The ceremony closes with the release of doves, symbolizing the spirit of the games. De Coubertin had the idea that he was going to bring all the people of the world together onto the same playing field. On the other hand, the Games are merely games. What one has here, after all, are simple contests, simple consequences, the simple delight of observers at basic human activities. Remove the banners, the noise, the fencing, and the scene is pastoral.
Someone jumps or throws a discus.
People play ball. The history of the Olympic Games is long and consistent. Every four years, people from all around the world gather to compete in sports, in an environment of peace and mutual understanding. They did it for almost twelve hundred years in ancient times and again for the last hundred years in modern times. Let us get together and compete with ourselves and with each other.