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When I was young, we were taught that the most important motto of the Olympics was that it was participation that mattered, not winning. Even today, many people still believe that this is the motto of the Olympics. However, the official motto Citius, altius, fortius (Faster, Higher, Stronger) is valid for exactly one hundred years and was announced by Dominican Bishop Henri Didon. It was supposed to represent the importance of sports for the younger generations and the International Olympic Committee officially started using this motto at the 1924 Paris Olympics.
The fact is that the Olympic Games were first held in ancient Greece. Documents on the origins of the ancient Olympic Games have not been preserved, but there are many legends about their origins. One of them states that the first Olympic Games should be associated with the Olympic Truce. These games had a local character, and the only event in which the participants competed was running in the stadium.
Later, the Olympics slowly developed into a pan-Greek event, with an increasing number of sports and great honors for the winners. The games were held every four years, and the period between them was called the Olympiad, which is still called this in some languages today.
The Olympics eventually lost importance with the fall of Roman rule over Greece, but interest in reviving the games grew when German archaeologists discovered the ruins of Ancient Olympia in the mid-19th century.
During this time, Baron Coubertin pondered the reasons for France’s defeat in the Franco-Prussian War and concluded that the physical fitness of French soldiers should be improved.
Coubertin saw the Olympics as a way to bring nations together, with young men and women competing in sports rather than fighting in wars. At his suggestion, the first modern Olympics were held in Athens in 1896, and even then, the Olympics became the largest international sporting event ever. Later, the Winter and Summer Olympics were held separately but in the same year, but starting in 1994, there is a two-year gap between the two.
The information recorded is only a very brief overview of the events from which the symbol was created. Thus, the five Olympic rings represent the connection of the five continents of the world, representing mutual respect and friendship between nations. The white color of the flag symbolizes peace, but also symbolizes the ancient Olympic Games, a period when all wars ceased.
Unfortunately, we haven’t learned much from the history of the Olympics. Wars in Ukraine, the Middle East, and elsewhere have proven that symbols are just symbols, the motto of cooperation has long been forgotten by most, and the Olympics have become (more or less) a level playing field and an opportunity to make money.
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