The Olympic flag, one of the most important symbols of the Games, is a rectangle showing five conjoined rings on a white background. This simple but meaningful symbol was designed by the initiator of the resurrection of the Olympic idea, Baron Pierre de Coubertin, in 1912. The first copy of the flag was sewn a year later at the ‘Bon Marche’ tailor’s shop in Paris.
The flag measures three metres long and two metres wide. Five Olympic rings, centrally placed on a white field, are intertwined in two rows: blue, black and red at the top and yellow and green at the bottom. The colours symbolise the diversity and unity of the continents and people of the world, where the individual colours represent: blue Europe, black Africa, yellow Asia, red the Americas, and green Australia and Oceania.
The flag in Vancouver, 2009. Photo by Sam from Vancouver, Canada, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
The first public display of the flag took place in 1914 in the amphitheatre of the University of Paris, during celebrations marking the 20th anniversary of the decision to renew the Olympic Games. As part of these celebrations, the Fifth Olympic Congress was held, at which the flag was officially approved, although it had a slightly different design and symbolism at the time. Its creator, Baron de Coubertin, was inspired by the 5th Summer Olympics in 1912 in Stockholm, where, for the first time, national teams from five continents took part. Over the course of more than a century, the rings have changed their appearance three times.
The flag is an integral part of the opening and closing ceremonies of the Olympic Games. It is hoisted onto the flagpole in the Olympic stadium during the opening ceremony and remains there throughout the Games. It was first hoisted on the flagpole at the 7th Summer Olympic Games in Antwerp in 1920. The first copy of the flag is now in the Olympic Museum in Lausanne. The Olympic oath, which is taken during the opening ceremony of the Games, also features the flag. An athlete and a referee, representing the country organising the Games, hold its horn during this solemn moment.
Interestingly, the motif associated with the Olympic wheels was already known in antiquity. The Olympic flag is now legally protected as a notorious trademark. 41 countries, including Poland, are signatories to an international convention known as the Nairobi Treaty, which protects the idea symbolised by the Olympic flag and prosecutes the misuse of the flag.
Taking inspiration from the innovative flags of Brazil and Australia and the ancient symbols of Japan and China, Pierre de Coubertin created a symbol that not only represents the Olympic Games, but also stands for peace, unity and international togetherness. Hovering proudly above the stadiums, the Olympic flag is a reminder of the pursuit of excellence, friendship and respect, which are the fundamental values of the Olympic movement.
Source: olimpijski.pl, natemat.pl
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