May 30, 2013 (St. Petersburg, Russia) – The presentation of the Olympic and Paralympic medals, which will be awarded at the Sochi 2014 Winter Games, took place in St. Petersburg today during the 11th “SportAccord” Annual International Sports Convention.

Guests of honor at the ceremony, which is often held in the year before the Games, included IOC Coordination Commission Chairman Jean-Claude Killy, CEO of the IPC Xavier Gonzalez and President and CEO of the Sochi 2014 Organizing Committee Dmitry Chernyshenko.

The presentation ceremony was opened by Dmitry Chernyshenko, who gave the audience the main facts and figures about the Sochi 2014 medals and highlighted their uniqueness. The Olympic and Paralympic medals were then displayed and members of the public were able to view them up-close.

The Sochi 2014 Olympic and Paralympic medals are unique and feature the Sochi 2014 “Patchwork Quilt” – a mosaic of national designs from the various cultures and ethnicities of the Russian Federation. The medals have been carefully crafted to depict the landscape of Sochi from the sun’s rays reflecting through the snowy mountain tops onto the sandy beaches of the Black Sea coast. These contrasts in Russia’s natural landscape are embodied in the medals and will be an everlasting souvenir for the champions. The unusual combination of metal and polycarbonate lends to the medals a sense of lightness and distinctive beauty.

The front of the medal features the Olympic rings. The reverse contains the name of the competition in English, and the logo of the Sochi 2014 Games. The official name of the Games in Russian, English and French is engraved on the medal’s rim.

The Olympic Winter Games in Sochi will set a new record in terms of the number of sports events on show, so a record number of about 1,300 medals will be manufactured.

The Sochi 2014 Olympic Winter Games will feature 12 new medal events including men’s and women’s snowboard and ski slopestyle, the ski halfpipe, snowboard parallel special slalom, womens’ ski jumping, the figure skating team event, the luge relay and the biathlon mixed relay.

The Sochi 2014 Paralympic medals were designed in the same style. The form of the award symbolizes the integrity and strength of spirit of Paralympians, who are an example of the unlimited possibilities of humankind.

One side of the medals features the Paralympic symbol (three hemispheres, “agitos”); the reverse features the logo of the Sochi 2014 Paralympic Winter Games and the name of the competition in English. The official name of the Games in Russian and English is engraved on the medal rim. The awards also contain inscriptions in Braille for the visually impaired.

A set of Sochi 2014 medals traditionally includes a bronze, silver, and gold medal. Depending on the type of metal used, the Sochi 2014 Olympic medals weigh between 460 and 531 grams, and the Paralympic medals – between 585 and 686 grams, due to their design peculiarities. Each medal is 10 mm thick and 100 mm in diameter.

December 27, 2011 – The events of 2011 have put the International Olympic Committee and the Olympic Movement in a strong position as we look to 2012 and beyond. Over the course of this year, we took action to safeguard the integrity of sport, strengthened our ties to the United Nations and expanded our efforts to use sport as a tool for development – all while maintaining a strong focus on our core mission of ensuring successful Olympic Games.

The International Olympic Committee continued to take the lead in the fight against doping, with strong support from our International Federations and National Olympic Committees. We also took action against another scourge, illegal and irregular betting. The IOC has teamed up with governments, IFs, NOCs and betting operators for a collective action.

Our partnership with the UN is stronger than ever. Our collaboration is extending the reach of sport as a tool for peace, development and sustainability around the world. In September, I was pleased to represent the IOC at the UN General Assembly, promoting a greater role for sport in the fight against noncommunicable diseases. Earlier in the year, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon participated in the 2nd International Forum on Sport, Peace and Development in Geneva, focusing on sport as a catalyst for achieving the UN Millennium Development Goals. Our work with the UN in 2012 will include initiatives related to the Rio +20 environmental summit in Brazil.

While Games organisers moved ahead this year with preparations for the 2012 London Games, the 2014 Sochi Games and the 2016 Rio Games, the IOC looked further into the future. Organisers in PyeongChang went to work almost immediately after the city was selected in July to host the 2018 Olympic Winter Games.

We have much to look forward to in the coming year. The first Winter Youth Olympic Games will get underway in Innsbruck on 13 January. Thanks to the support of our International Federations and National Olympic Committees, I am confident that this inaugural event will build on the success of the first Summer Youth Olympic Games in Singapore last year. We are also confident about the future Games in Nanjing, which will host the 2nd Summer edition in 2014, and in Lillehammer, host of the 2nd Winter edition in 2016.

The Games of the XXX Olympiad will open on 27 July, when London will become the first city to host three editions of the Olympic Games. The Games have already transformed East London and are poised to leave a great sports and development legacy to one of the world’s most vibrant and cosmopolitan cities. I hope to see all of you there next summer.

Jacques Rogge, President of the IOC

September 13, 2011 (Sochi, Russia) – Preparations for the Sochi 2014 Winter Olympic Games are continuing, with work expected to be completed on many of the mountain venues by the end of this year.

During the 2014 Games, events will be focused around two different areas – a coastal cluster of venues in Sochi for ice events, and a mountain cluster in the Krasnaya Polyana Mountains.

The mountain cluster will be home to all the skiing and sliding sports and will include a Biathlon and Ski Complex, a Bobsleigh Track, a Ski Centre and a Ski Jump Complex, as well as a Snowboard Park and Freestyle Centre.

Many of the venues are due to host international events at the beginning of 2012, in preparation for the 2014 Games, and IOC Coordination Commission Chairman Jean-Claude Killy was confident that the athletes would be impressed following a recent visit to Sochi. “I am confident that the world’s winter athletes will be impressed when they arrive in Sochi for the up-coming sports events and the Games in 2014,” said Killy. He continued, “The entire Sochi 2014 team deserves great praise for their achievements over the past six months.”

The Biathlon and Ski Complex, located on the crest and slopes of the Psekhako Ridge, will host both the FIS Cup and the IBU Cup in January next year, while the Alpine Centre, on the Aibga Ridge, will host the Alpine FIS World Cup in February.

The Ski Jumping Complex, which is located in Esto-Sadok village on the northern slope of the Aibga Ridge, will stage the FIS Ski Jumping Cup in February, while the Snowboard Park and Freestyle Centre, to the West of the Rosa Khutor plateau, will host both the Freestyle FIS European Cup and the Snowboard FIS European Cup in March.

www.olympic.org

June 12, 2011 – On 23 June, Olympic Day is celebrated all around the world: hundreds of thousands of people – young and old – get moving and participate in sporting and cultural activities, such as runs, exhibitions, music and educational seminars. Over the last two decades, the event has helped to spread the Olympic ideals to every corner of the world.

Olympic Day was introduced in 1948 to commemorate the birth of the modern Olympic Games on June 23, 1894 at the Sorbonne in Paris. The goal was to promote participation in sport across the globe regardless of age, gender or athletic ability.

Over the last 20 years, Olympic Day has been associated with Olympic Day Runs all over the world. From 45 participating National Olympic Committees (NOCs) in the first edition in 1987, today the large majority of the 205 NOCs is joining in. What’s more, many of the participating NOCs are in Africa – proving the event’s worldwide appeal.

Nowadays, Olympic Day is developing into much more than just a sports event. Based on the three pillars “move”, “learn” and “discover”, National Olympic Committees are organising sports, cultural and educational activities. Some countries have incorporated the event into the school curriculum and, in recent years, many NOCs have added concerts and exhibitions to the celebration. Recent NOC activities have included meetings for children and young people with top athletes and the development of new web sites directing people to programmes in their neighbourhood. This makes it easier for everybody to become part of Olympic Day. You can also join in and share your experience via our social media channels – Twitter, Facebook or YouTube.

May 06, 2011 – The 9th World Conference on Sport and the Environment concluded on Monday in Doha, Qatar, with the sports world renewing its commitment to the environment by framing a clear agenda for action. FIS was represented in Doha by Erwin Lauterwasser, FIS Environmental Expert.

The so-called Doha Declaration defined three focus areas in which to direct activities related to the economic, social and environmental aspects of sustainable development in sport. They include showcasing the contribution of the sports movement to sustainable development at next year’s United Nations Conference on Environment and Development, engaging young people, and building and strengthening partnerships between the sports world and the UN, governments, local entities, NGOs, and others.

IOC President Jacques Rogge said: “Next year marks the 20th anniversary of the 1992 Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro, and this weekend’s Conference has made it clear for all to see just how far we have come since then. While we can be proud of our achievements, we have also learnt that there is no time for complacency. We owe it to future generations to continue to promote our green agenda and ensure environmental sustainability in sport, and I think we have taken a big step towards that with the Doha Declaration.”

Over 650 delegates from National Olympic Committees, International Federations, Organizing Committees for the Olympic Games, governmental and non-governmental environmental organizations and educational institutions participated in the Conference, making it the biggest of its kind.

April 27, 2011 – The Olympic Museum has just launched a photo contest in conjunction with the temporary exhibition currently showing at The Olympic Museum! There are many prizes to be won including a VIP tour of The Olympic Museum in Lausanne, Switzerland. Other prizes include photo and/or video equipment. Please read the Group Rules on Flickr.

How do I take part?

It’s easy… take and share one or more photos that represent one or more of the Olympic values:

– Friendship through sport
– Respect through sport
– Excellence through sport

Participate in the contest HERE.

Please note that, on a regular basis and for a limited period of time, a random selection of photos submitted for the contest will be featured in the HOPE temporary exhibition at The Olympic Museum in Lausanne.

Contest dates: 31 March to 15 September 2011.

Good luck!

Learn more about the Hope exhibition HERE.

March 03, 2011 – After the great success of the competition last year, the IOC is renewing its medal design competition for the first edition of the winter Youth Olympic Games. Whether you are passionate about sport and Olympism or you are a budding designer looking for a challenge… this contest is made for you!

Easy, all you have to do is visit the medal design competition website www.medaldesigncompetition.com and find all the information you need!

Entries will be accepted from 1 March to 29 April 2011. The creations will then be displayed online so the public can vote for their preferred design until 30 June 2011! An IOC jury will pick the final winner from the top ten voted designs this summer!

So go and visit the website and send us your designs!