German leader Adolf Hitler had hoped to promote the myth of Aryan superiority at the 1936 Olympics in Berlin. African American track athlete Jesse Owens, however, undermined that message. He was the star of the Games, winning four gold medals. After the Olympics ended, stories claiming that Owens had been “snubbed” by Hitler circulated widely. As the most common variant of the story goes, after Owens won his first medal, Hitler, not wanting to acknowledge a non-Aryan athlete’s ability, left the stadium.
It is true that Hitler did not shake hands with Owens. In fact, he did not congratulate any gold medalists after the first day of competition on August 2, 1936. On the first day, Hitler met and shook hands with all the German gold medalists. (He also shook hands with a few Finnish athletes.) That night, Hitler left the stadium before African American high jumper Cornelius Johnson won his first gold medal; Hitler’s staff maintained that he had a pre-scheduled appointment. Hitler was reprimanded, and the head of the International Olympic Committee, Henri de Baillet-Latour, told him that he could either congratulate all the gold medalists or none. Hitler chose to honor no one.
The next day—August 3, 1936—Owens won his first gold medal in the 100-meter dash. Hitler did not meet or shake hands with Owens. That said, there are several reports of a salute or wave. According to sports reporter and author Paul Gallico, writing from Berlin, Owens was “led below the honor box, where he smiled and bowed, and Herr Hitler gave him a friendly little Nazi salute, the sitting down one with the arm bent.” Owens himself later confirmed this, claiming that they exchanged congratulatory waves.