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Amidst all of the pageantry and protocol of the Olympic Opening Ceremony, there are five elements that remain constant. The following is a more in-depth look at each of those essentials.
The motto
The universally accepted meaning of the Olympic motto - "Citius, Altius, Fortius" - is "Swifter, Higher, Stronger." (The Latin words actually mean "faster, higher, braver.") It is said to express the aspirations of all the athletes in the Olympic movement who endeavor to run faster, jump higher and throw more strongly. The motto was first used in 1895 by Father Henri Didon, headmaster of Arcueil College, near Paris, in a speech glorifying the athletic achievements of his pupils. Didon had previously been at the school Albert Le Grand, where the phrase appeared in stone above the main entrance.
The symbol
The Olympic symbol consists of the five interlaced rings used alone, either in a single color or in the appropriate five colors - blue, yellow, black, green, red, in that order, from left to right. According to the Olympic Charter, the Olympic symbol "represents the union of the five "continents" (Europe, Asia, Africa, Australia and the Americas) and also symbolize the meeting of athletes from throughout world at the Olympic Games." It is said that at least one of the five colors appears in the flag of every nation of the world.
The creed
The Olympic creed has its origins in a religious service held in St. Paul's Cathedral, London, on July 19, 1908, in honor of the Games of the IV Olympiad. Ethelbert Talbot, the Bishop of Central Pennsylvania who was in London for a conference of Anglican bishops, preached a sermon which included one phrase that dazzled the founder of the modern Olympic Games, Baron Pierre de Coubertin: "the important thing in the Olympic Games is not so much to have been victorious as to have taken part." A few days later, paying tribute to the author of the sentiment, de Coubertin said in a speech:
The most important thing in the Olympic Games is not to win but to take part, just as the most important thing in life is not the triumph but the struggle. The essential thing is not to have conquered but to have fought well.
Those words, commonly referred to as the Olympic Creed, now appear on the electronic scoreboards at the Opening Ceremony of each Games.
The flag
The Olympic flag has a plain white background with no border. In the center of the flag are five interlaced rings - blue, yellow, black, green and red - arranged in that order from left to right, with the blue ring placed high up on the left hand side of the flag, nearest the flagpole. Baron Pierre de Coubertin first presented the flag June 14, 1914 in Paris at the Olympic Congress marking the 20th anniversary of the founding of the International Olympic Committee. It first flew in public that year in Alexandria, Greece. However, because of the cancellation of the 1916 Olympics, it did not appear at an Olympic Games until 1920 in Antwerp. During the Opening Ceremony of each Olympics, the flag is brought into the Olympic stadium while the Olympic hymn is played. It is then raised on a flagpole placed in a central position in the stadium and is flown throughout the Games.
During the Closing Ceremony, the Olympic flag is lowered to the strains of the Olympic hymn and carried out of the stadium.
The hymn
The Olympic hymn was first performed at the 1896 Olympics in Athens by a Greek choir and orchestra. Spyros Samaras, who composed the music, conducted. But it wasn't until 1958 at its 55th Session in Tokyo that the International Olympic Committee adopted the score as the official Olympic hymn. The words of the Olympic hymn were written by a colleague of Samaras, Constantine Palamas:
Immortal spirit of antiquity
Father of the true, beautiful and good
Descend, appear, shed over us they light
Upon this ground and under this sky
Which has fits witnessed by unperishable fame.
Give life and animation to those noble Games!
Throw wreaths of fadeless flowers to the victors
In the race and in the strife
Create in our breasts, hearts of steel.
In thy light, plains, mountains and seas
Shine in a roseate hue and for a vast temple
To which all nations throng to adore thee
Oh immortal spirit of antiquity!
If an athlete from a country without a national anthem wins a gold medal, the Olympic hymn is played.
Rating:
“Apolo Ohno, Short trackAny athlete at this level and the elite level knows really when they should turn the light switch on and off. It's been on all summer.
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