First Olympics TV Broadcast... 1936!

German Television Cameras Used in 1936 Olympics

The first live television coverage of a sports event took place at the 1936 Berlin Summer Olympics. It was televised by two German companies, Telefunken and Fernseh, the using RCA and Farnsworth hardware. Three cameras were utilized, telecasting from four areas, totaling 72 hours of live broadcasting. Booths known as "Public Television Offices" were made available for viewing in Potsdam and Berlin.

Germany had carried out regular television transmissions since 1929. If that wasn't amazing enough, the German Reichspost had also instituted the first telephone television service between Berlin and Leipzig - videophones in the 1930s!

[From Television History - The First 75 Years.]