Types of Olympics and List of Summer Olympic Facts
The Olympics is a traditional game event conducted every four years. It dates back to the era of ancient Greeks. The tradition has been carried on by including all countries to participate in various sports events. To this date, we enjoy the Olympics and celebrate the winning of medals by our favourite athletes and sportspeople. In this blog, we will discuss the unknown Summer Olympics facts.
There are two types of Olympic Games organised during summer and winter. Both are organised and conducted by a particular country based on the nominations made. The time is decided based on the months of summer and winter of the hosting country. Let us learn what the Olympics Games are first.
What are Olympic Games?
The Olympic Games is the most popular international sports event conducted in a nominated country and overseen by the International Olympic Committee (IOC). This committee takes care of the event’s development and organisation.
As per the history of the Olympics, these games were conducted in the mountains of Olympia in Greece from 776 BC to 393 AD. It stopped since then and was not held for 1503 years. Later in 1896, Baron Pierre De Coubertin, a Frenchman, introduced the Olympics in Athens, Greece. It was his idea of the modern Olympics to be held to bring countries closer to sports.
The different types of Olympic Games are as follows:
1. Summer Olympics
As the name suggests, the Summer Olympics are held in a country when there is summer season. The sports events will need such weather conditions to ensure their proper conductance. The 2020 Olympics conducted 33 sports events.
2. Winter Olympics
These Olympic Games are conducted in the winter months of a chosen country. The 2022 Winter Olympics conducted 7 sports.
3. Paralympics
This Olympic event is conducted for the differently abled or physically challenged professional sportspeople and athletes.
4. Youth Olympic Games (YOG)
This event is conducted for athletes of age 15 to 18 years in various sports.
Difference Between Summer and Winter Olympics
The prime difference between Summer and Winter Olympics lies in the following points.
According to the information about the Olympic Games, the total number of countries participating in the summer games is more than 200. In winter games, the number of participants is 91.
The summer version started in 1896 Athens in Greece. The winter version started in 1924 in Chamonix, France.
The timing is set in such a way that the hosting country has the required season going on for conducting the sports events.
Summer Olympics
Facts about Summer Olympics
Here is the list of Olympics facts we should all know.
1. Gold Medals Are Not Made of Gold
The gold medals awarded to the winners of the events are not made of actual gold. They are generally made of silver. Since 1912, the gold medals contain almost 6 grams of gold and the rest is silver. The market price of an Olympic Gold medal (556 grams) is assumed to be US$ 32,000 if it was made of pure gold.
2. The Torch Relay Is Not an Age-Old Tradition
We have seen how the torch is relayed from one country to the other and eventually it reaches the hosting country to fire up the beacon. According to the Olympic information, this torch relay event dates back to the controversial time of the Berlin Olympics in 1936. Calm Diem was the chief organiser of the games.
He thought that this torch relay event was propaganda of the superiority of the Aryan race conducted by the Nazi Party. This torch passed Greece, Bulgaria, Hungary, Yugoslavia, Czechoslovakia and Austria. All these countries eventually succumbed to Nazi rule within 10 years of World War II.
3. Cancellation of Modern Olympics
According to the Olympic Games list, only three of the modern versions were cancelled. In 1916, the first one was cancelled due to World War I. The second one to be cancelled was in 1940 due to World War II. The third one to be cancelled was in 1944 due to the same reason. Olympics 2020 that was to be held in Tokyo got postponed but not cancelled due to the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic.
4. Reason Behind the Five Colours of the Olympic Rings
The colours of the Olympic rings are green, yellow, blue, red, and black. These colours were chosen by Baron Pierre DE Coubertin, the father of the modern Olympics. He wanted these colours as at least one of them is present in all the flags of the participating countries. There is also a convention that the five rings represent the five continents participating in these games.
5. 5 countries to Represent All the Modern Olympics
Only five countries have participated in all the Summer Olympic Games held to this date. They are Great Britain, Greece, France, Australia, and Switzerland.
6. Michael Phelps: A Country on His Own
You will be surprised to know that Michael Phelps is the only Olympian who has won 23 gold medals, 3 silver and 2 bronze medals in various swimming events. He can compete with a country alone.
7. 2012 London Olympics
In this Olympic event, every country had female athletes and sportswomen in the team. It was a big feat to celebrate.
8. Games and Disciplines
The answer to how many games are there in the Olympics is 28 sports with a list of 38 disciplines in the Summer Olympics. The winter Olympics has 7 sports genres with a list of 15 disciplines.
Conclusion
This was all about the history and Olympic Game names we need to know. You will be surprised to know that there is no age limit for any athlete or sportsperson to compete with the rest of the world. The spirit of the Olympics does not stop any athlete from competing due to his/her age. The Olympics are the prime international events that erase all the boundaries dividing countries and bring us all together.
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International Sports Day: Why is it Celebrated?
