The most prominent symbols of the Olympic Games today did not originate in classical times. The Olympic torch was an innovation in 1916. The five rings were originally introduced to represent the first five Olympics of the modern era from 1896 to 1912. In 1920 the rings were revived to represent the five continents with North and South America being represented by one ring. The 1936 Olympics in Nazi Germany, was the site of the first lighting of the Olympic flame.

　　The spirit of intense competition in association with heroism and national pride, remain major themes of the Olympics today, much as they were over 2000 years ago. Today, countries send their best, amateur and professional alike, to compete for the highest honors. Athletes also still try to find an advantage to give a better performance than all other competitors, sometimes, unfortunately, not always following the rules.

　　Every four years, or every two years when one includes the winter Olympics, which began in 1924, the world focuses on a human event that represents the good of humanity. Motivated for a couple of weeks, in those years, people and nations try to forget their troubles, put aside their differences and conflicts, and become part of a vast promotion of good global relations and cooperation. One sometimes wonders if the Olympics serve as a safety valve in international human relations, attributing to a collective sanity in a world that, not unlike that of ancient times, is perpetually the scene of conflict, strife, and human misery. Certainly one would like to think that that is the case. If not, one can always hope.

现代奥运会最突出的象征并不是来源于古典时代。奥林匹克火炬是1916年的创新，而引进五环最初是表示从1896年到1912年的头五届现代奥运会。1920年，这些环重新被用来代表包括五个大陆，南北美洲用其中一个环表示。在纳粹德国举行的1936年奥运会，是第一次点燃奥林匹克圣火的地方。

　　几乎与2000多年前一样，与英雄主义、民族自豪感相联系的努力拼搏的精神仍然是现代奥运会的主题。今天，每个国家派出他们最好的选手，不管是业余的还是职业的，来争夺最高的荣誉。运动员们仍然要想方设法取得优势，以胜过其他选手。不幸的是，有时候也会不遵守规则。

　　从1924年开始，每隔四年(如果你把冬季奥运会算进来的话则为每隔两年)，全世界的注意力都集中到这一表现人性好的一面的人类活动上。在这些年中的两个星期里，各国各民族设法忘掉他们的烦恼，撇开他们的分歧和冲突，参与到这个促进世界关系发展向前和合作的运动中。有人也许会想，在这个与古代没有什么两样，永远是冲突、斗争、悲剧的世界上，奥运会是否可以成为国际关系的安全阀，来唤醒人们共同的良知。人们当然愿意相信事实就是这样。如果不是，人们总是可以希望如此。