1.

THE OLYMPIC GAMES

The Olympic Games are an international multi-sport event subdivided into
summer and winter sporting events. The summer and winter games are each held
every four years. Until 1992, they were both held in the same year. Since then, they
have been separated by a two-year gap.
The original Olympic Games were first recorded in 776 BC in Olympia, Greece,
and were celebrated until AD 393. The Games were held every four years, and this
period, known as an Olympiad, was used by Greeks as one of their units of time
measurement. The Ancient Olympic Games is a series of competitions held
between representatives of several city-states from Ancient Greece, which featured
mainly athletic but also combat and chariot racing events. The origin of these
Olympics is shrouded in mystery and legend. One of the most popular myths
identifies Heracles and his father Zeus as the progenitors of the Games. According
to legend, it was Heracles who first called the Games "Olympic" and established
the custom of holding them every four years. A legend persists that after Heracles
completed his twelve labours, he built the Olympic stadium as an honour to Zeus.
Following its completion, he walked in a straight line for 200 steps and called this
distance a "stadion" (Latin: stadium, "stage"), which later became a unit of
distance. Another myth associates the first Games with the ancient Greek concept
of Olympic truce. The Ancient Games featured running events, a pentathlon
(consisting of a jumping event, discus and javelin throws, a foot race and
wrestling), boxing, wrestling, and equestrian events. Tradition has it that Coroebus,
a cook from the city of Elis, was the first Olympic champion. The Olympic Games
reached their zenith in the 6th and 5th centuries BC, but then gradually declined in
importance as the Romans gained power and influence in Greece. There is no
consensus on when the Games officially ended, the most common-held date is 393
A.D., when the emperor Theodosius I declared that all pagan cults and practices be
eliminated. Another date cited is 426 A.D., when his successor Theodosius II
ordered the destruction of all Greek temples. After the demise of the Olympics,
they were not held again until the late 19th century.
The International Olympic Committee was founded in 1894 on the initiative of a
French nobleman, Pierre Frédy, Baron de Coubertin. The first of the IOC’s
Olympic Games were the 1896 Summer Olympics, held in Athens, Greece.
Participation in the Olympic Games has increased to include athletes from nearly
all nations worldwide. The upcoming Summer Games are planned to comprise 302
events in 28 sports. As of 2006, the Winter Olympics were competed in 84 events
in 7 sports.
Olympic symbols
The Olympic movement uses many symbols, most of them representing
Coubertin’s ideas and ideals. The Olympic Rings are the most widely used symbol.
These five intertwined rings represent the unity of the five inhabited continents
(with
the Americas regarded as one continent). The five coloured rings on a white field
form the Olympic Flag. The colours, white, red, blue, green, yellow, and black,
were chosen such that each nation has at least one of these colours in its national
flag. The flag was adopted in 1914, but the first Games at which it was flown were
Antwerp, 1920. It is hoisted at each celebration of the Games.
The Olympic Motto is “Citius, Altius, Fortius”, a Latin phrase meaning “Swifter,
Higher, Stronger”. Coubertin’s ideals are probably best illustrated by the Olympic
Creed:
“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.”
Prior to each Games, the Olympic Flame is lit in Olympia, Greece and brought to
the host city by runners carrying the torch in relay. There it plays an important role
in the opening ceremonies. Though the torch fire has been around since 1928, the
relay was introduced in 1936 as part of the then German government’s attempt to
promote their National Socialist ideology.
The Olympic mascot, an animal or human figure representing the cultural heritage
of the host country, was introduced in 1968. It has played an important part of the
games since 1980 with the debut of Misha, a Russian bear. French and English are
the official languages of the Olympic movement.
Olympic ceremonies
Opening
Various traditional elements frame the opening ceremonies of a celebration of the
Olympic Games. The ceremonies typically start with the hoisting of the host
country’s flag and the performing of its national anthem. The traditional part of the
ceremonies starts with a “parade of nations” (or of athletes), during which most
participating athletes march into the stadium, country by country. One honoured
athlete, typically a top competitor, from each country carries the flag of his or her
nation, leading the entourage of other athletes from that country. Traditionally
(starting at the 1928 Summer Olympics) Greece marches first, because of its
historical status as the origin of the Olympics, while the host nation marches last.
(In 2004, when the Games were held in Athens, Greece marched last as host nation
rather than first, although the flag of Greece was carried in first.) Between these
two nations, all other participating nations march in alphabetical order of the
dominant language of the host country, or in French or English alphabetical order
if the host country does not write its dominant language in an alphabet which has a
set order. After all nations have entered, the president of the host country’s
Olympic Organising Committee makes a speech, followed by the IOC president
who, at the end of his speech introduces the representative of the host country who
declares the Games open by reciting the formula:
«I declare open the Games of … (name of the host city) celebrating the … (number
of the Olympiad) Olympiad of the modern era.» (There is a similar recital for the
Winter Games.)
Next, the Olympic Flag is carried horizontally into the stadium and hoisted as the
Olympic Anthem is played. The flag bearers of all countries circle a rostrum,
where one athlete and one judge speak the Olympic Oath, declaring they will
compete and judge according to the rules. Finally, the Torch is brought into the
stadium, passed from athlete to athlete, until it reaches the last carrier of the Torch,
often a well-known athlete from the host nation, who lights the fire in the
stadium’s cauldron.
The Olympic Flame has been lit since the 1928 Summer Olympics, but the torch
relay did not start until the 1936 Summer Olympics. Beginning with 1920 Summer
Olympics, the lighting of the Olympic Flame was for 68 years followed by the
release of doves, symbolizing peace. This gesture was discontinued after several
doves were burned alive in the Olympic Flame during the opening ceremony of the
1988 Summer Olympics.
Closing
Various traditional elements also frame the closing ceremonies of the Olympic
Games, which take place after all athletic events have concluded. Three national
flags are hoisted on flagpoles one at a time while the corresponding national
anthems are played: The flag of Greece is raised on the middle pole honouring the
birthplace of the Olympic Games, the flag of the host country on the left-hand
pole, and then the flag of the country hosting the next Summer or Winter Olympic
Games, on the right-hand pole. The Olympic Flame is extinguished, and while the
Olympic anthem is being played, the Olympic Flag that was hoisted during the
opening ceremonies is lowered from the flagpole and carried horizontally from the
stadium.
Summer Olympic Games
At the first Olympic Games, nine sports were contested. Since then, the number of
sports contested at the Summer Olympic Games has gradually risen to the current
number of twenty-eight: Aquatics (Diving, Swimming, Synchronized Swimming,
Water Polo), Archery, Athletics, Badminton, Baseball, Basketball, Boxing, Canoe-
Kayak, Cycling, Fencing, Equestrian, Football, Gymnastics (Artistic, Rhythmic),
Handball, Judo, Rowing, Sailing, Shooting, Table Tennis, Tennis, Volleyball,
Weightlifting, Wrestling, Triathlon, Softball.
Winter Olympic Sports: Biathlon, Bobsleigh, Curling, Ice Hockey, Skating
(Figure Skating, Short Track Speed Skating, Speed Skating), Skiing (Alpine
Skiing, Cross Country Skiing, Freestyle Skiing, Nordic Combined, Ski Jumping,
Snowboarding).
Past Sports: Cricket, Golf, Jeu de Paume Polo, Rackets, Rugby, Water Skiing.
1. JOCURILE OLIMPICE Jocurile Olimpice sunt un eveniment internațional multi-sportiv subdivizat în
evenimente sportive de vară și de iarnă. Jocurile de vară și de iarnă au loc fiecare la fiecare patru ani.
Până în 1992, ambele au avut loc în același an. De atunci, acestea au fost separate de un decalaj de
doi ani. Jocurile Olimpice originale au fost înregistrate pentru prima dată în 776 î.Hr. în Olympia,
Grecia, și au fost sărbătorite până în 393 d.Hr. Jocurile au avut loc o dată la patru ani, iar această
perioadă, cunoscută sub numele de olimpiada, a fost folosită de greci ca una dintre unitățile lor de
măsurare a timpului. Jocurile Olimpice Antice este o serie de competiții organizate între
reprezentanții mai multor orașe-state din Grecia Antică, care au prezentat în principal evenimente
atletice, dar și de luptă și curse de car. Originea acestor Jocuri Olimpice este învăluită în mister și
legendă. Unul dintre cele mai populare mituri îl identifică pe Heracles și pe tatăl său Zeus ca fiind
progenitorii Jocurilor. Conform legendei, Heracles a fost cel care a numit pentru prima dată Jocurile
"Olimpice" și a stabilit obiceiul de a le ține la fiecare patru ani. O legendă persistă că, după ce
Heracles și-a terminat cele douăsprezece munci, el a construit stadionul olimpic ca o onoare pentru
Zeus. După finalizarea acesteia, el a mers în linie dreaptă timp de 200 de pași și a numit această
distanță un "stadion" (latină: stadion, "scenă"), care mai târziu a devenit o unitate de distanță. Un alt
mit asociază primele Jocuri cu conceptul antic grecesc de armistițiu olimpic. Jocurile Antice au
prezentat evenimente de alergare, un pentatlon (constând dintr-un eveniment de sărituri, aruncări de
disc și javelin, o cursă de picioare și lupte), box, lupte și evenimente ecvestre. Tradiția spune că
Coroebus, un bucătar din orașul Elis, a fost primul campion olimpic. Jocurile Olimpice au atins
apogeul lor în secolele 6 și 5 î.Hr., dar apoi au scăzut treptat în importanță pe măsură ce romanii au
câștigat putere și influență în Grecia. Nu există un consens cu privire la momentul în care Jocurile s-
au încheiat oficial, data cea mai comună este 393 d.Hr., când împăratul Teodosie I a declarat că toate
cultele și practicile păgâne sunt eliminate. O altă dată citată este 426 d.Hr., când succesorul său
Teodosie al II-lea a ordonat distrugerea tuturor templelor grecești. După dispariția Jocurilor Olimpice,
acestea nu au mai avut loc până la sfârșitul secolului al 19-lea. Comitetul Olimpic Internațional a fost
fondat în 1894 la inițiativa unui nobil francez, Pierre Frédy, baron de Coubertin. Prima dintre Jocurile
Olimpice ale CIO a fost Jocurile Olimpice de vară din 1896, care a avut loc la Atena, Grecia.
Participarea la Jocurile Olimpice a crescut pentru a include sportivi din aproape toate națiunile din
întreaga lume. Viitoarele Jocuri de vară sunt planificate să cuprindă 302 evenimente în 28 de sporturi.
Începând din 2006, Jocurile Olimpice de iarnă au fost concurate în 84 de evenimente în 7 sporturi.
Simboluri olimpice Mișcarea olimpică folosește multe simboluri, cele mai multe dintre ele
reprezentând ideile și idealurile lui Coubertin. Inelele Olimpice sunt simbolul cel mai utilizat pe scară
largă. Aceste cinci inele interconectate reprezintă unitatea celor cinci continente locuite (cu cele două
Americi