Run for glory

The International Olympic Day commemorates the establishment of the International Olympic Committee.

About 125 years ago, the city of Athens, Greece, was gearing up to host the first-ever Modern Olympic Games — 1503 years after the last ancient Games! Two years before the official commencement, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) was established by Pierre Coubertin, in Paris in 1894. Its primary function is to conduct, promote, and regulate the modern Olympic Games. During World War I, its headquarters was moved to Lausanne in Switzerland, where it remains to this day. In January 1948, at the 42nd IOC Session in St. Moritz, Switzerland, the IOC decided to commemorate the “birthday” of the Olympic movement by establishing the International Olympic Day. That year, nine National Olympic Committees (NOCs) — Austria, Belgium, Canada, Great Britain, Greece, Portugal, Switzerland, Uruguay and Venezuela — each hosted their own ceremonies.