"The Sportvereinigung Dynamo (German: Sportvereinigung Dynamo (help·info)) (Dynamo Sports Association) was the sport association of the security agencies (Volkspolizei, Ministry for State Security and customs) of former East Germany. The association was founded on 27 March 1953 and was headquartered in Hohenschönhausen in East Berlin. From the date of its inception until 23 November 1989 the president of the SV Dynamo was Erich Mielke, the Minister of State Security.
Dynamo was set up following the multi-sports club model developed in the Soviet Union and adopted throughout Eastern Europe. From the beginning it had an overtly political as well as sporting agenda and its many successes were always portrayed as a triumph of the German Democratic Republic (GDR). Following the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989, SV Dynamo was liquidated. At its height, the association had a membership of over 280,000 members. Athletes of the association enjoyed considerable success both in national and international competitions, winning for example more than 200 Olympic medals. After German reunification in 1990 the systematic doping of Dynamo athletes from 1971 until 1989 was revealed by the German media. Doping was done under the supervision of the Stasi and with full backing of the government." - (en.wikipedia.org 08.04.2021)
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