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Before the start of the Cold War the USA was the dominant nation in Olympic weightlifting

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Despite it's great success early in the history of the sport the USA was unable to triumph over the USSR in the Iron Game.

What does this tell us about the Cold War? Could the conflict that never came have been more uncertain than we now often think it was?

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The Soviets differed from their American rivals by applying empiricism to their weight training, treating the sport more like a science than a competitive from of recreation

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Even today, some of the most important pieces of research on resistance training come from Soviet Scientists such as Verkohoshansky.

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Much of the research done by soviet scientists is influential in how modern athletes train, laying the fundamentals for modern sports medicine and strength and conditioning programming

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Both the USA and USSR sought to cultivate athletic cultures that would produce good athletes. Unlike the US however, the soviets used a "triangle strategy", which exposed as many people to sports as possible to increase the statistical chances of superior athletes being discovered

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While individualism has always been an important factor in American culture, the Soviets sought to instill their ideals of working for the communal good in their athletes. This pressured Soviet athletes to succeed in sports that weren't soviet strong suits, such as chess and (initially weightlifting)

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During the perestroika period, Soviet athletes were first allowed to compete in foreign countries, both to bring home prize money for the motherlands economy, but also to possibly improve relations with other nations

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A common criticism from the west regarding Soviet athletics has been allegations of doping, and the use of steroids and other performance enhancing drugs

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It is speculated that the Soviets employed steroids in aiding their athletes as early as 1954. After developing suspicions regarding this, the Americans employed figures such as Dr. John Ziegler to also "enhance" their athletes

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By securing a head start in the development of steroids, and the level of secrecy placed on the research, the Soviets were able to leverage PED's to give their athletes an edge in competition. This was not without consequence however, as advances in and the implementation of drug testing led to controversy surrounding Soviet tactics for the Olympic games.

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Despite the controversies and the eventual collapse of the USSR, the soviets were able to find greater success in the Iron game than the Americans due to their better training methodology, unique athletic culture, and advances in sports medicine.

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As it stands today the USSR still has more medals in weightlifting than any other country in the world, despite no longer existing. The USA , the longtime competition to the soviets, holds the 3rd most, with China holding the second most.