Anyone’s memories of the 1972 Munich Olympics are tainted with the horrific massacre in which 11 Israeli athletes and coaches, a West German police officer and five terrorists were killed. Luckily the Maltese cycling team had left before the shootings, although one of them could have been among those killed. Four decades later, the four cyclists share their memories with Veronica Stivala.

Louis Bezzina

What I remember most of the 1972 Munich Olympics is being in awe at the beauty of the country. I was 21 back then and was so excited that I had landed myself the opportunity to participate in the Olympics. It was only my second time abroad – the first time was the previous year when I went to the Mediterranean games in Turkey – and the whole experience was just incredible.

I had got to know one of the Israeli weightlifters who was killed by the terrorists. We had been staying on the same hotel floor and had sort of become friends. You never forget something like this. It hits you hard.

I still remember the thrill I felt when we got there. Of course, back then, we were all amateurs and didn’t have any facilities or even any professional medics with us. We had to do everything ourselves. We even used to give each other massages since we didn’t have any sports doctors with us.

Despite our lack of resources, we should have done better in our race as we had done very well in the trial. Had we kept the same record of our trial race, we’d surely have placed in the top 10. We had high hopes, yet we came home disappointed.

My favourite memories of the Munich Olympics are the friendly people and the fact that we four cyclists remain close to this day.

The post-race adrenaline rush was heavily dampened by the news we got of the shootings back in Munich. There are no words to describe how terrible I felt.

I had got to know one of the Israeli weightlifters who was killed by the terrorists. We had been staying on the same hotel floor and had sort of become friends. You never forget something like that. It hits you hard.

To this day I’m still an avid cycling fan and am a member of the cycling club in Australia where I have been living for the past 38 years. Having participated at the Olympics gives you a certain status – you remain an Olympian for life. People still look up to you for this life achievement.

I’m looking forward to watching this year’s edition of the Olympics. I hope the Australian team do well – I’ll be looking out for Cadel Lee Evans. I also think the British have a very strong team with top cyclists like Bradley Wiggins and Chris Froome.

Joseph Said

My trip to Munich was the first time I ever saw a colour television. It was such an overwhelming experience. I can also clearly remember being amazed by the wonderful fruit they had – I had never seen or tasted fruit of such quality.

You Palestinian. Your surname, Said.” I answered that I was Maltese and he apologised for his mistake and walked off. I think that was a very close shave.

Before we went up for the games we had trained very hard for around two years. A short while before the Olympics, some roads in Malta were closed especially for us so we could get some practice before the big race.

After all this training as well as the support we received, it was such a let down to have to stop half way through the race. We hadn’t been taught how to stretch properly nor were we given professional massages – I got terrible muscle pain and couldn’t carry on.

But I still have fond memories of this landmark in my life. The most important aspect was that I was representing Malta – this was something very special for me.

The Maltese contingent became very close and I was heartbroken when our coach John Bugeja died years later. I went to many of the games at the Sydney Olympics but it didn’t come close to the atmosphere there was in Munich. I’ll never forget it.

Another poignant memory is of course the terrible tragedy that happened after we left. When I tried to get hold of a DVD of the games, I realised it didn’t exist as no one wants to remember this particular edition of the games.

It was only many years later that it dawned on me that I was very lucky to have made it back home – a particular incident that happened while I was in Munich suddenly made sense to me. I was watching the film 21 Hours at Munich (1976) when I remembered how a man had approached me and asked me where I was from. He said, “You Palestinian. Your surname, Said.” I answered that I was Maltese and he apologised for his mistake and walked off. I think that was a very close shave.

As for this year’s London 2012 Olympics, I have my money on the UK cyclists, the Australians, the Italians and the Americans. I can’t wait for the games to begin.

John Magri

Once you take part in the Olympics, you’re an Olympian for life. Taking part in the games is the highest target for a sportsman and I still appreciate it this to this very day.

If it wasn’t for my wife Pawlina, I wouldn’t have advanced as much as I did in my cycling profession. She was always behind me. She was there through my five concussions, two of which could have been fatal.

When we arrived, there was such a beautiful atmosphere. Adrenaline was running high. Security was tight and of course no one ever dreamed that a tragedy would strike. I still remember those who lost their lives in my prayers. I still feel their loss. These were athletes doing their part for their country – it hurts so much to think about what happened to them.

We left before this happened because we only got as far as the team time trial. Out of 35 teams we managed to beat Malaysia, Thailand, Cameroon and Iran who came in 35th, 34th, 33rd and 32nd respectively. We lost one of our cyclists – Joseph Said – half way through the race but still carried on, doing our utmost. Being the captain, I even tried to encourage him to continue, but it wasn’t to be. I’m still pleased with our results because our timing when we were one down wasn’t far off from when we were a full team: the first 50km was 1 hour 13 minutes and 54 seconds while the second 50km, with one less cyclist, was 1 hour 22 minutes.

Unfortunately, even though it is a marvellous experience to take part in such a great manifestation, people from small countries like us do suffer from an inferiority complex when they find themselves side by side with so much more experienced athletes. We didn’t have the resources to train or to travel enough to gain experience competing against different nationalities.

If it wasn’t for my wife Pawlina, I wouldn’t have advanced as much as I did in my cycling profession. She was always behind me. She was there through my five concussions, two of which could have been fatal. She was there for me when I was winning and there for me when I was losing.

This year I’ll be looking out for British cyclist Mark Cavendish. He’s great. He’s won gold in the madison event at the 2005 and 2008 World Championships and in the scratch race at the Commonwealth Games.

Freddie Tonna

It was something out of this world to take part in the Olympic Games in Munich in 1972. I remember feeling so accomplished that I was able to take part – this is the highest point for an athlete, to get to the Olympics.

What was lovely about this experience was that we Maltese became such a tight-knit group of friends.

That said, the flipside to this was that competing with so many other more experienced athletes made us feel so small and not on a par with them. We lacked the knowledge to train properly and were also of a much lower level than them. Our cycling was not of the same quality as the other cyclists. We also lacked the experience of having travelled widely and competed with many other athletes of higher quality. Knowing this naturally affected our confidence.

What was lovely about this experience was that we Maltese became such a tight-knit group of friends. During these games, and in other sporting trips in the future, we often ended up in the same hotel, and many times even shared a room together. It was also great to meet so many other athletes. We’d meet at meal times and then all go off to train.

Cycling was my life. I had only been married for three months when I participated in the 1972 Olympics. The day after my wedding day I had to get up early to go cycling. My wife was and has always been very understanding of my cycling, and so have my three children.

As for the terrorist attacks, of course I was utterly shocked. At first I wasn’t sure what had happened but when it finally hit home I was devastated. I recall thinking that so many more people could have been hurt or killed.

At the London 2012 Olympics, I’ll be looking out for Peter Schleck from Luxembourg. It’s a pity his brother Andy won’t be racing due to an injury at the Tour de France as he’s the better of the two. I also think Mark Cavendish will do very well for Britain. Though who knows who’ll win – there are always a couple of surprises.