opportunity to shoot him. Atahan forced the five hostages into a nearby Datsun sedan which had its keys left in it. He then forced a hostage to drive through police roadblocks, which began a pursuit that lasted several hours and involved 39 police cars, a police helicopter and four Water Police launches. After two hours of driving around, Atahan released a hostage and collected his 23-year-old girlfriend Sharon Oliver.


1984 Sydney bank robbery, Events
Upon reaching the Spit Bridge, police raised the bridge, preventing Atahan from travelling any further. Detectives from the Special Weapons & Operations Section (SWOS) approached the vehicle, ordering Atahan to surrender. Atahan fired his .32 ACP pistol at point-blank range at Detective Senior Constable Steve Canelis, striking him just above his nose. Detective Senior Constable Donald Packer fired one shot at Atahan through a side window while Detective Sergent John Nagle shot a round through the back window. Atahan was hit in the head and chest and died. Detective Senior Constable Canelis survived his gunshot wound and returned to work four months later and retired a number of years after with the bullet still lodged in his shoulder.


1984 Sydney bank robbery, Aftermath
The incident, including news footage from the time, features in the 2009 Australian TV series Gangs of Oz, Episode 4 – Armed and Dangerous.


1984 Syracuse Orangemen football team
The 1984 Syracuse Orangemen football team represented Syracuse University during the 1984 NCAA Division I-A football season. The team was led by fourth-year head coach Dick MacPherson and played their home games in the Carrier Dome in Syracuse, New York. Syracuse finished the regular season with a 6–5 record, but were not invited a bowl game.


1984 São Paulo FC season
The 1984 season was São Paulo's 55th season since club's existence.


1984 TAAC Men's Basketball Tournament
The 1984 Trans America Athletic Conference Men's Basketball Tournament (now known as the Atlantic Sun Men's Basketball Tournament) was held March 8–10, 1984 at Spring Branch Coliseum in Houston, Texas.


1984 TAAC Men's Basketball Tournament
Houston Baptist defeated Samford in the championship game, 81–76, to win their first TAAC/Atlantic Sun men's basketball tournament. The Huskies, in turn, received an automatic bid to the 1984 NCAA Tournament, their first Division I tournament appearance.


1984 TAAC Men's Basketball Tournament
Even though Georgia State joined the TAAC for the 1983–84 season, the Panthers did not compete in the conference tournament.


1984 TAM – Transportes Aéreos Regionais Bandeirante accident
On 28 June 1984 an Embraer EMB-110 Bandeirante operated by TAM – Transportes Aéreos Regionais crashed in Brazil with eighteen people on board. There were no survivors.


1984 TAM – Transportes Aéreos Regionais Bandeirante accident, Accident
The Embraer EMB-110 Bandeirante, with registration PP-SBC, operated by Brazilian airline TAM – Transportes Aéreos Regionais, crashed in to a hillside during let-down to land at Macaé.


1984 TAM – Transportes Aéreos Regionais Bandeirante accident, Accident
The Bandeirante was on a domestic charter flight from Rio de Janeiro-Galeão to Macaé when it flew into São João Hill while descending through rain and clouds over the Municipality of São Pedro da Aldeia. All 16 passengers and 2 crew died.


1984 TAM – Transportes Aéreos Regionais Bandeirante accident, Aircraft
The aircraft had been chartered by Brazil's state oil company Petrobras. Fourteen passengers were members of television crews from four different Brazilian networks, who were being taken to the Campos Basin oil field to prepare a special report; the other two passengers were employees of Petrobras.


1984 TAM – Transportes Aéreos Regionais Bandeirante accident, Causes
The crew cancelled the aircraft's flight plan, which had specified operating under Instrument Flight Rules, and descended visually (under Visual Flight Rules); the aircraft hit a hill and was destroyed by the impact and subsequent fire.


1984 TAM – Transportes Aéreos Regionais Bandeirante accident, Investigation
The crew had attempted to descend in bad weather, rain and low clouds; and the International Civil Aviation Authority Accident Summary states that [the crew] exercised poor judgement [and] failed to see and avoid objects,...[a] poorly planned [approach] and disregard of good operating practice, were factors.


1984 TANFL season
The 1984 Tasmanian Australian National Football League (TANFL) premiership season was an Australian rules football competition staged in Hobart, Tasmania over twenty roster rounds and four finals series matches between 31 March and 22 September 1984. The League was known as the Winfield League under a commercial naming-rights sponsorship agreement with Winfield tobacco company.


1984 TANFL season, Season Summary
In what was one of the most even seasons in TANFL history, all six clubs were within striking distance of a top-three berth at various stages during the season. Glenorchy swept all before them during the minor rounds and led the competition by five games (20 points) over their bitterest rival, second placed Clarence - alarmingly for the Magpies, two of their three losses during the season came at the hands of Clarence who they were to fall to twice in the finals.


1984 TANFL season, Season Summary
Hobart, despite finishing on the bottom for the third successive season had been sitting in the top three midway through the season after finding some great form, but after the loss of key players to suspension and injury (including inspirational Captain-Coach and the season's William Leitch Medalist Scott Wade), the Tigers slumped to a 91-point loss to an inconsistent North Hobart side and incredibly, sank to the bottom, finishing with the wooden spoon with six wins, only two wins from a finals spot.


1984 TANFL season, Season Summary
Sandy Bay under four-time premiership coach Paul Sproule started the season in magnificent touch but suffered from a disastrous mid-season slump and barely regained form, needing a win in the final round of the season to make the Four, the Seagulls were thumped by Glenorchy and New Norfolk were able to sneak into the finals at their expense with a commanding 70-point win at Bellerive against the eventual premier, Clarence. The form lines of the two Grand Finalists (Glenorchy & Clarence) in the stretch to the finals could not have been more marked.


1984 TANFL season, Season Summary
Glenorchy sat pretty atop the table winning its final nine roster matches in succession (and 37 out of their previous 40 matches since 1983) while its opponent, Clarence, had won just two out of their final seven (both narrow wins against bottom side Hobart). In the Second Semi Final in wet conditions, Glenorchy looked to be cruising home to another Grand Final at halftime, but the Roos' eventually found some form and shocked the Magpies to boot nine out of the last eleven goals of the game to cruise through to the Grand Final.


1984 TANFL season, Season Summary
Darryl Sutton's North Hobart "Mean Machine" (a theme the club carried through their 1984 campaign) had high hopes of breaking their premiership hoodoo which stretched back to 1974, starting with demolishing New Norfolk in the First Semi Final which included a sensational 12-goal haul from Demons Captain–Coach Darryl Sutton, the Demons were confident of beating Glenorchy for a shot at Clarence for the flag, but the Magpies under coach Garry Davidson had other ideas and used their vast finals experience to their advantage and were untroubled all day in making it through to the Grand Final with a 31-point victory.


1984 TANFL season, Season Summary
The Grand Final was a tight affair, the Roos getting the jump on Glenorchy in the first quarter, but the next two-quarters the game became a close, hard and tough battle. The Clarence team, leading by two-points at the final change, saved its best for last and ran away with a five-goal to one final quarter to upset Glenorchy by 26 points, reviving nightmares of 1979 for Glenorchy who, in that year also were beaten by Clarence despite finishing well out on top. Coach Robert Shaw was a jubilant man as he held the M.A.S McNeair Trophy aloft to signify Clarence's fourth premiership victory since their admittance to the League in 1947.


1984 TCU Horned Frogs football team
The 1984 TCU Horned Frogs football team represented Texas Christian University (TCU) in the 1984 NCAA Division I-A football season. The Horned Frogs finished the season 8–4 overall and 5–3 in the Southwest Conference for their first winning season since 1971. The team was coached by Jim Wacker, in his second year as head coach. The Frogs played their home games in Amon G. Carter Stadium, which is located on campus in Fort Worth, Texas. They were invited to the Astro-Bluebonnet Bowl where they lost to West Virginia by a score of 14–31.


1984 Taipei International Championships
The 1984 Taipei International Championships was a men's tennis tournament played on indoor carpet courts in Taipei, Taiwan that was part of the 1984 Volvo Grand Prix. It was the eighth and last edition of the tournament and was held from 29 October through 4 November 1984. First-seeded Brad Gilbert won the singles title.


1984 Taipei International Championships, Finals, Doubles
Ken Flach /  Robert Seguso defeated  Drew Gitlin /  Hank Pfister 7–6, 6–4


1984 Taiwanese presidential election
Indirect elections were held for the presidency and vice-presidency of the government of the Republic of China on Taiwan on March 21, 1984. The vote took place at the Chung-Shan Building in Yangmingshan, Taipei. Incumbent President Chiang Ching-kuo was re-elected for the second term with Governor of Taiwan Province Lee Teng-hui as the Vice President.


1984 Taiwanese presidential election
Incumbent Vice-President Hsieh Tung-min decided not to seek for his second term due to old age. The then Governor of Taiwan Province Lee Teng-hui, also a Taiwan-born Kuomintang member, was picked Chiang's running-mate. Chiang died in office in January 13, 1988. Vice President Lee Teng-hui then sworn in as the President.


1984 Taiwanese presidential election, Electors
The election was conducted by the National Assembly in its meeting place Chung-Shan Building in Yangmingshan, Taipei. According to the Temporary Provisions against the Communist Rebellion, National Assembly delegates elected in the following elections were eligible to vote:


1984 Taiwanese presidential election, Electors
In total, there were 1,036 delegates reported to the secretariat to attend this seventh session of the first National Assembly.


1984 Talladega 500
The 1984 Talladega 500 was a NASCAR Winston Cup Series race held at Talladega Superspeedway on July 29, 1984.


1984 Talladega 500
It was the 19th of 30 races for the 1984 Winston Cup Grand National season and was telecast live flag to flag on the CBS television network. Cale Yarborough, the winner of that season's Daytona 500, Winston 500 earlier that season at Talladega, and Van Scoy Diamond 500 at Pocono won the pole at a speed of 202.474 mph. Bill Elliott qualified second.


1984 Talladega 500, Background
Talladega Superspeedway, originally known as Alabama International Motor Superspeedway (AIMS), is a motorsports complex located north of Talladega, Alabama. It is located on the former Anniston Air Force Base in the small city of Lincoln. The track is a Tri-oval and was constructed by International Speedway Corporation, a business controlled by the France Family, in the 1960s. Talladega is most known for its steep banking and the unique location of the start/finish line - located just past the exit to pit road. The track currently hosts the NASCAR series such as the Monster Energy Cup Series, Xfinity Series, and the Camping World Truck Series. Talladega Superspeedway is the longest NASCAR oval with a length of 2.66 miles (4.28 km), and the track at its peak had a seating capacity of 175,000 spectators.


1984 Talladega 500, Race report
Four NASCAR Cup Series drivers failed to qualify for this race: Delma Cowart, J.D. McDuffie, Blackie Wangerin and Tommy Gale. Rounding out the race's top ten starters were Dale Earnhardt, Terry Labonte, dark horse racer Tommy Ellis, Buddy Baker, Darrell Waltrip, Neil Bonnett, Ron Bouchard, and rookie Rusty Wallace. Richard Petty, who'd won the Firecracker 400 earlier that month, qualified 11th following word that the Smithsonian Institution wanted to put on permanent display the racecar (a 1984 Pontiac Grand Prix stock car under the ownership of Curb Motorsports) with which he'd won Daytona.