Three Seconds in Munich
September 1972. The most disputed ending in Olympic history
The United States had never lost an Olympic basketball game when they met the Soviet Union in the 1972 final in Munich. With three seconds left, Doug Collins made two free throws to give the US a 50 to 49 lead.
What followed is still argued about today. Because of confusion over a timeout, officials reset the clock to three seconds, not once but twice. On the final try, Ivan Edeshko threw a pass the length of the court to Alexander Belov, who caught it under the basket and scored. The Soviet Union won 51 to 50.
The US protest was rejected, and the American players voted unanimously to refuse their silver medals. The medals are still stored in Switzerland. It remains the only time an Olympic team in any sport has refused its medals.
What changed
The game proved that the US was no longer unbeatable in international basketball. It also led to stricter rules and better technology for timeouts and game clocks in international play.