Tag Archives: olympic games 2016

Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro

NOLOlympicGames2016The Olympic Games will take place from August 5th – August 21st.  Au pairs will be cheering on their nations from the USA and maybe supporting the USA too.  The Olympic Games are the world’s biggest sporting spectacle. They are divided into a summer and winter Games, held every four years by a single city. This year 207 nations will participate in the games.  Athletes with disabilities compete at the Paralympics. More than 10,000 athletes from all over the world take part in the summer events.  Here are some fun facts:

 

The First Olympics

The ancient Olympics celebrated the god Zeus and were held every four years at Olympia, Greece. Winners received an olive wreath. The date of the first Games is unclear, but the first recorded Olympic champion was Koroibos, who won a sprint in 776 BC.

 

The Olympic Rings

The rings symbolize the unity of the world’s five continents (Europe, Asia, Africa, Oceania, and the Americas). Every national flag in the world contains at least one of the five colors.

 

What is the Olympic Ideal

The ideal is to build international understanding and cooperation. The Olympic code promotes amateurism, or performance without payment, and professionals are allowed to participate only under certain rules.

 

Winning Gold…or not

Even though the top athlete in his or her field wins the ‘gold,’ the medals aren’t really made out of solid gold. In fact, they haven’t been pure gold for around 100 years. The gold medals awarded now are actually silver, with gold plating. That probably doesn’t matter to the athletes who have dedicated their lives to winning one, as long as they aren’t planning on melting the medal down and pawning it off.

All About Rio

This year the Olympics will take place in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.  Just one hour ahead of the Eastern Time Zone, it will be easy to view many events live.  View the official website with everything you need to know here  https://www.rio2016.com/en

 

Schedule of Events

Find out when your favorite events are scheduled here http://www.nbcolympics.com/full-schedule