Olympic Games
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The Olympic Rings and Flag
Design
The design of the official Olympic flag, which is five interconnected rings on a white background, was created Pierre de Coubertin in 1914. The colours are (from left to right) blue, yellow, black, green, and red. It was first flown at the Antwerp Olympic stadium in 1920.
Representation
The five Olympic rings represent the five major regions of the world – Africa, the Americas, Asia, Europe and Oceana, and are interconnected to symbolize the friendship to be gained from these international competitions. The colors were chosen because at least one of them appeared on the flag of every country in the world.
History
At the closing ceremony of the Games, the mayor of the current host city presents the flag to the mayor of the next host city. The orginal Olympic Flag that was first unveiled at Antwerp in 1920 was finally retired after the 1984 Games at Los Angeles, and a new flag was flown at the 1988 Seoul Games.
Educational Values
In 2006, IOC identified five educational values of Olympism.
- Pursuit of excellence (blue)
- Joy of effort (black)
- Fair play (red)
- Respect for others (yellow)
- Balance between body, will and mind (green)
Related Pages
- other Olympic Traditions
