The Olympic motto "Citius, Altius, Fortius" is Latin for
"Faster, Higher, Braver," but is universally accepted to
mean "Swifter, Higher, Stronger."
Olympic Creed
-------------
The words of the Olympic Creed are attributed to Baron
Pierre de Coubertin, the founder of the modern Olympic
Games.
"The most important thing in the Olympic Games is not the
win but to take part, just as the most important thing in
life is not the triumph, but the struggle. The essential
thing is not to have conquered but to have fought well."
De Coubertin adopted, and later quoted, this creed after
hearing Ethelbert Talbot, the Bishop of Central
Pennsylvania, speak at St. Paul's Cathedral on July 19,
1908, during the London Games. The service was given for
the Olympic athletes, who were all invited. Talbot's exact
words that day were: "The important thing in these Olympics
is not so much winning as taking part."
Olympic Rings
-------------
The Olympic symbol--five interlocked rings--represents the
union of the five original major continents (Africa,
America, Asia, Australia and Europe) and the meeting of
the athletes from throughout the world at the Olympic Games.
The five colors of the rings from left to right are blue,
black and red across the top and yellow and green along the
bottom. The colors of the rings are thought to have been
chosen because at least one of these colors can be found
in the flag of every nation.
Olympic Flag
------------
The Olympic Flag has a plain white background with no
border. In the center are the five interlocked Olympic
rings. The flag was presented by Baron Pierre de Coubertin
in 1914 at the Olympic Congress is 1914, celebrating the
20th anniversary of the founding of the International
Olympic Committee. It was flown that year at Alexandria,
Greece, but made its Olympic debut in 1920 at Antwerp. The
"primary" Olympic flag was thus known as "the Antwerp flag."
In 1984, Seoul presented a new Olympic flag (as the old was
getting quite worn) to the IOC, which was first flown at the
1988 Olympic Games.
At the Closing Ceremonies of the Olympic Games, the mayor
of the Olympic host city presents the Olympic flag to the
mayor of the next Olympic host city. The flag is then kept
in the town hall of the host city until the next Olympic
Games.
Olympic Hymn
------------
The Olympic Hymn is played when the Olympic Flag is raised.
The music was composed by Spirou Samara. The words were
added by Costis of Greece in 1896.
"Immortal spirit of antiquity
Father of the true, beautiful and good
Descend, appear, shed over us thy light
Upon this ground and under this sky
Which has fits witnessed by unperishable fame.
"Give life and animation to those noble Games
Throw wreaths of fadeless flowers to the victors
In the race and in the strife
Create in our breasts, hearts of steel.
"In thy light, plains, mountains and seas
Shine is a roseate hue and for a vast temple
To which all nations throng to adore thee
Oh immortal spirit of antiquity."
Olympic Mascot
--------------
The first Olympic mascot made a discreet appearance at the
1968 Olympic Winter Games in Grenoble. Its name was Schuss.
The first mascot for the Summer Games was Waldi, the
dachshund of the 1972 Munich Games.
The Olympic mascot, however successful, disappears with the
end of the Games its personifies. It was created to be
understood by everyone, especially the young. It is friendly
and appealing and is part of the visual identity of the Games.
Year Mascot
---- ------
1972 Waldi (dachshund)
1976 Amik (beaver)
1980 Micha (bear)
1984 Sam (eagle)
1988 Hodori (tiger)
1992 Cobi (dog)
1996 Izzy
2000 Olly, Syd, and Millie (kookaburra, platypus,
and echidna)
2004 Phevos and Athena (brother and sister)
Victory Ceremonies
------------------
On the podium, medals are presented to the first, second and
third-place finishers. The winner stands in the middle at the
highest elevation; the runner-up stands slightly below to the
victor's right and the third-place finisher stands lower to
the left. Olympic medals must be at least 66 millimeters in
diameter and at least three millimeters thick. Gold and silver
medals must be made of 92.5 percent pure silver; the gold medal
must be gilded with at least six grams of gold. The design of
the medals is the responsibility of the host city''s organizing
committee.
At the first modern Games in Greece in 1896, medals were
given only to first and second-place finishers. The winner
received a silver medal and the runner-up a bronze medal. The
winner was also given a crown of olive branches, while the
second-place finisher settled for a laurel branch crown.
The 1900 Games in Paris remain the only Olympics where no
medals were awarded. Instead winners were given valuable pieces
of art.
Opening Ceremonies
------------------
Planning and execution of this dazzling spectacle is
primarily the responsibility of the host city, but basic
guidelines, as outlined in the Olympic Charlter of 1985
exist.
Athletes from every country parade into the main Olympic
stadium in alphabetical order according to the host country's
language with two exceptions: Greece, which hosted the first
modern Games in 1896, always leads the parade, and the host
country's team is always last.
A woman carrying each country's respective placard walks in
front of the athletes. Behind her is the standard flagbearer
for each nation. The proceeding program is traditional and
fairly consistent.
The president of the IOC asks the host country's Head of
State to open the Games. The Head of State does the honors
with the following phrase: "I declare open the Games of (host
city), celebrating the (number of the) Olympiad of the modern
era."
Closing Ceremonies
------------------
The closing ceremony, which is also held in the main Olympic
stadium, signals the official end of the Games. Olympic protocol
requires each country to select a standard bearer. The athletes
march in no particular order, between eight and 10 abreast,
"united only by the friendly bonds of Olympic sport."
As the Greek national anthem is played, the Greek flag is
raised to the right of the center flagpole. Then the flag of
the next host country is raised to the left.
The IOC president then pronounces the Games closed with the
following statement: "I call upon the youth of all countries
to assemble four years from now at (the site of the next
Olympics), there to celebrate with us the Games of the (number
of the next) Olympiad."
The official ending of the Olympic Games is marked by the
extinguishing of the Olympic Flame to the strains of the
Olympic Hymn. The Olympic Flag is then lowered and carried
from the stadium by eight people.
Olympic Oath
------------
The Olympic Oath is a symbolic gesture of sportsmanship that
began at the 1920 Olympic Games in Antwerp, Belgium. Basically,
one athlete from the host country takes an oath in the Opening
Ceremonies on behalf of all athletes, pledging to uphold the
Olympic spirit of competition and fair play. It is also given
by a judge from the host country with slightly different wording.
The oath is as follows: "In the name of all competitors, I
promise that we shall take part in these Olympic Games,
respecting and abiding by the rules which govern them, in
the true spirit of sportsmanship, for the glory of sport
and the honor of our teams."
Oathtakers are chosen by the host city's organizing
committee and are usually athletes from the host country.
Year Oathtaker (Sport)
---- -----------------
1920 Victor Boin (Fencing)
1924 George Andrew (Athletics)
1928 Henri Denis (Soccer)
1932 George Calnan (Fencing)
1936 Rudolf Ismayr (Weightlifting)
1948 Donald Finlay (Athletics)
1952 Heikki Savolainen (Gymnastics)
1956 John Landy (Athletics)
1960 Adolfo Consolini (Athletics)
1964 Takashi Ono (Gymnastics)
1968 Pablo Garrido (Athletics)
1972 Heidi Schuller (Athletics)
1976 Pierre St. Jean (Weightlifting)
1980 Nikolai Andrianov (Gymnastics)
1984 Edwin Moses (Athletics)
1988 Huh Jae (Basketball)
Son Mi-na (Team Handball)
1992 Luis Doreste
1996 Teresa Edwards (Basketball)
2000 Rechelle Hawkes (Field Hockey)
2004 TBD
U.S. Olympic Team Flagbearers
-----------------------------
At each Olympic Games--winter and summer--each country's
team is preceded into the Olympic stadium by an athlete or
delegation representative bearing the country's flag.
The flagbearer for the U.S. Olympic Team is normally chosen
by the fellow athletes or respective team captains. The practice
of carrying in the nations' flags first began at the 1908
Olympic Games in London.
Year U.S. Flagbearer (Sport)
---- -----------------------
1908 John C. Garrels (Athletics)
1912 George V. Bonhag (Athletics)
1920 Patrick J. McDonald (Athletics)
1924 Patrick J. McDonald (Athletics)
1928 Lemuel (Bud) C. Houser (Athletics)
1932 F. Morgan Taylor (Athletics)
1936 Alfred A. Jochim (Gymnastics)
1948 Ralph C. Craig (Yachting)
1952 Norman C. Armitage (Fencing)
1956 Norman C. Armitage (Fencing)
#Warren B. Wofford (Equestrian)
1960 Rafer L. Johnson (Athletics)
1964 William Parry O'Brien (Athletics)
1968 Janice Lee Romary (Fencing)
1972 Olga Fikotova Connolly (Athletics)
1976 Gary W. Hall (Swimming)
1980 USA did not attend
1984 Edward Burke (Athletics)
1988 Evelyn Ashford (Athletics)
1992 Francie Larrieu Smith (Athletics)
1996 Bruce Baumgartner (Wrestling)
2000 Cliff Meidl (Canoe/Kayak)
2004 TBD
#Due to Australia's immigration laws for horses, the
1956 equestrian events were held separately in Stockholm.
Olympic Games Torchbearers
--------------------------
The idea of lighting an Olympic flame for the duration of
the Games derives from the ancient Greeks who used a flame lit
by the sun's rays at Olympia, Greece, the site of the original
Games. The concept was revived at the 1936 Olympic Games in
Berlin and has remained an Olympic tradition.
Year Torchbearer
---- -----------
1936 Fritz Schilgen
1948 John Mark
1952 Paavo Nurmi
1956 Ron Clarke
1960 Giancarlo Peris
1964 Yoshinori Sakai
1968 Enriqueta Sotelo
1972 Guenter Zahn
1976 Sandra Anderson
Steve Prefontaine
1980 Sergei Belov
1984 Rafer Johnson
1988 Chung Sun-man
Kim Won-tak
Sohn Mi-chung
1992 Antonio Rebollo
1996 Muhammad Ali
2000 Cathy Freeman
2004 TBD
Olympic Winter Games TV Coverage
--------------------------------
Year Location Network Amount Paid
---- -------- ------- -----------
1960 Squaw Valley, Calif. CBS $50,000
1964 Innsbruck, Austria ABC $597,000
1968 Grenoble, France ABC $2.5 million
1972 Sapporo, Japan NBC $6.4 million
1976 Innsbruck, Austria ABC $10 million
1980 Lake Placid, N.Y. ABC $15.5 million
1984 Sarajevo, Yugoslavia ABC $91.5 million
1988 Calgary, Canada ABC $309 million
1992 Albertville, France CBS $243 million
1994 Lillehammer, Norway CBS $300 million
1998 Nagano, Japan CBS $375 million
2002 Salt Lake City, Utah NBC $545 million
2006 Torino, Italy NBC $613 million
Summer Olympic Games TV Coverage
--------------------------------
Year Location Network Amount Paid
---- -------- ------- -----------
1960 Rome, Italy CBS $394,000
1964 Tokyo, Japan NBC $1.5 million
1968 Mexico City, Mexico ABC $4.5 million
1972 Munich, West Germany ABC $7.5 million
1976 Montreal, Canada ABC $25 million
1980 Moscow, Soviet Union NBC $87 million
1984 Los Angeles, Calif. ABC $225 million
1988 Seoul, Korea NBC $300 million
1992 Barcelona, Spain NBC $401 million
1996 Atlanta, Ga. NBC $456 million
2000 Sydney, Australia NBC $705 million
2004 Athens, Greece NBC $793 million
2008 Beijing, China NBC $894 million
