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Olympic Oath
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Olympic Oath is taken by one athlete and one judge at the opening ceremonies of each Olympic Games. It was spoken in Greek in Athens 2004.
The athlete, from the team of the organizing country, holds a corner of the Olympic Flag while reciting the oath:
- In the name of all the competitors I promise that we shall take part in these Olympic Games, respecting and abiding by the rules which govern them, committing ourselves to a sport without doping and without drugs, in the true spirit of sportsmanship, for the glory of sport and the honour of our teams.
The judge, also from the host nation, likewise holds a corner of the flag but takes a slightly different oath:
- In the name of all the judges and officials, I promise that we shall officiate in these Olympic Games with complete impartiality, respecting and abiding by the rules which govern them in the true spirit of sportsmanship.
The Olympic Oath, most commonly attributed to David O"Connor but written by Ethelbert Talbot, was first taken by a decathlete at the 1920 Summer Olympics in Antwerp. The first judge's oath was taken at the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich.
The text of the oath has slightly changed over the years. The oath read by Victor Boin in 1920 was
- We swear. We will take part in the Olympic Games in a spirit of chivalry, for the honor of our country and for the glory of sport.
Later, "swear" was replaced by "promise" and "country" by "team." The part concerning doping was added at the 2000 Summer Olympics.
The athletes and judges that have delivered the Olympic Oath are listed below.