Win a trip to Copenhagen and attend the 13th Olympic Congress in October 2009: this is the prize for 20 participants of the current virtual Congress. Each member of the general public who submits a written electronic contribution to the virtual Congress is automatically eligible to participate in the prize draw. The 20 invitations include economy airfare and local accommodation and meals. Submissions will be accepted until 31 December 2008.

 

The contributions to the virtual Congress will be numerous. Today more than 1,000 people have already registered or contributed. It will be up to the IOC, through its Olympic Congress Editorial Committee, to select 20 contributions and award their authors one prize each. When making its decision, the Committee will in particular take into account the quality of the contribution. The competition rules can be accessed on the virtual Congress page.

 

Making a contribution to the virtual Olympic Congress is easy! Access www.2009congress.olympic.org register and contribute online to a maximum of two of the five Congress themes. 

The themes are as follows:

Theme 1: The athletes

- Relationship between the athletes, the clubs, federations and the NOCs

- Health protection in training and competition

- The social and professional life of athletes during and after elite competition

Theme 2: The Olympic Games

- How to keep the Games as a premier event

- The Olympic values

- Universality and developing countries

Theme 3: The structure of the Olympic Movement

- The autonomy of the Olympic Movement

- Good governance and ethics

- The relationships between the Olympic Movement and its stakeholders

Theme 4: Olympism and Youth

- Moving towards an active society

- Is competitive sport still appealing?

- Youth sports events

Theme 5: The digital revolution

- A new management of sports rights

- How to increase the size of the sports audience

- Communication with stakeholders in the digital age

 

The virtual Olympic Congress is an important component of the preparatory process leading up to the 13th Olympic Congress in Copenhagen. The information gathered through the virtual Congress will form the basis of discussions at the 13th Olympic Congress held in Copenhagen, Denmark, in October 2009.

More information on the Congress Regulations, the Call for Contributions and the competition rules can be found at www.2009congress.olympic.org

 

Huge success for Olympex: the exhibition on Olympic stamps, coins, memorabilia and art has been attended over the last 10 days by more than 100,000 visitors. “We could have sold many more tickets, but for security reasons we had to limit the entrance to 10,000 people per day”, explains Manfred Bergman, the coordinator of the exhibition.

 

The philatelic exhibition showcases the most prestigious stamps with a link to Olympism, including stamps from more than 125 countries that have been specially issued for the Beijing Olympic Games. One of the highlights of the assorted exhibits is the prestigious collection of Juan Antonio Samaranch, the IOC's Honorary President. “It’s not only about stamps, but also about their historic importance and the huge value they represent,” explains Bergman. For this veteran in Olympic philately, it is one of the most important exhibitions ever staged by the Olympic Movement. “And our Chinese visitors, real fans in this field, just love them”, he concludes.

 

The other highlight of the exhibition is the display of Olympic torches. As an exclusive exhibition and for the first time outside the Olympic Museum in Lausanne, all Olympic torches – form both summer and winter Games - are on display. Visitors can also admire a wide range of Olympic medals, from both the current and previous Games. Costumes used at opening ceremonies add a very colourful touch to this part of the exhibition. These memorabilia and many artworks from the Olympic Museum in Lausanne have been selected and monitored by its Director, Francis Gabet, and his team.

 

Pins are an integral part of Olympic memorabilia collections. Coca-Cola has presented its first pin ever and is staging its traditional pin trade show. Other sponsors have also made a huge effort in research and are displaying historical documents and items they have specifically prepared for the current and previous Games editions.

 

In addition, the finalist entries of the Olympic Art Contest are on show. A spectacular 100kg gold coin announcing the Vancouver 2010 Winter Games has been unveiled during Olympex. The visitors also particularly appreciated the possibility of striking their own medallions.

 

Learn more on www.2008expo.org and join in Olympexpo!

Nathan Wilmot and Malcolm Page from Australia won the 2004, 2005 and 2007 World Championships in the 470 sailing class, but until Monday had never won Olympic gold.The Australian pair yesterday enjoyed a 22-point margin entering the must-sail medal race. Only a disqualification could keep them from the gold. They stayed clean and retired from 470 sailing with the only trophy that had eluded them.

 

Of all Olympic sports, sailing has yielded over the years some of the most extraordinary achievements. Austria’s Hubert Raudaschl was the first athlete to compete in nine Olympic Games, while Denmark's Paul Elvstrøm is one of only three Olympians to win the same individual event four times in a row (1948-1960). Elvstrøm was idolised by Torben Grael, a Brazilian of Danish descent introduced to sailing by his grandfather on a six-metre boat used by the Danish team in 1912. With two gold, one silver and two bronze, Grael became the sailor with the highest number of Olympic medals.

 

 Paul ELVSTROM (Denmark)  Torben GRAEL (Brazil)  

 

Scott of the Antarctic
The 1936 bronze medallist, Peter Scott of Great Britain, was the son of explorer Robert Scott, who died near the South Pole when Peter was an infant. Peter Scott went on to found the Worldwide Fund for Nature (WWF), while 1972 bronze medallist Paul Coté of Canada was one of the co-founders of Greenpeace. The 1952 gold medallist, Britton Chance of the US, was a professor of biophysics most noted for his research into how oxygen is used by the body to provide energy – it sounds like he had an unfair advantage!

 

The first woman to skipper an Olympic boat was Virginie Hériot of France, who won gold in 1928. Barbara Kendall’s windsurfing gold in 1992 was the first for a female New Zealand athlete for 40 years - her brother Anthony Bruce was Olympic windsurfing champion in 1988. Another windsurfer, Gal Fridman, won Israel’s first Olympic gold medal in 2004, and Peter Homberg won the first medal of any kind for the Virgin Islands in 1988. Meanwhile, Ukraine’s Valentyn Mankin is the only sailor to win in three different classes.

 

 Valentyn MANKIN (Russian Federation)

 

Crown Princes Olav of Norway (1928) and Constantin of Greece (1960) have both won Olympic sailing gold, as has America’s Cup winning skipper Russell Coutts, who won in 1984. The flagship of those Games was the Angelita, used by the winning American team at the 1932 Games, also held in Los Angeles. The Angelita had been discovered in a Californian boatyard in 1981, and Owen Churchill, winning skipper in 1932, was back at its helm in 1984 at the age of 88.

 

 

With more than 42 per cent female athletes, Beijing sets a new record for women's participation in Olympic Games. Out of 11,196 total athletes, there are 4,746 women currently giving their best across various Olympic sports. Women’s participation in the Olympic Games has grown increasingly, particularly within the last two decades.

The 2008 Beijing Olympic Games kicked off with 63 female flag bearers leading their delegations into the Olympic stadium during the Opening Ceremony on 8 August. On 9 August, Katerina Emmons from the Czech Republic became the first woman to win a gold medal in the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games by winning the women's 10m air rifle event in shooting. Among the female competitors in Beijing, the female athletes from Europe have won most of the medals so far, followed by their Asian counterparts.

 

Whilst the 611 women who participated in the 1960 Olympic Games in Rome represented just 11.5 per cent of the athletes, women’s participation had leaped to represent close to 22 per cent by the Olympic Games in 1980 in Moscow. At the Sydney Games in 2000, the number of female athletes reached more than 38 per cent, with 4,069 women of a total of 10,651 athletes. Athens, four years later, saw 4,306 female athletes competing out of a total of 10,568. In 2004, women were in the spotlight in no less than 135 events and in 26 of the 28 Olympic sports. In Beijing, women will compete in the same number of sports but in 137 events.

 

 

The e-journal “Olympic Express” the IOC is running on www.olympic.org in collaboration with the French number one sports newspaper “L’Équipe”, and its special outlet “L’Équipe junior” for a younger audience, is reaching out to a large world-wide audience that obviously appreciates this special initiative for the Beijing Games. Here are some quotes from the very generous feedback “Olympic Express” receives.

From Brazil:  

“Olympic Express shows everything that is important in a sport! I think Olympic Express should be published on more sports websites or something like this!”

“Olympic Express deserves the gold medal in Olympic communication.”

From China: 

“This is very good; it provides all the information indeed to be able to follow the planet’s biggest sporting event.”

“We want to know more about the news of the Olympics. How do people prepare? I think e-books are very interesting and convenient.”

Belgium: 

« Bonjour, quelle bonne idée cette brochure. Je suis instituteur primaire et je me base sur celle-ci pour mes leçons.” (“Hello. This brochure is a great idea. I am a junior school teacher and use it for my lessons.”)

 

USA: 

“I just love this website because it gives you all the latest info on the Olympics and facts on each sport, and I am very thankful that I found this website because I have a report in school on the Olympics and I’m doing ice-skating. So everyone out there who’s interested in the Olympics should go there.”

“I love all your articles! They are very informative and fun to read!”

England: 

“I really like Olympic Express and so do all of my friends.”

Australia: 

“Hi, my children and I love reading your magazine. I am also a teacher and my class is also enjoying the magazine. Thank you very much!”

“I really like The Olympic Games and this great magazine ‘Olympic Express’. I can't wait for 2012 as my host country will host the Games in London. I hope to be a spectator, watching the opening/closing ceremony and the athletics and aquatics events. My first Olympic memories are from Sydney 2000, seeing Sir Steve Redgrave winning his fifth gold medal. Of course in Athens 2004, I can remember Kelly Holmes winning two gold medals. She is an Olympic legend. I will try my best to share the Olympic spirit with everyone around the world and seek for peace.”

 

 Discover the Olympic Express