What do the 5 rings on the Olympic flag symbolize? Blue, black, red, yellow, green

What do the 5 rings on the Olympic flag symbolize? Blue, black, red, yellow, green - the colors of the Olympic rings

The Olympic Games are among the most anticipated and rated sporting events in the world. Their main attribute is easily recognizable - five multi-colored rings. How did he appear? What do the Olympic rings mean?

We can explore this issue in the following main aspects:

History of the Olympic rings

The considered symbol of the Games first became known to the general sports community in 1920. Since then, he has consistently accompanied every winter or summer Olympics. Officially, the rings are used as an element of the flag, which is based on a white cloth, which has long been associated with the denial of wars, with peace. As you know, in ancient Greece, during the Olympic Games, which became the direct prototype of the modern ones, all hostilities between the warring policies (whose representatives then held peace negotiations in Olympia) ceased.

The idea to complement the white flag, associated with the world, with colorful rings belongs to Baron Pierre de Coubertin, the same person who came up with the idea of holding world competitions at the end of the 19th century, the history of which dates back to ancient times. In 1913, the masters of the Bon Marche studio, located in Paris, made the first sample of the Olympic flag. It was presented to the public in 1914 at the Sorbonne during celebrations on the occasion of the 20th anniversary of the Olympic movement revived by Pierre de Coubertin.

It was originally planned to use the five-ringed flag at the 1916 Games. But by that time, the First World War had broken out, as a result of which it was impossible to hold competitions. However, already at the Antwerp Olympics in 1920, the new symbols were presented as official.

The interlacing of five multi-colored rings is a concept invented by Pierre de Coubertin, according to some sources, under the influence of the attributes of the Union of French Athletic Societies (Union des sociétés françaises de sports athlétiques, USFSA), headed by the famous figure himself. The fact is that the emblem of this institution was two rings (red and blue), which are brought together.

It can be noted that the USFSA emblem was part of the structure of the logo of the International French Committee (Le Comité français interfédéral, CFI), which later became the French Football Federation. Below is an example of placing the corresponding element on the clothes of athletes.

The USFSA symbols denoted the fact of the formation of the Union by two separate associations operating in France - the Union des Sociétés Françaises de Course a Pied and the Committee for the Development of Physical Education (Comité pour la Propagation des Exercises Physiques). In turn, the blue and red colors in the USFSA attribute were used under the influence of the corresponding shades present in the national French flag.

At the same time, there is another version - according to which Pierre de Coubertin created the Olympic symbol in the form familiar to us, having seen images similar to it on ancient Greek objects.

The semantic content of the main Olympic attribute

What do the five Olympic rings used as the main attribute of the modern Games mean?

The fact that there are exactly 5 rings on the Olympic flag is associated by historians with the desire of Pierre de Coubertin to unite the symbols of several nations at once on a common white flag. So, yellow and blue colors denoted Sweden (the same shades are present on the national flag of this Scandinavian country); blue and white - the USA and several European states, on the official attributes of which, respectively, there are the indicated colors; yellow and red - Spain, Brazil, Australia, China and Japan. Remembering what the flags of these countries look like, we will see that they have yellow or red elements - and in the case of Spain, both.

Subsequently, the symbolism of the Olympics in the aspect of shades of 5 rings received additional interpretations. Let's consider them in more detail.

The above interpretation of the 5 Olympic rings as reflecting the competitive unity of world nations was considered the main one until 1951 - until the International Olympic Committee decided that the corresponding elements of the flag of the Games should be associated not with countries, but with continents. By the way, back in 1931, Pierre de Coubertin, as some sources testify, spoke about the need to interpret the semantic content of 5 rings in this way.

True, the founder of the modern Olympic movement did not specify which specific continent each of the rings should correspond to. At least, there is no generally accepted public information that would unequivocally reflect the opinion of Pierre de Coubertin on this matter.

According to an unofficial interpretation of the correspondence of the marked elements of the Olympic flag to the continents, blue indicates Europe, yellow - Asia, black - Africa, green - Australia, red - America, both North and South. More widespread, however, is the version according to which these shades of the Olympic rings are present one way or another on the national flag of any country in the world.

In the general case, the color scheme and the mutual arrangement of the rings do not change when using the corresponding attribute of the Games within the framework of the competition. But sometimes it is possible to adapt them to the thematic concepts used by the organizers of the Olympiads. So, for example, at the opening ceremony of the Winter Games in Sochi in 2014, the rings were decorated in the form of identical white snowflakes - one of them, as you know, did not open at a crucial moment due to technical reasons. At the same time, there was a plexus between them, and such a condition for using the Olympic symbol in question is considered, as many experts believe, to have no alternative, mandatory in all cases.

At the same time, one-color execution of the Olympic rings is practiced quite often: for example, in the manufacture of souvenirs, the layout of various thematic bulletins and the media. At the same time, the IOC has no public objections to such formats for the use of the main attribute of the Games. According to sports historians and experts, this may indicate the commitment of this organization to the idea of unity, equality of world nations, regardless of the likely interpretations of the meaning of colors in the Olympic rings.

Most of the inhabitants of our country know that one of the main attributes of the Olympic Games is the flag, which depicts multi-colored rings in a certain order. But few people can answer questions about the meaning of the Olympic rings, history and other facts related to the symbolism of the main sporting event around the world.

For a detailed analysis of the topic presented, it is necessary, first of all, to study the history of the creation of the Olympic rings, and also to understand why, for the entire period of their existence, despite the rather simple image of the symbols in question, the IOC (International Olympic Committee) did not change the existing emblem. After all, the rings remind us of the main world sporting event, only because we have seen a flag with multi-colored rings at the Olympics since childhood.

If you look at this symbolism objectively, discarding the idea of it that has formed throughout our life, it will be difficult to guess that this is one of the main attributes of the Olympic Games.

From the history of the creation of the main symbol of the Olympics

Back in 1914, the founder of the modern Olympic Games (Pierre de Coubertin) presented a white flag with multi-colored rings at the IOC Congress in Paris. Coubertin proposed to use this flag as the main symbol of the Olympic Games.

The congress participants approved this idea and decided to use the paraphernalia presented in 1916, but the First World War interfered, so the flag with multi-colored rings debuted only in the 20th year of the last century at the Olympic Games in Belgium.

On the World Wide Web, you can find the statement that the creator of the Olympic rings is the Greek Angelo Bolanchi (but even the authors of this version themselves do not give a 100% guarantee of its authenticity).
Adherents of the third version believe that the author of the Olympic rings was the world famous psychologist Carl Jung, who used ancient Chinese philosophy to create the legendary Olympic symbol.
Olympic rings on a white background were invented in 1912 by the "forefather" of the modern Olympic Games, Pierre de Coubertin (other sources claim that he only led a group of creators of sports symbols, performing administrative work).
It is worth paying attention to the fact that according to all the above versions, the Olympic rings were created in 2012, and the white flag came to us from Ancient Greece (as a symbol of peace and goodness).

The meaning of each Olympic ring: several versions

Until 1951, it was believed that the meaning of the Olympic rings in colors was comparable to a separate continent, whose inhabitants took part in the Olympic Games:

Blue (first ring of the top row) - Europe;
black ring (2nd in the top row) - Africa;
red ring (3rd in the top row) - America;
the yellow ring in the bottom row is Asia;
the green ring in the bottom row is Australia.

But since the middle of the last century, in order to avoid accusations of racial discrimination, this theory of the meaning of the Olympic rings by colors depending on the continent has been gradually abandoned.

Another “deciphering” the meaning of the Olympic rings is based on the fact that in the flag of any country participating in sports competitions, you can find at least one of the six colors that are used to create symbols (five rings plus a white canvas background).

Not without Carl Jung, who (as mentioned above) was fond of ancient Chinese philosophy and knew well that according to this teaching, life energy and strength are attributed to the sign of the ring, and the world is ruled by metal, wood, earth, fire and water. Jung assigned his own ring to each energy and in parallel “attached” to each color of the Olympic ring the following meaning of a certain sport:

Blue is swimming.
Black is shooting.
Red - fencing.
Yellow is running.
Green - jumping.

Despite different views on the meaning of the Olympic rings, they all boil down to the fact that sport is a wonderful way to bring out the strongest in a fair fight, without death, grief and hatred.

How one of the main symbols has changed throughout its existence

It is hard to imagine that the Olympic rings have never changed their appearance since 1912. The first major change came in 1936 at the Olympics in Nazi Germany. Then all the rings were placed in one row, but the first, third and fifth rings were located a little higher from the others (due to this, the symbol looked like the original attribute). The second difference was that an eagle was drawn above the rings, and all the elements of this symbol were drawn using black and white paints.

At the Olympics in Italy (1960), the image of one of the main symbols of the Olympic Games was made voluminous, and the rings themselves were placed under the she-wolf (which, according to legend, nurtured Romulus and Remus, the founders of Rome). If we trace all subsequent Olympics, we can conclude that each country where sports competitions were held tried to introduce its own original elements in order to highlight the main symbol of the Olympic Games.

But, despite the minor changes, to which none of the organizers of sports competitions pays much attention. The International Olympic Committee strictly monitors the main attributes of the Olympic Games (flag, anthem, medals, etc.). All emblems must have rings of the same size, arranged in a strictly regulated order. It is strictly forbidden to change the color of the rings or rearrange them, violating the established order. It is also not allowed to use the main world symbols of sports games for commercial purposes.

After analyzing the above information, we can conclude that changing the appearance of the symbols of the Olympic Games, which has existed for more than a hundred years, is at least unreasonable. Even people who are far from sports are well aware of these multi-colored rings of the Olympic Games, which during their existence have become not only sports paraphernalia, but also a symbol of friendship, peace and mutual understanding.

Olympic symbolism is represented by several attributes at once - the emblem, flag, motto, principle, oath, fire, medals, opening ceremony and talisman. Each of them carries its own functional load and meets all the requirements of world-class sports competitions.

The emblem of the Games has been approved since 1913 and is unchanged. It is familiar to everyone - five colored rings intertwined. It has been operating since the time when it was developed taking into account the ancient Greek symbols of the Olympics. The five circles mean the five continents that participate in sports competitions. In addition, the flag of any country must have at least one color, which is represented on the Olympic rings. Therefore, the emblem of the Olympic movement performs the function of a unifying factor.

The flag is just as important. It represents the image of the Olympic rings on a white cloth. Its role is quite simple - the white color symbolizes the world. And in combination with the emblem, it turns into a symbol of peace during the Games. It was first used as an attribute of the competition in 1920 in Belgium. According to the rules of the Olympics, the flag must participate in both the opening and closing ceremonies. After the end of the Games, it must be handed over to the representative of the city where the next competitions will be held in 4 years.

The motto of the Olympic Games is the Latin slogan: "Citius, Altius, Fortius!". Translated into Russian, this means "Faster, Higher, Stronger!". The role of the motto in the Olympics is to constantly remind everyone present why everyone is here.

The principle “The main thing is not winning, but participating” is an Olympic statement that appeared in 1896. The symbolism of the principle is that the athletes should not feel defeated if they lose. Its goal is that the participants of the competition do not fall into depression, but, on the contrary, find strength in themselves and prepare even better for the next Games.

The traditional oath used is 1920. These are words about the need to respect your rivals, to observe sports ethics. The oath is given not only by athletes, but also by judges and members of the evaluation commissions.

Of course, one cannot ignore such a symbol of the Olympics as fire. The ritual comes from ancient Greece. The fire is lit directly in Olympia, then it is transferred to a special torch, which, traveling through the whole world, arrives in the capital of the Olympic Games. Fire is needed as a symbol to emphasize that sports competition is an attempt to improve oneself, it is an honest struggle for victory, and it is also peace and friendship.

Medals are not only an award, but also a certain symbol of the Games. They serve as a tribute to strong athletes and at the same time emphasize that all people are brothers, because. representatives of various nationalities meet on the podium.

The opening ceremony is a mandatory attribute of the Olympic Games. Firstly, it sets the mood for all two weeks ahead. Secondly, it is a demonstration of the power of the host country. Thirdly, it is the opening ceremony that is the unifying force. This is due to the fact that a parade of athletes is obligatory for her, in which future rivals walk side by side, shoulder to shoulder.

The talisman can be called a changeable symbol of the Olympics. After all, a new attribute is being developed for each competition. It must be approved by the IOC commission, chosen from several proposed options. The one they end up with is patented and becomes the symbol of the Olympic Movement in a given year. The talisman must meet several requirements - reflect the spirit of the host country of the Olympics, bring good luck to athletes and create a festive atmosphere. As a rule, the Olympic mascot is presented in the form of an animal that is popular for the country where the competition is held. In some cases, it can be made in the form of a fantastic creature.

Section 1. Olympics today

In general, the Olympics should be understood as an international sporting event in which thousands of athletes from different countries compete.

There are summer and winter Olympic Games, which take place alternately every two years. That is, purely theoretically, it can be calculated that events of such a plan are arranged only in even years. And if in 2014 the Olympics were winter, then the next, already summer, will be held in 2016. By the way, by decision of a special commission, Rio de Janeiro (Brazil) was entrusted with hosting it.

Section 2. Five rings of the Olympic Games as the main symbol of the competition

A white flag with characteristic symbols... At some point, as if by magic, it appears everywhere: on buildings, on sports and casual clothes, interior items and even on children's toys.

The snow-white background symbolizes world peace. And this is far from accidental, because for a long time during the Olympics, hostilities and conflicts ceased and continue to cease on the entire planet.

The number and colors of the rings of the Olympic Games placed on the flag are also very well thought out. They are colored yellow, blue, black, red and green.

First of all, we note that the rings of the Olympic Games symbolize the five continents of the planet: America, Europe, Asia, Africa and Oceania. Why is this so, because the globe consists of six? The fact is that the Antarctic and the Arctic, due to their uninhabited nature, were not taken into account when developing the symbol.

Ah, those Olympic rings! What they mean was invented a little later. Today, even schoolchildren can talk about the fact that each part of the world is correlated with its own specific color. Blue corresponds to Europe, black to Africa, red to America, yellow to Asia, and green to Oceania.

Section 3. The emblem of the Olympic Games: rings and the history of their occurrence

This symbolic sign was developed in 1912 by Pierre de Coubertin, the founder of the modern Olympic Games. They adopted the emblem in 1914, although it should be noted that it made its debut much later, only in 1920, at the Olympics in Belgium. It was originally planned that the world would see the flag emblazoned with the new symbol in 1916, but World War I prevented major sporting events from taking place.

It is hardly worth mentioning that immediately after their appearance, the rings fell in love and became an integral attribute of the Olympics. In later years, they were used to create various logos associated with the Games.

Section 4. Has the symbol been modernized?

Oddly enough, but yes. And the Olympic rings underwent the biggest changes at the 1936 Olympics, held in the German capital Berlin.

Firstly, the rings were arranged not as usual in two rows, but in one. Their arrangement is somewhat similar to the traditional one due to the fact that the first, third and fifth of them were raised compared to the second and fourth.

Secondly, both the rings and the eagle holding them were made in black and white. In subsequent years, the monochrome version of the Olympic Games logo was used quite often, but the location was no longer changed.

In 1960, in Italy, artists made the symbol of the Olympic Games - the rings - three-dimensional. It was done in grey. The rings were located under the Roman she-wolf, which, according to legend, nursed Romulus and Remus, who founded Rome. By the way, it was in that year that a new tradition was introduced - to hang medals around the neck of athletes.

The Mexicans, who hosted the Games in 1968, approached the creation of the Olympic logo no less creatively. This time, as a symbol of the Olympic Games, the rings were inscribed in the inscription "Mexico-68" and highlighted in color. The lower rings were part of the number 68.

Section 5. The unopened ring of the Sochi Olympics

But not everything is as smooth as it might seem at first glance. The rings of the Olympic Games, which means the five inhabited continents of the planet, have not always been successful. Something was condemned, something was welcomed, and there was something that went down in history.

A small technical incident with the rings occurred at the opening ceremony of the 2014 Olympics in Sochi (Russia).

According to the plan, during the show, large snowflakes hanging over the Fisht stadium were to be transformed into the Olympic rings. But only four were revealed. One ring remained hanging like a snowflake.

However, the Russian viewers did not see this hitch, since the organizers realized a little earlier than the rest what was happening, and they broadcast footage from the rehearsal.

During the closing of the Olympic Games, this incident with an unopened ring was played ironically. At the beginning of the ceremony, the participants of the show formed a composition with five rings and one snowflake, which quickly opened up in a few seconds.

Section 6. Other symbols of the Olympics

It should be noted that, in addition to the official flag and rings, there are also other symbols of the Olympics.

Fire. The tradition of lighting a torch was taken by Coubertin in 1912 from the ancient Greeks. The Olympic flame is a symbol of purity, struggle for victory and self-improvement. It was first lit in 1928. The relay race to pass the torch to the city where the Game is held began in 1936.
Medals. For the first place, the athlete is awarded a gold medal, for the second - a silver, for the third - a bronze. They are awarded to the winners after the competition at a special ceremony.
Motto"Citius, Altius, Fortius" can be translated into Russian as "Faster, higher, stronger." For the first time, these words were said by the priest Henri Martin Didon during the opening of sports competitions in college. It seemed to Coubertin that this phrase perfectly reflects the essence of the Olympic Games.
Oath, according to which the participants of the Games must respect and comply with the established rules. Its text was written by Pierre de Coubertin and was first heard in 1920.
Olympic principle was also defined by Pierre de Coubertin in 1896. It says that in the Olympic Games, as in life, the main thing is not victory, but participation.
Games Opening Ceremony- the most solemn part. It hosts a parade of athletes from all countries participating in the competition. The team of Greece goes first, then the teams of the countries according to the alphabet, and the team of the country organizing the Games comes last.

Section 7. Interesting facts about the Olympic Games

According to the regulation of the International Olympic Committee, gold medals of pure gold in the form of a coating must contain at least 6 grams.

On the logos of the Olympic Games, the year is usually written with four or two digits (Athens 2004 or Barcelona 92). In the entire history of the Games, only once in 1960 in Rome was the year written with five letters (MCMLX).

During the Great Depression in 1932, the Brazilian government did not find the money to send its delegation to the Olympic Games in Los Angeles. As a result, 82 Brazilian athletes were put on a ship with coffee in order to bring them to America with the proceeds. When the ship arrived at the port of San Pedro, its leaders demanded that one dollar be paid for each person who disembarked. Only those who had a chance to receive a medal were let down from the ship. He then went to San Francisco to sell coffee and was able to land a few more athletes, but 15 athletes returned to Brazil.

In 1956, the Summer Olympics were held in Melbourne, which was unable to host some sports. Australian quarantine regulations prohibited the importation of horses, and equestrian competitions had to be held in Stockholm.

Section 8. Looking to the Future

As previously reported, the next Olympic Games will be held in Brazil, in the world famous holiday city of Rio de Janeiro.

This capital of carnivals can not only surprise. It literally amazes every traveler, which means there is no doubt that the 2016 Olympics will be another amazing event.

Whether the rings of the Olympic Games, which means the unity of the planet, will undergo changes is still unknown, since such details are usually a secret part of the opening ceremony.

What is the connection between the emblem of the Olympics and the English alphabet? It would seem that none. Meanwhile, the location of the rings corresponds to the English letter W (that is, World, the whole world, the planet) - because the Olympic rings symbolize precisely the worldwide, planetary holiday of sports.

Meaning - hidden and obvious

Olympics! How many associations this word causes. Sports, peace, friendship, competitions, medals, a podium of honor... But first of all, a flag with the image of five multi-colored rings pops up in front of your eyes. They are arranged in a certain sequence: the top row is occupied by blue, black, red, and the bottom row is yellow and green. Rings are intertwined, make up a single whole.

Why exactly five rings? Their number coincides with the number of continents on the planet. The Arctic and Antarctica are not represented, they are still being mastered by man.

red was given to America (probably in honor of the red Indians);
black went to Africa;
cool Europe is associated with blue;
sunny Asia took yellow;
the "green continent", Australia, is shown in green.

Whether this was what Pierre de Coubertin, the organizer of the revival of the Olympic Games, had in mind when he came up with their symbol, remained a secret. Why are these colors preferred? Specialists in heraldry will notice that the choice is by no means random. Let one color, but present on the national flag of any country. Out of curiosity, you can check. The Russian flag is no exception. It shows 3 colors of the Olympic flag: white, blue, red.

From time to time there are new versions of the interpretation of the Olympic symbols. It is believed that the Swiss philosopher and psychologist Carl Gustav Jung was involved in the creation of the logo. His idea is based on the mythology of the Chinese people, which tells about the unity of the five elements. In China, each of the natural elements is dedicated to its own sport:

swimming - Water;
running - to the Earth;
jumps - to the air;
shooting - Fire;
fencing - Metal.

And the number five is the pentathlon, the classic pentathlon. At the dawn of the Games, it was believed that the Olympian should be the best in not one sport, but several.

Like everything legendary, the amazing emblem attracts with its mysteriousness, and it is possible that the world will learn a lot more interesting things about it.

It is safe to say that the five Olympic rings symbolize:

equal rights of countries and athletes (all rings are the same in size);
friendship of peoples (they are intertwined);
world sporting event (the same W with which this story began).

Rings older than the flag

The flag is the shrine of the participants in the Olympic movement. A white silk cloth with embroidered multi-colored rings unites athletes from all over the world; it is solemnly carried out at the opening ceremony of the Games.

But the rings came before the flag. The Olympic Rings symbol was approved by the IOC in 1913, and the emblem debuted in 1914 in Belgium. The First World War thundered - and in 1920, the Olympic banner, decorated with rings, flew over the Antwerp stadium: the VII Summer Olympic Games started. Since then, the flag has flown over sports facilities from the opening day of the next Olympics until its completion. In 1988, the first flag was replaced with a new one, and the "patriarch" is kept in the Swiss Museum of the Olympic Games.

The Olympic Rings symbol is protected by law. The Olympic Charter, adopted in 1894 by the International Sports Congress, prohibits:

Change ring colors.
Move rings from one row to another.
Use the symbol as a commodity in commercial transactions (only with the permission of the IOC).

The Paralympic Games do not use the Olympic Rings symbol.
In 2014, at the opening ceremony of the Sochi Olympics, there was a technical failure: one of the giant snowflakes did not open and did not turn into a ring. The viewers did not notice this - they broadcast a picture from the rehearsal. At the closing ceremony, the snowflake "did not open" again - this time in the interpretation of the mass ballet participants. After pausing for five seconds, the living "snowflake" (to the laughter of the audience) rapidly turned into a ring. So an unfortunate technical error endowed Sochi with its own version of the symbol - with one unopened ringlet.

The symbolism of the Olympic Games is known to each of us. For example, everyone knows what the Olympic emblem looks like, the flag or how the anthem sounds. However, far from everyone knows what exactly the rings symbolize, and therefore more about this later.

History of the Olympic emblem

Sports competitions were held between people thousands of years ago. One of the first and most famous are the Olympic Games, which were held in Ancient Greece and Rome. After the disappearance of these empires, the competition was suspended. They were renewed already at the end of the 19th century (or rather, in 1896) by Pierre de Coubertin.

The same person designed the emblem of the Olympics in 1913, which is 5 interlaced rings placed in the center of the flag of the Olympic movement.

What do the rings look like?

They are arranged in 2 consecutive rows. Wherein:

Three of them - blue, yellow and black - are located at the top;
Two, green and red, are located in the bottom row.

The rings are connected into a single chain, which is the letter W. At the same time, the outermost of the hoops (blue and red) intersect with only one of the other rings. The rings, placed in the center, each intersect with the other two parts of the emblem.

All about symbolism

The rings symbolize the union, the unity of the 5 parts of the world, as well as the worldwide focus of the Olympic Games. At the same time, contrary to one of the most common versions, each of the rings does not belong to any particular continent or part of the world. More on this below.

Each of the 6 colors (together with a white background on the panel) are combined in such a way as to represent the national shades of all the states of the world.

In accordance with the International Olympic Committee (IOC), the fundamental idea of the emblem should be considered the rooting of the idea that the Olympic Movement is an international campaign that unites everyone “under its wing”. Each of the states of the world can participate in this international competition. The Olympic Charter itself (a set of legal norms) indicates that:

the Olympic rings are relevant because they symbolize the unity of 5 continents;
an additional interpretation of the emblem is a symbol of the gathering of athletes from all countries to participate in the Olympic Games.

A strict code has been developed regarding the use of the represented symbol. It must be followed by all international organizations, athletes and government officials under all circumstances. One of the clearest examples should be considered that even if the Olympic hoops are depicted on a black or dark background, the ring of the presented shade cannot be replaced by another color. In the modern history of the existence of the Olympic Games, there has not yet been a single case of violation of this rule. In extreme cases, the shade of the emblem is insignificantly changed.

According to de Coubertin himself, “5 rings of different shades are intertwined - blue, yellow, black, green, red. They are placed on a solid white field, reminiscent of the background of a sheet of paper. These 5 symbols represent each of the parts of the world. It is they who are currently cultivating the desire for Olympism and are ready to accept healthy competition and wage a fair fight, conquering new heights..

Interpretation of Carl Jung

Carl Jung, the most famous scientist of the 20th century, who lived at the same time as de Coubertin, proposed to perceive 5 rings as specific energies - earth, water, fire, wood and metal. It is they who unite in the symbol known today. In addition, in 1912, Jung proposed his own perception of the competition, which is also often called the pentathlon. According to him, an athlete who is an Olympian should have been distinguished by versatility. In this regard, he must master each of the 5 fundamental sports. We are talking about swimming, fencing, jumping, running and shooting.

Within this:

swimming corresponds to a blue tint;
fencing - red;
jumping - green;
run - yellow;
shooting - black.

The presented interpretation of the emblem, however, focuses rather than on the international scale of the Olympic competitions. She focused her attention on the abilities and results of a certain person who deserves to be called the winner of the Olympic Games.

Religious interpretations of the emblem

Deciphering the symbolism of the rings from a Christian point of view is widely popular. It sounds like this:

black color symbolizes the sin that separates man from God. In this regard, even at the Olympics there are scandals and intrigues;
red is the blood that Jesus Christ shed on the cross so that all sins could be forgiven people;
blue is the Holy Spirit who dwells in everyone after baptism. It will provide an opportunity to achieve high results not only in sports, but in life in general;
green symbolizes spiritual growth in the process of knowing the Lord;
yellow is similar to a gold-plated Olympic medal and is a symbol of the victory of peace and pacifism.

The most common inaccuracies in understanding the emblem

Until 1951, official sources claimed that the shades of the rings corresponded to different parts of the world. So, Europe - blue, Asia - yellow, Africa - black, Australia - green, and America - red. However, already at the end of the 50s, this certificate was deleted, since there was no evidence that de Coubertin assumed such a distribution of shades.

In addition, another common misconception is that, as many believe, in the first years before the start of the competition, the rings were interchanged with each other. Their location has remained unchanged since the creation of the emblem.

Thus, the presented symbolism of intertwined rings is a symbol of peace and the unity of people in the name of a certain idea. It implies fair competition, partnership and striving forward to achieve new results.

It's a shame, of course, that no one represents Antarctica, so there would be 6 rings on the Olympic flag and one of them would be white. And so there are only 5 rings - blue, yellow, black, green and red. The blue ring symbolizes Europe, the yellow ring symbolizes Asia, the black ring symbolizes Africa, and the red ring symbolizes North and South America.

There are several versions explaining the meaning of the colors of the Olympic rings.

First version the most common. She says that the creator of the Olympic rings, Pierre de Coubertin, with the help of multi-colored rings, characterized each of the five parts of the color.

The blue ring is Europe, the black ring is Africa, the red is America, the yellow is Asia, and the green is Australia.

That is, the symbol in the form of five interlaced rings denotes the unification / union of the five world continents.

By second version, the creator of the main Olympic symbol is the famous Swiss psychologist and philosopher Carl Gustav Jung. He decided to express the idea of Chinese mythology about the five elements of nature (water, earth, fire, wood and metal) in the form of rings, a symbol of power and greatness. And in 1912, Jung proposed the idea of pentathlon, the essence of which is that an Olympic athlete must master five sports - show jumping, fencing, shooting, running and swimming. Thus, the black ring symbolizes metal and shooting, the red ring - swordsmanship and fire, the yellow one - earth and running, the green one - tree and jumping.

By third version, which complements the first, the colors of the rings are all shades that contain the state flags of all countries of the world. Those. An athlete from any country in the world can participate in the Olympic Games.

Five multi-colored rings are familiar to us from the Olympics. The color of each ring is chosen for a reason, the colors represent a specific continent. And all the rings connected to each other are a union, a world.

blue ring is Europe,

Africa is represented by a black ring,

America is red

yellow - Asia,

and the green ring symbolizes Australia.

Clearly like this

I don’t even remember where I learned this and when, but the Olympic rings, and as we know and see them, 5 pieces, mean five separate continents of the planet Earth.

Each ring is of a different color and is a symbol of one of the five continents where people live and inhabited countries are located, and all together means universal unification and peace. There are such different colors as:

Colors of the Olympic rings

yellow, blue, black, green, red;

and they match in the same order:

Asia, Europe, Africa, Australia, America.

Part of the world called Europe is blue, some say it is blue.

Part of the world Asia, as you know, Asians have yellow skin, they got the yellow color of the ring on the flag.

The continent of Australia is green.

America - she was given a red ring.

Africa, where the skin color of the population is dark, is black.

In my opinion, everyone should know this, because the symbol of the five Olympic rings has a deep meaning - equality of opportunity for everyone, for all races and continents, therefore all five continents of the Earth are represented on it. And each has its own color, as written above.

The Olympic rings as a symbol of the five continents (which were invented by Pierre de Coubertin) of the world have their own colors, which symbolize, according to the same definition of Pierre de Coubertin, the continents and their colors.

Blue color it Europe.

Yellow color expresses Asia.

Black color expresses Africa.

Green color expresses Australia.

Red Colour South and North America.

This is how the world associates the colors of the continents and, accordingly, the colors of the Olympic rings.

This symbol was invented by Pierre de Coubertin in 1913. There is no reliable information about what meaning he put into these colors, but it is generally accepted that the national colors of all countries are reflected in this symbol of the Olympic Games. Every country's flag has at least one of the five ring colors. Five continents - five colors - five rings. Blue - Europe, black - Africa, yellow - Asia, green - Australia, red - America. This symbol indicates that athletes from all over the world can take part in the games. The Olympic Games were aimed at maintaining the principles of equality, strengthening peace and improving relationships, and these principles were laid down in ancient Greece.

The five Olympic rings symbolize the five continents where the Olympic Games are held. And according to the colors, such a correspondence is accepted -

blue - Europe;
black - Africa;
red - America;
yellow - Asia;
green - Australia.

Yes, everything is simple here - for each inhabited continent (now there are five of them), taking part in the Olympics, a color has been assigned:

America - red;

Europe - blue;

Asia - yellow;

Australia - green;

Africa is black.

When they populate Antarctica, there will probably be a sixth white ring.

Now, I wonder if Martians will take part in the Olympics, then what color will the ring be added to? Mars, after all, is also called Red Planetquot ;, and the red color is busy.

Olympic rings have five colors: blue, yellow, black, green and red.

They represent five parts of the world: Europe, Asia, Africa, Australia and America.

These parts of the world are interconnected in rings.

The symbol of any Olympic Games is a sign - five intertwined colored rings.

This symbol was chosen for a reason, it carries the meaning and purpose of any Olympics - the establishment of friendly relations between peoples, countries and continents around the globe.

Each ring has its own meaning and represents a specific continent (continent).

The yellow ring is the symbol of Asia.

The green ring is the symbol of Australia.

The red ring is the symbol of America.

The blue ring is the symbol of Europe.

The black ring is the symbol of Africa.

The red Olympic ring symbolizes the continent of America, the indigenous people of its red-skinned Indians. Black symbolizes Africa with blacks. Yellow represents the continent of Asia. Green refers to Australia, Green continentquot ;. But why is Europe given the color blue?

According to one version, the psychologist Carl Jung, who is also considered in some circles to be its creator, is associated with the appearance of the Olympic symbols. Jung was well versed in Chinese philosophy, he knew that the ring in ancient cultures is a symbol of greatness and vitality. So he introduced the idea of five intertwined rings reflecting the five energies that are mentioned in Chinese philosophy: water, wood, fire, earth and metal.

Together with the symbols in 1912, the scientist introduced his own image of the modern pentathlon Olympic competitions. Any Olympian had to master each of his five events.

The first discipline is swimming - in the form of a blue ring, it also depicts the element of water and indicates the rhythm that holds the breath, allows you to move forward on the surface of the water, to leadership.

The green jumping ring is an image of a tree and a symbol of the rider's energy. He must have the ability to control not only his own energy, but also the energy of the horse.

The next discipline is fencing, and it is depicted by the fiery element in the form of a red ring. This discipline symbolizes flair. The success of a swordsman depends on the ability to feel the enemy and guess his movements.

The yellow ring represents the earth element and represents the discipline of cross-country running. It indicates perseverance and perseverance. The cross-country runner jumps over the elements, knowing when to slow down and when to speed up.

The discipline of shooting and the unique properties of the metal are depicted by a black ring. This requires precision and clarity. The success of the shot depends not only on physical tension, but also on the ability of cold thinking, with which the shooter concentrates on the target and hits the target.