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Episode details

World Service,11 Jan 2015,9 mins

The Harlem Globetrotters in the Soviet Union

Sporting Witness

Available for over a year

In 1959, the Harlem Globetrotters paid an unlikely Cold War visit to the Soviet Union. Their mixture of athleticism and American-style entertainment eventually won over basketball fans in Moscow and earned them hugs from Soviet leader, Nikita Khrushchev. Former Globetrotter Meadowlark Lemon talks to Sporting Witness. (Photo: The Harlem Globetrotters arriving in Moscow in 1959. Credit: Harlem Globetrotters International)

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