out of medals; Soviets ultimately won gold, with their lone loss being to the US. In gymnastics, Japan continued to frustrate the Soviets, once again surpassing them in the medal standings. Last but not least, the US basketball team won its seventh consecutive gold medal, a feat not matched by any other Olympic team in ball sports. Very few would have assumed that this was the last time that the US finished first in the medal table in a fully attended Summer Olympics until 1996 (the Americans would top the medal standings in 1984 with the Soviet Union and its satellites boycotting). The Munich Olympics saw the Soviet Union begin its streak of topping the medal count at five consecutive summer games in which they participated (1972–1992, though in 1992 they would compete as the Unified Team as the USSR dissolved half a year prior to the games, and the newly independent countries decided to compete together). The sporting nature of the event was largely overshadowed by the Munich massacre in the second week, in which eleven Israeli athletes and coaches and a West German police officer at Olympic village were killed by Black September terrorists. There were multiple calls to cancel the games after the terrorist attack, but the IOC declined. From a sporting standpoint, these games were one of the most controversial in history, with many accusing the organizing committee of anti-Americanism and trying to appease the Soviet Union and East Germany. Indeed, these were one of the strangest Olympics ever for American athletes. US world record holders in the 100 meters were given the wrong starting time and were unable to compete in the event, thus paving the way for a Soviet to win. In swimming, the US gold medal winner in the 400 meters freestyle was stripped of his medal for using his prescription asthma medication, also depriving him of a chance at multiple medals. US boxers complained that they were judged unfairly in the bouts against their communist counterparts. In shooting, a US athlete initially won the 50 meters rifle only to be relegated to silver after a "review". Finally, in the most controversial event of the games, and one of the most controversial events of all time, the US basketball team was denied gold after apparently winning the final match against the Soviet Union. The final three seconds of the game were replayed three