FRAC Bretagne, Rennes

Raymond Depardon

The Olympic Games 1964 - 1980

An iconic photographer views History through the lens of Sport

In 1964, Raymond Depardon had been employed for four years as a photojournalist for the Dalmas agency. He was then sent to Tokyo to cover the Summer Olympics, marking his first steps as a sports photographer. It was a winning trial, as he would go on to cover six Olympic Games, up to the Moscow Games in 1980.

During these events, the renowned photographer learned that to capture the beauty of the moment, he had to anticipate it. This allowed him to freeze the triumph, strength, and extreme emotion: the despair of Michel Jazy after his defeat in the 5,000m event in Tokyo (1964), the radiant joy of Colette Besson winning the 400m in Mexico (1968), the legendary Olympic triple win of Jean-Claude Killy in Grenoble (1968), the grace and perfection of Romanian gymnast Nadia Comaneci in Montreal (1976)... images now etched in the history of sport.

But, driven by his expertise as a great reporter, Raymond Depardon also captured other moments, historical events far beyond the realm of sports: in 1968, he immortalized the raised fist of African-American athletes in Mexico, and in 1972, during the Munich Olympics, he witnessed the hostage-taking of the Israeli delegation. The stadium and history, culture and sport.