The Hollywood-inspired Opening Ceremonies in Los Angeles were perhaps the grandest the Olympics has seen to date. The drama was set into action when Gina Hemphill, the granddaughter of the 1936 Olympic hero, Jesse Owens, carried the Olympic torch into the L.A. Coliseum. The number of 140 participating nations set a new Olympic attendance record. The American decision to boycott the 1980 Games in Moscow had not been forgotten by the Soviets and the U.S.S.R led an eastern bloc boycott of the L.A. Games. Women's track and field, swimming and gymnastics, as well as weightlifting and wrestling suffered most from the Eastern Bloc's absence. Nevertheless, excitement was great. So great that legendary American 400-meter hurdler Edwin Moses, overwhelmed by the honor of taking the athlete's oath, could barely get the necessary words out. Winning a second Olympic gold appeared to be a much easier feat for him to achieve.