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Olympic Games

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Every four years, the best athletes from countries around the world come together

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in the spirit of peace and friendship to compete in the Olympic Games.

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With the lighting of the Olympic flame the games begin — the Olympic spirit kept alive.

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That flame has been brought many thousands of miles by relay runners all the way from Olympia,

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in Western Greece, where the ceremony began 2700 years ago.

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This simple ceremony, and the lighting of the torch,

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is the spark that renews the Olympic flame wherever the games are played.

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The games symbolized the early Greeks’ ideal of man’s unity,

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their vision of peace, and of human perfection.

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The Olympic began as a religious ceremony.

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The First Games in recorded history took place in the year 776 BC.

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This was the time of the Western Zhou period in China.

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All the Greek city-states participated.

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States at war with each other would end hostilities for the duration of the Games.

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The Olympic motto is universally accepted as “Swifter, Higher, Stronger.”

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One athlete from the games host country takes an oath at the Opening Ceremony

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on behalf of all the competing athletes:

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"In the name of all competitors, I promise that we shall take part in these Olympic games,

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respecting and abiding by the rules which govern them,

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in the true spirit of sportsmanship, for the glory of sport and the honor of our teams.”

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In ancient times,

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winners were crowned with wreaths of the sacred olive.

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Their names were proclaimed throughout the Greek city-states.

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Things have not changed much in this regard.

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Today, first place winners are awarded gold medals,

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second place winners, silver, and third place gets the bronze.

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And, as in ancient times, Olympic stars become internationally famous.

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Let us hope that this living experience of peace and friendship between all the peoples of the world

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that began in Olympia, in ancient Greece, will continue for many centuries to come.