Olympism andthe Olympic
MovementOlympism andthe Olympic
Movement

What is Olympism?
A philosophy of life.
An ideal: the combinationof sport, culture and education.
Olympic values.
Olympic symbol and otheridentifying elements.

3

Historical milestones
Creation of the IOC in 1894
in Paris (France), on the initiativeof Pierre de Coubertin.
The eight presidents overa century.
This is a PDF interactive file. The headings of each page contain hyperlinks,
which allow to move from chapter to chapter.

The IOC headquarters,in Lausanne (Switzerland)since 1915.

Click on this icon to download the image.
Cover: OG London 2012, Opening Ceremony – Entry of the Olympic flag into the stadium.
© 2012 / International Olympic Committee (IOC) / JUILLIART, Richard

15

The Olympic Movement:
how does it work?

Activities outside
the Games

The structure of the Olympic
Movement: the International
Olympic Committee (IOC),
the National Olympic Committees(NOCs), the InternationalSports Federations (IFs)and the Organising Committees
for the Olympic Games (OCOGs).

Actions on various fronts
365 days a year: Sport for All,
development through sport;
equal opportunities; educationand culture; sport for peace,
the environment and sustainable
development; protecting
the health of athletes; combatingillegal sports betting.

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11

Olympism and the Olympic Movement

3

What is Olympism?

What is Olympism?
Olympism is a philosophy of life which places sport at the serviceof humanity. This philosophy is based on the interaction of the qualitiesof the body, will and mind. Olympism is expressed through actions whichlink sport to culture and education.

1. OG London 2012. Athletics,
5000m Men – Qualifications.
Mohamed FARAH (GBR) 1st
congratulates René Herrera (PHI)
at the end of the race.
© 2012 / International Olympic
Committee (IOC) / FURLONG,
Christopher

This philosophy is an essential element of the Olympic Movement andthe celebration of the Games. It is also what makes them unique.
The pursuit of this ideal and the other “fundamental principles of Olympism”[set out in the Olympic Charter] gives rise to a series of values, which areapplicable both on the field of play and in everyday life.
The IOC has identified the following three Olympic values:

Excellence

In the Olympic ideal, this value refers to giving one’s best,on the field of play or in life, without measuring oneself with others, but above
all aiming at reaching one’s personal objectives with determination in the effort.
It is not only about winning, but mainly about participating, making progress against
personal goals, striving to be and to do our best in our daily lives and benefitingfrom the combination of a strong body, will and mind.

Friendship Men and women are at the centre of the Olympic Movement’s

focus encouraging the links and mutual understanding between people. This value
broadly refers to building a peaceful and better world through solidarity, team spirit,
joy and optimism in sport.
The Olympic Games inspire humanity to overcome political, economic, gender,
racial or religious differences and forge friendships in spite of those differences.
The athletes express this value by forming life-long bonds with their team-mates,
as well as their opponents.

Respect

1

In the Olympic ideal, this value represents the ethical principlethat should inspire all who participate in the Olympic programmes. It includes
respect for oneself and one’s body, respect for one another, for rules and forthe environment. It thus refers to the fair play that each athlete has to display
in sport, as well as avoiding doping.

© The Olympic Museum

It was also Pierre de Coubertin who had
the idea of an Olympic flag. He presented
the rings and the flag in June 1914 in Paris,at the Olympic Congress. But as the FirstWorld War prevented the Games frombeing celebrated as planned in Berlinin 1916, it was not until 1920 at the Gamesin Antwerp that the flag with its five rings
was flown in an Olympic stadium forthe first time.

Olympism and the Olympic Movement

4What is Olympism?

These values are powerfully conveyed at the time of the Olympic Games.
However, between editions of the Games, the Olympic Movement continues
to be spread through the ongoing work of the members of the Olympic family.

1. © 2002 /Getty Images Newsand Sport

The values and meaning of Olympism are expressed by the Olympic symbol(the five rings) and other identifying Olympic elements (the flame, the torch relay,
the motto, the maxim, the anthem and the oaths). These make it possible
to transmit a message simply and directly. They give the Olympic Movement
and the Games their own identity.
It was Baron Pierre de Coubertin who revived theGames. Born in 1863, he devoted his life to the reformof education and youth in France. Fascinated by the English
education system, which included sport in the teaching
programme (a new idea at the time), he sought to convince
his contemporaries in France that sport could be beneficial
for young people. Not everyone shared this view, and so
Coubertin looked for a way to make people change theirviews. That was when he had an idea: to revive theOlympic Games.
While this was not the first attempt to revive the Games,
Coubertin brought a modern and international dimension
and succeeded in re-establishing them. But for him,
the Games were not an end in themselves. Rather they werepart of a much broader project: education through sport.
The Olympic symbol: the five rings
A very powerful symbol, the five rings are the visual representationof Olympism. It was Pierre de Coubertin himself who designed the symbol.
The five rings represent the five continents. They are interlinked to show
the universality of Olympism and how athletes from all over the world cometogether for the Olympic Games. On the Olympic flag, the rings appear against
a white background. Combined in this way, the six colours of the flag (blue,
yellow, black, green, red and white) represent all the nations. It is therefore
not the case that each of the colours is associated with a particular continent.
Today, the symbol is one of the most widely recognised in the world. Its use
is subject to very strict rules enacted by the IOC. It is important to note that
there is just one Olympic symbol. For the other identifying elements described
below, other terms are needed.

1© The Olympic Museum

L’important dans la vie n’est pas de vaincremais de lutter.
L’essentiel n’est pas d’avoir gagné maisde s’être battu.

Olympism and the Olympic Movement

5

What is Olympism?

Other elements of the Olympic identity:› The flame and torch relay(see “The Olympic flame and the Torch Relay”].
With the flag, the Olympic flame and torch relay are the most well-known
elements of the Games.
At the modern Games, the Olympic flame is an expression of the positive
values that human beings have always associated with the symbolism of fire.

1. The Olympic Flame is passed
between torches© Getty Images

The flame is lit at Olympia in Greece, recalling the Ancient Greek rootsof the Olympic Games and also emphasising the link between the ancientand modern Games.
From Olympia, the flame is carried to the city hosting the Games by thousandsof torchbearers. Wherever it goes, the flame announces the Olympic Gamesand transmits a message of peace and friendship to all those it meets along
the way. It also promotes the culture and natural riches of the regions throughwhich it passes.
1

The flame recalls the ancient Olympic Games, during which a sacred fire burnton the altar of Zeus. However, the symbolism of the relay is linked not to theseGames but to the torch races, or lampadedromia, held in Athens in honourof the gods associated with fire.
At the modern Olympic Games, a flame was lit for the first time in the stadium at
Amsterdam, in 1928. For its part, the torch relay was not introduced until
the 1936 Games in Berlin.
› The motto and maxim
A motto is a phrase or a few words expressing a way of life or a codeof conduct. The Olympic motto is composed of three Latin words:
CITIUS-ALTIUS-FORTIUS, which mean
FASTER – HIGHER – STRONGER
These three words encourage the athletes to give their best when they compete.
To better understand the motto, we can compare it with the Olympic maxim:
The most important thing in the Olympic Games is not winning
but taking part;the essential thing in life is not conquering but fighting well.
Taken together, the Olympic motto and maxim represent an ideal which
Coubertin believed in and promoted as an important lesson for life learned
from taking part in a sports activity and the Olympic Games. Giving one’s© The Olympic MuseumOlympism and the Olympic Movement

6

What is Olympism?

best and striving for personal excellence form a laudable goal. This is a lesson
which still holds true today, not just for athletes but for every one of us.
The three Latin words became the Olympic motto in 1894, when the IOC
was created. Pierre de Coubertin proposed the motto, which he had borrowed
from his friend Henri Didon, a Dominican priest who taught his pupils sport
near Paris.
The idea for the maxim came later, following a sermon given by the Bishop
of Pennsylvania, Ethelbert Talbot, during the 1908 Games in London.

1. OG Los Angeles 1984,
Opening Ceremony – Trackand field athlete Edwin Moses
is taking the oath in the nameof all athletes.
© 1984 / Los Angeles Times(entitled parties) GALVEZ, José

› The anthem and oaths
The Olympic anthem and the oaths (taken by an athlete, a referee
and a coach) are part of the official protocol of the Olympic Games opening
ceremonies. Those who take them are nationals of the host country, and theyhold a corner of the Olympic flag as they say the words.
The Olympic anthem was composed by Spiros Samaras (music) and Kostis
Palamas (words). Although played for the first time in 1896, at the first modern
Games in Athens, it became the IOC’s official anthem only in 1958.
Like the athletes at the ancient Games, today’s Olympic athletes take an oath.
The words of this oath were written by Pierre de Coubertin, and it was spoken
for the first time at the 1920 Games in Antwerp. The referees’ oath first featured
at the Opening Ceremony of the Games in 1972, while the coaches’ oath wasintroduced at the 2012 Games in London.
It is important to note that the oaths have been modified over the years to reflect
the changing nature of sports competition. For example, the reference to doping
was added to the athletes’ oath at the 2000 Games in Sydney.

1© The Olympic MuseumOlympism and the Olympic Movement

7

The Olympic Movement:
how does it work?

The Olympic
Movement: how does
it work?

1. OG Vancouver 2010, Closing
Ceremony, The Royal Canadian
Mounted Police lowers the
Olympic flag.
© 2010 / International Olympic
Committee (IOC) / FURLONG,
Christopher

Olympism is spread thanks to and by the Olympic Movement. At its headis the IOC, which is the supreme authority governing it. The following diagramshows how the Olympic Movement is structured:

Olympic Movement
3 main pillars

other members

IOC

OCOGs

NOCs

athletes,
officials,
recognizedinstitutions

IFs

1© The Olympic MuseumOlympism and the Olympic Movement

8

The Olympic Movement:
how does it work?

› The International Olympic Committee (IOC) is the supreme authorityof the Olympic Movement. It holds the rights to the Olympic Games,
the Olympic symbol (the five rings) and the other identifying elementsof the Olympic Movement.
The IOC’s main decisions (including choosing the host cities of the Games,
the composition of the sports programme and electing new members) are taken
during Sessions, the IOC’s general assemblies, which are held yearly and bring
together all the 115 IOC members. These members represent the IOC andthe Olympic Movement on a volunteer basis in their countries. They are not theircountries’ delegates within the IOC.

1. OG London 2012, Opening
Ceremony – Lighting of the
Olympic cauldron.
© 2012 / International Olympic
Committee (IOC) / HUET, John

The IOC President represents the IOC and presides over all its activities.
He or she is elected in a secret ballot by the Session. In the past there wereno limits, but today each President is limited to an eight-year term, and may
be re-elected once for a further four-year term of office.
The IOC administration is placed under the responsibility of a director general,
who manages it under the President’s authority. Around 500 people currently
work at the IOC headquarters in Lausanne, in Switzerland.
› The National Olympic Committees (NOCs) are the representativesof Olympism around the world. There are currently 204 of them:- 53 NOCs in Africa- 41 NOCs in America- 44 NOCs in Asia
- 49 NOCs in Europe- 17 NOCs in Oceania
The NOCs carry out many different functions in their respective countries,
from the development of sport at all levels, to the creation of educational
programmes, to the ongoing training of sports administrators. They are also
responsible for sending a delegation of athletes to the Olympic Games and,since 2010, to the Youth Olympic Games.
The NOCs ensure that all the programmes carried out at a national level conformto the principles of the Olympic Charter.
› The International Federations (IFs) are the experts in Olympic sports.
Each IF governs its sport at a global level. It ensures the promotion anddevelopment of the sport and the development of the athletes who practise
it, at all levels.
1© The Olympic MuseumOlympism and the Olympic Movement

9

The Olympic Movement:
how does it work?

During the Olympic Games, the IFs are responsible for the practical organisationof the sports events on the programme. All the technical aspects of a sport
are their responsibility: the rules, equipment, venues, judging, etc.
Here are some examples of Olympic federations:
Summer sports- International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF)- International Gymnastics Federation (FIG)- International Cycling Union (UCI)
Winter sports- International Ski Federation (FIS)- International Skating Union (ISU)- International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF)

The OCOG’s challenge in figures!
At the 2012 Olympic Games in London(Great Britain), LOCOG had to manage:- around 10,500 athletes- 70,000 accredited volunteers- more than 20,000 press and other media
representatives- over 6,000 accredited staff› The Organising Committees for the Olympic Games (OCOGs) areresponsible for the practical organisation of the Games. The OCOG’s task
is enormous. From the moment when the city is selected to host the Games,
there are only seven years left to put in place all the necessary arrangements.
Based on the plans proposed in its Candidature File, the Organising Committee
must create or update the competition venues, stadiums, training halls andthe Olympic Village as well as provide all of the organisational infrastructurenecessary for the smooth running of the Games. To do this, the OCOGs
work closely with the IFs. It also has to put in place an efficient transport system
and medical services for everyone, from athletes to spectators.
Another of the OCOG’s missions is to create a cultural programme. Concerts,
plays, ballets and exhibitions held leading up to and during the Olympic Games
make them different from most other sports events.
During the Games, the OCOG benefits greatly from the assistance of thousandsof volunteers who contribute to the success of the Games. The OCOG recruits,then trains people from the host country and also from abroad. The volunteers’
activities vary widely: from transporting athletes to hospitality and administration,
to give just a few examples. The talents and experience of each individual aretaken into account when allocating jobs.
After the Games, the final task of the OCOG is to compile the Official Reportof the Games.
© The Olympic MuseumOlympism and the Olympic Movement

Lifecycle of an OCOG:- 9 years- 7 years

10

The Olympic Movement:
how does it work?

Candidature phase

Cities submit their bid
files. The IOC studies these and, at a Session, elects the citywhich will organise the Games.

1. OG Vancouver 2010,
volonteers prepare the slope for
the Snowboard Cross women
event. © 2010 / International
Olympic Committee (IOC) /KASAPOGLU, Mine

Planning and preparation phase
Once the city is elected, its OCOG begins planningand preparing for the Games: everything has to be readyfor the day of the opening, and there is plenty to do!

Length: 2.5 weeks

1

People often think that the IOC
is responsible for organising the Olympic
Games. In fact, the IOC has moreof a supervisor’s role, entrusting
the organisation of the Gamesto the elected host city and the NOCof the country in which the Games
will take place.

+ 1 year

Date of the games The city hosts thousandsof athletes, journalists and spectators. The whole worldis watching.

Post-games dissolution

The OCOG
writes a report on the Games and concludes its activities before
being dissolved a year after the Games.

© The Olympic MuseumOlympism and the Olympic Movement

11

Activities outside the Games

Activities outside
the Games

1. Sports and development.
© International Olympic
Committee (IOC) / JUILLIART,
Richard

The mission of the IOC is to not only ensure the celebration of the Olympic
Games, but to also promote Olympism around the world, promote sport
in society as well as support sports organisations.
To achieve these objectives, a number of programmes are put in place,covering the protection of athletes’ health, equality between men and women,
ensuring that athletes from all over the world can train in good conditions
and participate in the Games, promoting peace, education and culture, etc.
Promotion of regular sports activity around the world
The Sport for All movement seeks to encourage the regular practiceof sport by all people in society, regardless of sex, age, social backgroundor economic status.
The IOC’s Sport for All Commission was created in 1983. Its mission
is to support initiatives and projects around the world. Each year, it offers
financial and moral support to sport for all events organised by the NOCs
on the five continents. These events cover a wide range of activities,
and the main selection criterion is that they are open to everyone. To date,more than 165 NOCs have benefited from the programme.
Development through sport
To help build a better world through sport, the IOC devises programmes
which offer concrete answers to social inequalities and poverty.
The International Relations Commission supports numerous projects
in cooperation with organisations specialising in humanitarian aid anddevelopment, as well as the NOCs.
An example of the IOC’s work in this area is the “Giving is Winning” solidarity
campaign organised in partnership with the United Nations High Commissioner
for Refugees (UNHCR) during the Summer Olympic Games. The membersof the Olympic Movement are invited to donate clothing and sports equipment,
which the UNHCR then distributes in various refugee camps around the world.
Almost 100,000 items of clothing were collected during the 2012 Gamesin London alone.
1© The Olympic Museum

Evolution of women’s participationin the Olympic GamesIn Paris in 1900, 22 women out of 997
athletes (1.6%) competed in 2 sports:
tennis and golf. In London in 2012,around 45% of the athletes were women.

Olympism and the Olympic Movement

Equal opportunities for poor and rich, women and men
The Olympic Solidarity Commission and the Women and Sport Commission
both work towards achieving greater equality in the world of sport.
Olympic Solidarity makes sure that all athletes have the same chanceof participating in the Games. It gives scholarships to athletes so that they canaccess high-level sports facilities, benefit from a specialised coach or receive
the appropriate medical back-up. The Commission also gives money to improve
the sports infrastructure in various countries and to train sports leadersand coaches.
The Women and Sport Commission, which works for gender equality,
was created in 1995 and became fully engaged in 2004.

What the Charter says about women…
“Today, the IOC’s role is to encourage
and support the promotion of womenin sport at all levels and in all structures,with a view to implementing the principleof equality of men and women”(Olympic Charter, Rule 2, paragraph 7)

12

Activities outside the GamesIts goal is twofold:- to make access to sport in general and the Olympic Games easierfor female athletes;- to increase the number of women in sports administration and management,
by offering regional seminars to female sports administrators, coaches,
technical officials and journalists focused on leadership, competences
and management and by granting scholarships to young female athletes
and coaches.

Women in the IOC
In 1981, the first woman waselected as an IOC member.
In 2012, 21 women were active
IOC members out of 106(19.8%).

Since 1996, a World conference on women and sport has been organized
every four years to analyse the progress made in the field as well as recommend
new strategies and commitments.
Since 2000, six IOC “Women and Sport” trophies (one per continent, and one
at world level) have been awarded every year to a person or institution for theirremarkable contribution to the development of women’s participation in sport
or in the administrative structures of sport.
In 2004, the world trophy was awarded to the FIFA Women’s World Cup; in 2006
to the Argentinean tennis player Gabriela Sabatini; and in 2012 to the Brazilian
sports and education centre and programme Bradesco.
Education and culture through sport
Pierre de Coubertin believed that sport contributed to the harmonious
and well-balanced development of the body, personality and mind.
As such, interaction between sport, education and culture is encouragedby the Commission for Culture and Olympic Education. Its aims are
to promote Olympism and Olympic ideals throughout the world and reinforce
cooperation with educational institutions and NOCs with projects especiallytargeting young people. Through Olympic education, they should maintain© The Olympic Museum

The Olympic Truce
The tradition of the Olympic Truce wasestablished in Ancient Greece in the
9th century BC by three kings, who signed
a peace treaty for the duration of theancient Olympic Games, to guarantee safe
travel and peaceful games for the athletes
and the spectators.
Nowadays, the Olympic Truce issymbolised by the dove of peace,with the traditional Olympic flamein the background. It represents the IOC’s
ideals and its ambition to build a peacefuland better world through sport.

Olympism and the Olympic Movement

13

Activities outside the Games

their interest in sport and physical activity.
In collaboration with the NOCs, the Commission organises various activities
which aim to create synergies between the sports world and different areasof artistic activity such as literature, painting, sculpture and theatre. The arts
festival, or cultural programme, offered during the Olympic Games is examined
and approved by the Commission.
To help combat the global problem of the increasing lack of physical activity
among young people and in line with the Olympic Movement’s mission
to promote education and development through sport the IOC launched a
new Youth Strategy in 2012. This wide-ranging programme spans advocacy,
education and activation. The aim is to help create a positive change in society,with more active and fulfilled young people.
Sport for peace
Taking into account the global context of sport and the Olympic Games,
the International Olympic Committee (IOC) decided to revive the traditionof the Olympic Truce in order to preserve, to the possible extent, the interestsof the athletes and sport in general and to encourage the search for peacefuland diplomatic solutions to the conflicts in the world.
To carry out this mission, the IOC created in 2000 the International Olympic
Truce Foundation (IOTF) to contribute to the search for diplomatic and nonviolent solutions to conflicts and spread the idea that sport and peace area win-win solution
To achieve its objectives, the IOTF has set up the International Olympic Truce
Centre (IOTC), based in Athens, which is responsible for the implementationof projects related to the promotion of culture of peace through sport andthe Olympic ideal throughout the world.
In addition, together with the United Nations, the IOC organizes an “International
Forum on Sport and Peace”, where NOCs, International Federations, NGOs,
other international organizations and researchers speak about this subject.
Several "Sport and Peace" projects have been initiated in collaboration with theUnited Nations, OCOGs, NOCs and other international organizations worldwide.
The environment and sustainable development
Since the early 1990s, the IOC has been working to promote sustainable
development.
The main role of the IOC Sport and Environment Commission, createdin 1995, is to advise the Olympic Movement on policy in the areasof environmental protection and sustainable development. It also ensures© The Olympic MuseumOlympism and the Olympic Movement

14

Activities outside the Games

that the Olympic Games are held in conditions which respect the environment.
The aim is to reduce or even eliminate environmental risks, in order to leave
a positive Games’ legacy for the host city, region and country.
To achieve (and sometimes even exceed) the IOC’s objectives in these areas,
the OCOGs often employ the services of sustainable development advisers.
Protection of athletes’ health
The Olympic Movement takes its responsibility to protect the rights, health andwell-being of athletes very seriously. The Medical and Scientific Commission
was originally created to deal with its main priority, the fight against doping;but this today is taken care of by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA).
The IOC’s educational mission also includes preventive efforts to inform both
elite and amateur athletes of the disastrous health consequences of doping.
The Commission’s other main goal is to support sports medicine, biomechanics,
sporting physiology and nutrition research designed to protect the healthof the athlete.
Combating illegal and irregular sports betting
After doping, the sports movement is now facing a new threat to its integrity:
cheating linked to sports betting.
To monitor sports betting on the Olympic competitions, since the 2008 Gamesin Beijing, the IOC has used an alerts system developed in cooperation withthe main betting operators and various national online gambling regulators.
In the area of education, the IOC has run informative and preventive awarenessprogrammes for the athletes since the 2010 Youth Olympic Gamesin Singapore.
The IOC also encourages governments to pass legislation to enable themto combat effectively any manipulation of sports competitions and thereby
help safeguard the integrity of sport.

Some examples of sustainable
initiatives at the Games:- Nagano 1998:
The volunteers’ uniforms
were made using recycling
materials.
- Athens 2004: By the endof the Games, more thana million bushes, 290,000
trees and 11 million shrubs
had been planted in Athens.
- Vancouver 2010: The roofof the speed skating ovalin Richmond was built usingwood from trees infectedby pine beetles, so that nohealthy trees were cut down.
Rainwater was also harvested
and used for the toilets.
- London 2012: Sustainability
was one of the key aspectsof the London 2012 bid.
Its sustainability plan was
based on five key areas:climate change, waste,biodiversity, integration
and a healthy lifestyle.

© The Olympic MuseumOlympism and the Olympic Movement

15

Historical milestones

Historical milestones

1. Pierre de Coubertin© 1894 / International Olympic
Committee (IOC)A historic date
The IOC was founded in Paris on 23 June 1894, by Baron Pierre de Coubertin.
To commemorate this date, the IOC decided in 1948 to introduce an Olympic
Day, a sort of “birthday” of the Olympic Movement. Originally celebrated by justnine countries, Olympic Day is now an event held all over the world. In many
countries, the celebrations take the form of fun runs.
Eight presidents in over a century of Olympism
Contrary to popular belief, Pierre de Coubertin was not the first IOC President!
The IOC’s original idea was that the country in which the Games were to be held
should also provide the President. It was thus a Greek (Demetrius Vikelas)
who was chosen to be the first IOC President until the first Games in Athensin 1896. The idea was quickly abandoned, however, and Pierre de Coubertin not
only became the second IOC President, but carried on in the role for nearly
30 years, from 1896 to 1925.
To date, the IOC has had eight presidents. The current president is
Jacques Rogge.
Names of the Presidents- Demetrius Vikelas (Greece), 1894 – 1896
- Pierre de Coubertin (France,) 1896 – 1925
- Henri de Baillet-Latour (Belgium), 1925-1942- J. Sigfrid Edström (Sweden), 1946 – 1952
- Avery Brundage (USA), 1952 – 1972
- Lord Killanin (Ireland), 1972 – 1980
- Juan Antonio Samaranch (Spain), 1980 – 2001
- Jacques Rogge (Belgium), 2001 – 2013
The IOC in Lausanne

1

Although the city of Lausanne has never hosted the Games, it has been
the headquarters of the IOC since 1915. It was Coubertin who chose this city,in the midst of the First World War.
After having occupied various buildings in Lausanne, the IOC headquarters finallyfound their definitive home at the Château de Vidy in 1968. This is where
the President’s office is situated.
In recognition of the long history that unites the IOC and Lausanne,
the city received the title of Olympic Capital in 1993.

© The Olympic MuseumOlympism and the Olympic Movement

16

Activities - Selective bibliography

Activities

Feel the Olympic spirit! Put together a file made up of examples

Editor© IOC, The Olympic Museum,
Lausanne
3rd edition, 2013

from sports or situations from everyday life which illustrate the Olympic valuesof friendship, respect and excellence.
Next, add in some of your own sports experiences – were there times where you would
have liked to act differently, or would have liked others to behave differently?

Authors
The Olympic Museum
Educational and Cultural
Services

Why would it be the ideal place for the Olympic competitions? List the existing sports
facilities. What would need to be constructed? Create a mini-candidature file including
the strong points of your region.

Graphic design
Oxyde, Lausanne(www.oxyde.ch)Imagine that a city/town in your country is bidding to host the Olympic Games.

English translation
IOC Language Services

Do a press study

on the IOC. Read the newspapers for one monthand collect all the articles mentioning a member of the Olympic family (the IOC, an IF,
an NOC, an OCOG, etc.). Write a review, commenting on the news.

Selective bibliography
Young readers› How Well Do You Know the Olympic Games?
Lausanne: The Olympic Museum, 3rd edition, 2011.
› Video on the Olympic values
http://www.olympic.org/living-the-olympic-values

Teachers› Olympic Charter
Lausanne: IOC, 2011.
› 100 Years of the International Olympic Committee, the idea, the presidents,
the work (in 3 volumes)
Lausanne: IOC, 1994.
› Olympic Review, The Olympic Values
Lausanne: IOC, April-June 2007

© The Olympic Museum