MANILA, Philippines?While the world is agog about the Beijing Olympics, we remember two outstanding films in the ?80s whose messages remain relevant to our times: ?Chariots of Fire? and ?Sword of Gideon.?

?Chariots of Fire? tells the story of Eric Liddell (Ian Charleson) and Harold Abrahams (Ben Cross), two British track athletes in the 1924 Olympics. The former, a devout missionary and England?s fastest 100-meter runner, joined the Olympics because he believed it would glorify God. Unfortunately, he refused to run on a Sunday despite pressure from the Olympic committee, the Prince of Wales, and his countrymen, who expected him to win the gold in the 100-meter race. The latter, a Jewish student at Cambridge University, was running for fame and prestige. He saw the Olympics as an escape from racial prejudice.

Later, Liddell agreed to have another member of the team take his place in the 100-meter category. He won the gold in the 400-meter race, while Abrahams triumphed in the century dash. The movie stressed the importance of one?s faithfulness to his principles.

?Sword of Gideon,? examined the morality of revenge. It told the story of an antiterrorist hit squad recruited by the Mossad (Israel?s equivalent of the CIA) to avenge the kidnap and murder of 11 Israeli athletes in the 1972 Munich Olympics.

The made-for-TV film, which starred Michael York and Rod Steiger, followed the squad leader?s activities after his team?s assignment went awry. He later migrated to the US with his wife and son (after finding out that the Israeli government had forfeited all his benefits). In the end, he returned to his country to answer the call of duty.