Blutspiel von Melbourne
The "Blood In The Water" match (in Hungarian Melbourne-i vérfürdő, "Blood Bath" of Melbourne) was a water polo match between Hungary and the USSR at the 1956 Melbourne Olympics and is arguably the most famous match in water polo history. The match was played out against the background of the 1956 Hungarian Revolution and saw Hungary defeat the USSR 4–0. The name was coined by the media after Hungarian player Ervin Zador emerged from the pool late in game with blood pouring from a cut under his right eye.
On October 23, 1956, a small demonstration of students had escalated into a full blown uprising against the Soviet puppet government in Budapest. For a few days it appeared that Hungary might be able to free itself from the clutches of the USSR. On November 1, however, Soviet tanks began rolling into Hungary and from November 4 to November 10 forces began suppressing the uprising with a combined arms strategy of air strikes, artillery bombardments, and coordinated tank-infantry actions.
At the time of the uprising, the Hungarian water polo team was in a mountain training camp above Budapest. They were able to hear the gunfire and see smoke rising. The team were the defending Olympic champions; with the Summer Olympics in Melbourne less than two months away, they were quickly moved over the border into Czechoslovakia to avoid them being caught up in the revolution. The players only learned of the true extent of the uprising after arriving in Australia and they were all anxious for news of friends and family.
By the start of the Olympics, the uprising had been brutally dealt with, and many of the players saw the Olympics as a way to salvage some pride for their country. "We felt we were playing not just for ourselves but for our whole country" said Zador after the match. By this time, the international community had become aware of the full brutality of the Soviet response to the Hungarian uprising and the Hungarian Olympic team was cheered wherever it competed. The "Blood In The Water" match was played out in front of a partisan crowd bolstered with expatriate Hungarians, many of whom had been in the boxing arena a few days before to see Laszlo Papp win his third gold medal.
From the start, the match was a very physical encounter with kicks and punches being exchanged. Star Hungarian player Zador scored two goals to the cheers of the crowd. Leading 4–0 going into the final minutes, Zador was forced to leave the pool after being punched by Valentin Prokopov. Zador's injury was the final straw for a crowd which was already in a frenzy. To avoid a riot breaking out, the match was abandoned with 1 minute to go and police entered the arena to shepherd the crowd away. Pictures of Zador's injuries were published in the press around the world leading to the "Blood in the Water" name, although reports that the water did actually turn red were probably an exaggeration.
The Hungarians went on to beat Yugoslavia 2–1 in the final and win their fourth Olympic gold medal. Following the Olympics, half of the 100-member Hungarian Olympic delegation defected.
In 2006, for the 50th anniversary of the 1956 Hungarian Revolution, a documentary film Freedom's Fury was released telling the story of the match. The film was produced by Lucy Liu and Quentin Tarantino, who described it as "the best story I've ever been told". The documentary was narrated by Mark Spitz, who was coached by Zador as a teenager.
See also
- Ervin Zador
- 1956 Hungarian Revolution
- 1956 Melbourne Olympics
- Water polo at the 1956 Summer Olympics
References
- Article in Sports illustrated
- Article in Radio Free Europe
- Article in Sydney Morning Herald
- Article in New York Times