Olympic poster

Last updated

The Olympic posters are part of the greater promotion plan devised each time by the country hosting the Olympic Games for the better and easier communication of this major sporting event. Olympic posters are closely associated with the place and time of the Games and reflect the social, cultural and sometimes the political context of the host country each time. [1] The Organizing Committee of the host country usually announces an artistic contest for the creation of the posters. Then a special committee decides which entry will be the official poster of the Games. The design process is often given strict guidelines for content, since the committee has already decided the elements it wished to include in the design and the specific messages it must convey.

Contents

Although, today the creation of a poster is deemed necessary, in the first modern Olympic Games there were no posters specially designed for the Games. The first official poster that was specially designed for the Olympic Games, following the approval of the competent committee, was the poster for the 1912 Games held in Stockholm. The poster depicted the march of the nations represented by athletes holding their national flags. All posters are the property of the IOC. [2]

Olympic posters

Summer Olympic poster designs

GamesHostDesignDesigner(s)ImageRef
1900 Paris, France It shows the Exposition medal on top of the Eiffel Tower JOParis 1900.jpg
1904 St. Louis, United States It shows the Olympic venues during the 1904 Expo 1904summerolympicsposter.jpg
1920 Antwerp, Belgium It shows a man holding a ball while being surrounded with flags and the Cathedral of Our Lady 1920 olympics poster.jpg
1948 London, Great Britain It shows a statue of a discus thrower in front of the Palace of Westminster London Olympics.jpg
1984 Los Angeles, United States It shows the logo of the 1984 Summer Olympics with images of the host country. Robert Rauschenberg Link to poster
2024 Paris, France Ugo Gattoni

Winter Olympic poster designs

GamesHostDesignDesigner(s)ImageRef
1924 Paris, France It shows an eagle holding a branch while looking at bobsleghers 1924WOlympicPoster.jpg
1968 Grenoble, France The poster shows the Olympic rings screaming down a mountain.Jean Brain Link to poster
1972 Sapporo, Japan The poster shows the logo of the 1972 Winter Olympics on top of Mount Asahi and Shikotsu-Tōya National Park Takashi Kono Link to poster
1976 Innsbruck, Austria The poster shows the Olympic rings on the tip of a skate blade forming an "i" for Innsbruck.Arthur Zelger Link to poster
1980 Lake Placid, United States It shows the logo for the 1980 Winter Olympics
1984 Sarajevo, Yugoslavia It shows the logo for the 1984 Winter Olympics in front of a snowflake falling from the sky Link to poster
1988 Calgary, Canada It shows the logo for the 1988 Winter Olympics on top of Calgary Link to poster

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Olympic Games</span> Major international multi-sport event

The modern Olympic Games are the world's leading international sporting events. They feature summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a variety of competitions. The Olympic Games are considered the world's foremost sports competition, with more than 200 teams, representing sovereign states and territories, participating. By default, the Games generally substitute for any world championships during the year in which they take place. The Olympic Games are held every four years. Since 1994, they have alternated between the Summer and Winter Olympics every two years during the four-year Olympiad.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Summer Olympic Games</span> Major international multi-sport event

The Summer Olympic Games, also known as the Games of the Olympiad, is a major international multi-sport event normally held once every four years. The inaugural Games took place in 1896 in Athens, Greece, and the most recent was held in 2024 in Paris, France. This was the first international multi-sport event of its kind, organized by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) founded by Pierre de Coubertin. The tradition of awarding medals began in 1904; in each Olympic event, gold medals are awarded for first place, silver medals for second place, and bronze medals for third place. The Winter Olympic Games were created out of the success of the Summer Olympic Games, which are regarded as the largest and most prestigious multi-sport international event in the world.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1896 Summer Olympics</span> Multi-sport event in Athens, Greece

The 1896 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the I Olympiad and commonly known as Athens 1896, were the first international Olympic Games held in modern history. Organised by the International Olympic Committee (IOC), which had been created by French aristocrat Pierre de Coubertin, the event was held in Athens, Greece, from 6 to 15 April 1896.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Paralympic Games</span> Major international sport event for people with disabilities

The Paralympic Games or Paralympics, also known as the Games of the Paralympiad, is a periodic series of international multisport events involving athletes with a range of disabilities. There are Winter and Summer Paralympic Games, which since the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul, South Korea, have been held shortly after the corresponding Olympic Games. All Paralympic Games are governed by the International Paralympic Committee (IPC).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1996 Summer Olympics</span> Multi-sport event in Atlanta, US

The 1996 Summer Olympics were an international multi-sport event held from July 19 to August 4, 1996, in Atlanta, Georgia, United States. These were the fourth Summer Olympics to be hosted by the United States, making it the first country to have three different cities host the Summer Olympics. It also marked the 100th anniversary of the 1896 Summer Olympics in Athens, the inaugural edition of the modern Olympic Games. These were also the first Summer Olympics to be held in a different year than the Winter Olympics since the Winter Olympics commenced in 1924, as part of a new IOC practice implemented in 1994 to hold the Summer and Winter Games in alternating, even-numbered years. The 1996 Games were the first of the two consecutive Summer Olympics to be held in a predominantly English-speaking country, preceding the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, Australia. These were also the last Summer Olympics to be held in North America until 2028, when Los Angeles will host the games for the third time.

The Olympic flame is a symbol used in the Olympic movement. It is also a symbol of continuity between ancient and modern games. The Olympic flame is lit at Olympia, Greece, several months before the Olympic Games. This ceremony starts the Olympic torch relay, which formally ends with the lighting of the Olympic cauldron during the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games. Through 2022, the flame would continue to burn in the cauldron for the duration of the Games, until it was extinguished during the Olympic closing ceremony. In 2024, electric lighting and mist were used to create a simulated flame for the Olympic cauldron, with the actual flame kept in a lantern exhibited at an adjacent location. That lantern was then taken by French swimmer Léon Marchand from Jardins des Tuileries and ceremonially "transferred" to the Stade de France at the start of the Closing Ceremony: there it was finally estinguished just after the IOC president declared officially closed the Games.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2004 Summer Olympics</span> Multi-sport event in Athens, Greece

The 2004 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad and officially branded as Athens 2004, were an international multi-sport event held from 13 to 29 August 2004 in Athens, Greece. The Games saw 10,625 athletes compete, some 600 more than expected, accompanied by 5,501 team officials from 201 countries, with 301 medal events in 28 different sports. The 2004 Games marked the first time since the 1996 Summer Olympics that all countries with a National Olympic Committee were in attendance, and also marked the first time Athens hosted the Games since their first modern incarnation in 1896 as well as the return of the Olympic games to its birthplace. Athens became one of only four cities at the time to have hosted the Summer Olympic Games on two occasions. A new medal obverse was introduced at these Games, replacing the design by Giuseppe Cassioli that had been used since 1928. The new design features the Panathenaic Stadium in Athens rectifying the long-running mistake of using a depiction of the Roman Colosseum rather than a Greek venue.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1928 Summer Olympics</span> Multi-sport event in Amsterdam, Netherlands

The 1928 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the IX Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event that was celebrated from 28 July to 12 August 1928 in Amsterdam, Netherlands. The city of Amsterdam had previously bid for the 1920 and 1924 Olympic Games. Still, it was obliged to give way to war-torn Antwerp in Belgium for the 1920 Games and Pierre de Coubertin's Paris for the 1924 Games.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pan American Games</span> Multi-sport event of the Americas

The Pan American Games is a continental multi-sport event in the Americas featuring summer sports, in which thousands of athletes participate in a variety of competitions. The competition is held among athletes from nations of the Americas, every four years in the year before the Summer Olympic Games. It is the second oldest continental games in the world. The only Winter Pan American Games were held in 1990. In 2021, the Junior Pan American Games was held for the first time specifically for young athletes. The Pan American Sports Organization (PASO) is the governing body of the Pan American Games movement, whose structure and actions are defined by the Olympic Charter.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2000 Summer Paralympics</span> Multi-parasport event in Sydney, Australia

The 2000 Summer Paralympic Games or the XI Summer Paralympics were held in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, between 18 and 29 October. The Sydney Paralympics was the last time that the Summer Paralympics were organized by two different Organizing Committees. In this edition, a record 3,801 athletes from 120 National Paralympic Committees participated in 551 events in 18 sports, and until the 2006 Commonwealth Games held in Melbourne, it was the second largest sporting event ever until that date held in Australia and the Southern Hemisphere. Sydney was the eighth city to host the Olympics and the Paralympics on same venues at the same year, and the first since Barcelona 1992 that they were organized in complete conjunction with the Olympics. They were also the first Paralympic Games outside the Northern Hemisphere and also in Oceania.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Olympic medal</span> Award given to successful competitors at one of the Olympic Games

An Olympic medal is awarded to successful competitors at one of the Olympic Games. There are three classes of medal to be won: gold, silver, and bronze, awarded to first, second, and third place, respectively. The granting of awards is laid out in detail in the Olympic protocols.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Olympic symbols</span> Symbols of the International Olympic Games

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) uses icons, flags, and symbols to elevate the Olympic Games. These symbols include those commonly used during Olympic competitions such as the flame, fanfare, and theme and those used throughout the years, such as the Olympic flag.

The 1900 Summer Olympics were held in Paris, France, from May 14 to October 28, 1900, as part of the 1900 World's Fair.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bids for the Olympic Games</span> Bids to host the Olympic Games

National Olympic Committees that wish to host an Olympic Games select cities within their territories to put forth bids for the Olympic Games. The staging of the Paralympic Games is automatically included in the bid. Since the creation of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) in 1894, which successfully appropriated the name of the Ancient Greek Olympics to create a modern sporting event, interested cities have rivaled for selection as host of the Summer or Winter Olympic Games. 51 different cities have been chosen to host the modern Olympics: three in Eastern Europe, five in East Asia, one in South America, three in Oceania, nine in North America and all the others in Western Europe. No Central American, African, Central Asian, Middle Eastern, South Asian, or Southeast Asian city has ever been chosen to host an Olympics.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Greece at the Olympics</span> Performance of Hellas at the Olympic Games

Greece has competed at every Summer Olympic Games, one of five countries to have done so, and most of the Winter Olympic Games. Greece has hosted the modern Olympic Games twice, both in Athens for the Summer Olympic Games, in 1896 and 2004.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Olympic emblem</span> Logo designed for Olympic Games

Each Olympic Games has its own Olympic emblem, which is a design integrating the Olympic rings with one or more distinctive elements. They are created and proposed by the Organising Committee of the Olympic Games (OCOG) or the National Olympic Committee (NOC) of the host country. It is the responsibility of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to approve Olympic emblems for the Olympic games. The Olympic emblems are used in promotional materials, by sponsors of the Olympics, and on the uniforms of every Olympic competitor. All emblems are the property of the IOC.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Paralympic symbols</span>

The Paralympic symbols are the icons, flags, and symbols used by the International Paralympic Committee to promote the Paralympic Games.

Giuseppe Cassioli was an Italian painter and sculptor known for his Summer Olympic Games medal design. Many of his paintings are on display at the Museo Cassioli di Pittura senese dell'Ottocento in Asciano, Tuscany.

During the Parade of Nations portion of the 2000 Summer Olympics opening ceremony, athletes from each country participating in the Olympics paraded in the arena, preceded by their flag. The flag was borne by a sportsperson from that country chosen either by the National Olympic Committee or by the athletes themselves to represent their country.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2000 Summer Olympics torch relay</span>

The 2000 Summer Olympics torch relay was the transferral of the Olympic Flame to Sydney, Australia, that built up to the 2000 Summer Olympics. The torch tavelled to various island nations as part of a tour of Oceania before beginning an extensive journey around Australia. For the first time the Flame was taken underwater, with a special flare-like torch taken on a dive down to the Great Barrier Reef. At the opening ceremony the cauldron was lit by Aboriginal athlete Cathy Freeman.

References