Did you know the very first official Olympic mascot was a dog, therefore making it perfect for an article on Celebrity Pets? For the 1972 Summer Games in Munich, Germany, they patriotically selected their country’s most famous breed: The Dachshund – famed for its endurance, tenacity, and agility.
Named Waldi, the proud pup was created envisioned by designer Otl Aicher. He was part of the Munich Games Organising Committee, which hosted a Christmas party in 1969. The attendees were given clay, crayons, and paper, to dream up a mascot design – with Aicher winning out. He then tasked Elena Winschermann, a graphic designer on his team, to fully design Waldi in all his forms while incorporating some of the Olympic colors.
Waldi was an instant hit, with the sausage dog turned into merch such as various toys, posters, stickers, buttons, and more – With more than 2 million Waldi-related items sold. This success led to all future Olympic Committees creating mascots to help promote and raise funds for the Games. The marathon route around Munich was also shaped after Waldi’s outline. And in protest to the Games’ $750 million price tag (three times the cost of the previous Summer Games in Mexico), unofficial posters were distributed of Waldi using the Olympic Tower as a fire hydrant…
To help design Waldi, a model named Cherie von Birkenhof was used. Cherie was a long-haired Dachshund that the Munich Games Organizing Committee president gifted to the International Sports Press Association President.
Before the last Summer Games, The Olympic Museum posted a video interview with graphic designer Elena Winschermann.