The 1980 Moscow Games will always be highlighted by two independent yet related phenomena. The first, of course, was the United States' victory over Russia in the most famous hockey game ever played. The second is the Cold War backdrop against which the Games were played.
Russia gets its second chance to host the Games, this time in Sochi, and a chance to do it without Cold War rhetoric. Unfortunately, the two foes are at it again. This time Ukraine is the new east/west Germany. In a dialogue that is all too familiar, the west wants the Ukraine to open its markets and manufacturing to Europe and the U.S. Russia wants Ukraine, which is essentially the only buffer between it and the E.U. all to itself. Ukraine is caught, literally and figuratively, in the middle.
It seems that time does not heal all wounds, or if it does, it does not seal them permanently.
