Agree, we are used to taking some events for granted, without really thinking about either the history of their occurrence or the characteristic features.
Perhaps, the Olympics can be attributed to similar events of a global scale. But every time sports of this kind attract the attention of not even hundreds, but hundreds of thousands of devoted sports fans around the world.
Unbelievable, but they have been held for 118 years, and now both the fire and the rings of the Olympic Games are perceived as usual.
What do these symbols mean and why did they become cult? Perhaps, not every modern person can answer this question.
Section 1. Olympics today
In general, the olympiad should be understood as a sporting event of an international scale, in which thousands of athletes from different countries compete.
There are summer and winter Olympic Games, held alternately every two years. That is, purely theoretically it can be calculated that events of such a plan are arranged only in even years. And if in 2014 the Olympics was winter, then the next, already summer, will be held in 2016. By the way, by the decision of a special commission, Rio de Janeiro (Brazil) is instructed to accept it.
Section 2. Five rings of the Olympic Games as the main symbol of competition
A white flag with characteristic symbols ... At a certain moment, as if by a magic wand, it appears everywhere: on buildings, on sports and casual clothes, interior items and even on children's toys.
The snow-white background symbolizes world peace. And this is far from accidental, because for a long time during the Olympics on the whole planet, hostilities and conflicts ceased and cease.
The number and colors of the rings of the Olympic Games placed on the flag are also very thought out. They are painted in yellow, blue, black, red and green.
First of all, we note that the rings of the Olympic Games symbolize the five continents of the planet: America, Europe, Asia, Africa and Oceania. Why is it so, because the globe consists of six? The fact is that the Antarctic and the Arctic, due to their uninhabitation, were not taken into account when developing the symbol.
Ah these rings of the Olympic Games! What they mean was invented a little later. Today, even schoolchildren can talk about the fact that every part of the world is associated with its own specific color scheme. Europe is blue, Africa is black, America is red, Asia is yellow, Oceania is green.
Section 3. The emblem of the Olympic Games: rings and their history
This symbolic sign was developed in 1912 by Pierre de Coubertin, the founder of the modern Olympic Games. They accepted the emblem in 1914, although it should be noted that she made her debut much later, only in 1920, at the Olympics in Belgium. It was originally planned that the world would see a flag decorated with a new symbol in 1916, but World War I prevented the holding of major
sporting events.It is hardly worth mentioning that immediately after its appearance, the rings fell in love and became an integral attribute of the Olympics. In subsequent years, they were used to create various logos related to the Games.
Section 4. Has the symbol been upgraded?
Oddly enough, but yes. And the Olympic rings underwent the biggest changes at the 1936 Olympics, held in Berlin, the German capital.
Firstly, the rings were not arranged as usual in two rows, but in one. Their arrangement is a bit similar to the traditional one due to the fact that the first, third and fifth of them were raised compared to the second and fourth.
Secondly, both the rings and the eagle holding them were made in black and white. In subsequent years, the monochrome version of the logo of the Olympic Games was used quite often, but the location was no longer changed.
In 1960, in Italy, artists made a symbol of the Olympic Games - rings - voluminous. It was made in gray. The rings were located under the Roman she-wolf, who, according to legend, nourished Romulus and Remus, who founded Rome. By the way, in that year a new tradition was introduced - to hang medals on the neck of athletes.
The Mexicans, who hosted the Games in 1968, approached the creation of the Olympic logo no less creatively. This time, as a symbol of the Olympic Games, the rings were inscribed in the inscription "Mexico City-68" and highlighted in color. The lower rings were part of the figure 68.
Section 5. The unopened ring of the Sochi Olympics
But not everything is as smooth as it might seem at first glance. The rings of the Olympic Games, which mean the five inhabited continents of the planet, were not always successful. Something was condemned, something was welcomed, and there was something that went down in history.
A small technical incident with rings occurred at the opening ceremony of the Olympics in 2014 in Sochi (Russia).
According to the plan, during the show, large snowflakes hanging over the Fisht Stadium were to be transformed into Olympic rings. But only four were revealed. One ring remained hanging a snowflake.
However, Russian viewers did not see this hitch, as the organizers a little earlier than the rest understood what was happening, and broadcasted footage from the rehearsal.
During the closing of the Olympic Games, this incident with an unopened ring was ironically beaten. At the beginning of the ceremony, the participants in the show formed a composition with five rings and one snowflake, which after a few seconds quickly opened.
Section 6. Other Olympics Symbols
It should be noted that, in addition to the official flag and rings, there are other symbols of the Olympics.
- Fire. The tradition to light a torch was taken by Coubertin in 1912 from the ancient Greeks. The Olympic flame is a symbol of purity, the struggle for victory and self-improvement. It was first lit in 1928. The torch for the transfer of the torch to the city where the Game is held, began to be held in 1936.
- Medals. For the first place, the athlete is awarded a gold medal, for the second - silver, for the third - bronze. They are awarded to winners after the competition at a special ceremony.
- The motto "Citius, Altius, Fortius" can be translated into Russian as "Faster, Higher, Stronger." For the first time, these words were said by priest Henri Martin Didon during the opening of a college sporting event. Coubertin thought that this phrase perfectly reflects the essence of the Olympic Games.
- The oath according to which the participants of the Games must respect and abide by the established rules. Its text was written by Pierre de Coubertin and first sounded in 1920.
- The Olympic principle was also defined by Pierre de Coubertin in 1896. It says that in the Olympics, as in life, the main thing is not victory, but participation.
- The opening ceremony of the games is the most solemn part. It hosts a parade of athletes from all countries participating in competitions. The first is the Greek team, then the teams of countries according to the alphabet, and the last is the team of the country organizing the Games.
Section 7. Interesting Facts About the Olympics
According to the decision of the
International Olympic Committee, at least 6 grams should be contained in gold medals of pure gold in the form of a coating.
On the logos of the Olympic Games, the year is usually written in four or two digits (Athens 2004 or Barcelona 92). In the entire history of the Games, only once in 1960 in Rome was the year written in five letters (MCMLX).
During the Great Depression in 1932, the Brazilian government did not find the money to send its delegation to the Los Angeles Olympic Games. As a result, 82 Brazilian athletes were put on a ship with coffee in order to bring them to America with the proceeds. When the ship arrived at the port of San Pedro, its leaders demanded to pay one dollar for each person who went ashore. Only those who had a chance to get a medal were lowered from the ship. He then went to San Francisco to sell coffee and was able to drop a few more athletes, but 15 athletes returned back to Brazil.
In 1956, the Summer Olympics was held in Melbourne, which could not accept some sports. Australian quarantine regulations prohibited the import of horses, and equestrian competitions had to be held in Stockholm.
Section 8. Let's look into the future
As previously reported, the next Olympic Games will be held in Brazil, in the world famous holiday city of Rio de Janeiro.
This capital of carnivals knows how not only to surprise. It literally amazes every traveler, which means there is no doubt that the 2016 Olympics will be another amazing event.
Whether the ring of the Olympic Games will undergo changes, which means the unity of the planet, is still unknown, since such details are usually the secret part of the opening ceremony.