The Olympic
Flame
The most revered
and visible symbol of the Olympic Games competition is the
Olympic Flame.
During the
ancient Games, in Olympia, a sacred flame burned continually
on the altar of the goddess, Hera.
In the modern
era, the Olympic Flame first appeared at the 1928 Amsterdam
Games. The idea for the flame first had been suggested by
Theodore Lewald, a member of the International Olympic
Committee, who later became one of the chief organizers of
the 1936 Berlin Games.
The tradition
of the Olympic Torch Relay, which culminates in the lighting
of the Olympic cauldron at the Opening Ceremony of each
Games, dates to the 1936 Berlin Games. Carl Diem, the noted
Olympic historian and head of the organizing committee,
created the first torch relay to symbolize the link between
the ancient and modern Olympic Games. The flame was lit in a
ceremony at Olympia, Greece. From there, 3,000 runners
carried the torch through seven countries to Berlin. The
relay was timed so that the flame arrived at the stadium at
the precise moment required. Ever since, the lighting of the
Olympic cauldron has become the most hallowed moment of the
Olympic Games.
The first
torch relay of the Olympic Winter Games was organized for
the 1952 Oslo Games. The flame was kindled at the home where
legendary Norwegian skier Sondre Nordheim was born.
Ninety-four skiers carried the flame to the Opening Ceremony
in Oslo's Bislett Stadium. At the 1994 Lillehammer Games,
ski-jumper Stein Gruben literally leaped into the Olympic
arena with the flame.
The youngest
person ever to light the Olympic flame was Robin Perry, age
12, who lit the flame at the 1988 Calgary Olympic Winter
Games.
At the 2002
Salt Lake City Games the honor of lighting the Olympic Flame
was given to a group, rather than an individual or pair, for
the first time. The entire 1980 U.S. Olympic Hockey team,
led by Captain Mike Eruzione, lit the flame.
Greek
windsurfer Nikos Kaklamanakis, a four-time Olympian, was the
final torch-bearer at the Opening ceremony of the Athens
Olympic Games.
Olympic Medals
Olympic
medals are awarded to those individuals or teams placing
first, second, and third in each event. The first place
winner is bestowed a gold-plated medal of silver, which is
commonly referred to as the "gold medal." Second and third
places receive medals of silver and bronze. The silver used
in the first and second place medals must be at least 92.5%
pure. The "gold" medals must be gilded with at least six
grams of pure gold. Medals also carry the name of the sport
contested. Competitors who finish in the 1st through 8th
places in an Olympic event receive an award diploma. The IOC
awards commemorative pins to each athlete who participates
in the Olympic Games.
The front
sides of the medals awarded at the Games of the Olympiads
feature an image of a Hellenic goddess holding a laurel
wreath with the Athens Coliseum in the background. Since
1972, local Olympic organizing committees have been allowed
to create a design for the back sides of the medals.
The medals
given at the Olympic Winter Games, by tradition, differ from
the traditional medals given at the Summer Games. Each
Organizing Committee designs its own medals that must be
approved by the IOC. The 2002 Salt Lake City Games medals,
for example, were designed to look like natural river rock
from Utah's rivers. The medals were the heaviest ever
weighing 1.25 pounds apiece. The Games motto "Light the Fire
Within" was engraved on the front of each medal.
The Olympic Rings
The Olympic
rings are the official symbol of the Olympic Movement. There
are five interlacing rings of the colors blue, yellow,
black, green, and red. The rings are set upon a white
background.
Baron Pierre
de Coubertin designed the Olympic emblem in 1913. In his
words, "These five rings represent the five parts of the
world won over to Olympism. . . This is a real international
emblem." The Olympic rings represent the union of the areas
- the Americas, Africa, Asia, Oceania and Europe and the
meeting of athletes throughout the world at the Olympic
Games. Contrary to a popular misconception, the colors
themselves do not represent any single continent. The colors
were chosen because at least one of these colors is found in
the flag of every nation.
The original
Olympic flag was made at the "Bon Marché" store in Paris.
The flag is three meters long and two meters wide. It first
flew over an Olympic stadium at the 1920 Antwerp Games. The
original flag also carried the Olympic motto, "Citius,
Altius, Fortius," Latin for "Faster, Higher, Stronger."
Women and
the Olympic Games
Women have fought for just representation in the Olympic
Games since the beginning of the modern Olympic Movement.
Women were not allowed to compete in the first Olympic Games
at Athens in 1896. And although a number of women did
compete in the 1900 Paris, 1904 St. Louis and 1908 London
Games, the International Olympic Committee did not formally
admit women to the Games until 1912 at Stockholm.
The history
of women in the Olympic Games has been that of a struggle
for full participation and of changing popular perceptions
of female athletes. To this day, women still account for
only one-third of all Olympic competitors. It was only in
1981 that Pirjo Haggman of Finland and Flor Isava-Fonseca of
Venezuela were elected as the first women members of the
IOC. Anita DeFrantz, of Los Angeles, was the first U.S.
woman to serve on the IOC, elected in 1986. In September
1997 she became the first woman elected as an IOC
vice-president. Sandra Baldwin, in 2002, became the second
American woman elected to the IOC.
Women's
issues continue to confront the Olympic Movement. Most
notable is the dearth of women holding leadership positions
in Olympic sports organizations. Attempting to combat the
problem, the IOC passed a resolution in 1996 requiring that
women make up 10% of "the decision-making structures" of all
NOCs by the year 2000, and 20% by the year 2005.
to page 1 |
to page 3 |
to page 4