The 1952 Olympic Games were a reflection of the Cold War. The Soviet Union, after having been out of the Games since 1912, rejoined but instead of staying with the other athletes in the Olympic Village they set up their own village for Eastern bloc countries in Otaniemi, near the Soviet naval base at Porkkala. Their athletes were chaperoned by Soviet officials everywhere to prevent communication with athletes from the West.
In equestrian events non military competitors and women were allowed for the first time.
Israel competed in the Olympics for the first time.
More records were broken at Helsinki than at any other games until 2008.
Japan and Germany (represented by three states post partition) were invited back and 1952 is still the only year the Germans failed to win a single medal. Perhaps because of this a systematic routine of state endorsed steroid ingestion by East German athletes was about to commence.
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