Teaching Values- An Olympic Education Toolkit - International ...

SECTION 3 SHARING THE VALUES THROUGH SPORT AND THE OLYMPIC GAMES
BACKGROUND
INFORMATION
THE OLYMPIC MOVEMENT IS A NETWORK OF ORGANISATIONS, OLYMPIC GAMES ORGANISING
COMMITTEES, CORPORATIONS AND INDIVIDUALS WHO ARE COMMITTED TO SPORT AND/OR TO THE
IDEAS AND VALUES THAT ARE THE FOUNDATION OF OLYMPISM.
THE INTERNATIONAL
OLYMPIC COMMITTEE
(IOC)
The International Olympic Committee
supervises the organisation of each
Olympic Games, and coordinates the
Olympic-related activities of Olympic sport,
culture and education. The members of
the IOC are influential individuals who have
made contributions in sport. These people
act as the IOC’s representatives in their
respective countries.
They are not representatives of
national governments in the IOC.
Sometimes an IOC member has to
represent the IOC in more than one
country. Some IOC members represent
athletes, and some IOC members come
from international sports federations. The
members meet once a year at the IOC
Session. Currently there are 114 IOC
members, 23 honorary members and 2
honour members. The current President
is Jacques Rogge.
THE NATIONAL OLYMPIC
COMMITTEES (NOC)
Over 200 countries send athletes to march
behind their flags during the Opening
Ceremony of the Olympic Games. Each of
these countries has a National Olympic
Committee. The National Olympic
Committee in each country is responsible
for the national team, and for the
promotion and encouragement of the
values of the Olympic Movement within its
boundaries.
THE ORGANISING
COMMITTEES FOR THE
OLYMPIC GAMES (OCOGS)
And the winner is…! These are exciting
words for cities which have won the vote
for the right to be the host for an Olympic
Games. What this means is that they will
be inviting the whole world to come to
their city. The first thing that each city
does then is to create an Organising
Committee, a steadily growing group of
experts and volunteers who will spend the
next six or seven years planning the
Games, constructing the facilities,
organising the sports and cultural events,
securing and getting the city ready to
welcome thousands of athletes, spectators
and media – and finding the funding to
pay for it all. This same Organising
Committee also has the responsibility for
organising the Paralympic Games, which
take place 10 days after the Olympic
Below Uganda 2004:
An Olympic Day
Festival dance
performance in
Uganda demonstrates
the worldwide spread
of the Olympic
Movement.
Games under the supervision of the
International Paralympic Committee.
THE INTERNATIONAL
SPORTS FEDERATIONS
(IF)
The rules and procedures of Olympic
sports competitions have to be the same
for every athlete competing in the sport,
no matter what country they come from.
Therefore, each sport is governed by the
rules of an International Sports Federation.
There are 28 summer sports International
Federations, and 7 winter sports federations.
The IFs are responsible for overseeing the
technical aspects and management of
their sport at the Olympic Games. They
also establish the eligibility criteria for the
competitions of the Games, in accordance
with the Olympic Charter, and join the IOC
in the fight against doping in sport.
COMMISSIONS
The IOC has established working groups,
called Commissions, which study certain
specific subjects, advise the President and
make recommendations to the Executive
Board of the IOC. Some of these
Commissions are: Athletes, Culture and
Olympic Education, Marketing, Ethics,
International Relations, Radio and
Television, Women in Sport and Sport and
the Environment.
OLYMPIC SPONSORS
The Olympic Movement receives most of
its funding from sales of the rights to
broadcast the Olympic Games to media
companies. However, it also enjoys the
support of several multinational
corporations under the TOP (The Olympic
partner programme) sponsors’
programme. All but a small fraction of the
money collected is distributed back into
sport through NOCs, OCOGs and IFs.
FOR DISCUSSION
Why do you think the Olympic Games
and the Olympic Movement appeal to
so many different countries and
cultures around the world?
46 TEACHING VALUES