Paris Olympics 2024 | The symbols of the moment: what do they mean?

Paris Olympics 2024: what are all the symbols associated with the Olympics? What do they mean?

Adorning every board surrounding Olympic venues, festooning every corner of Paris and flashing across the screen of sports broacasting channels— the Olympic symbol is ubiquitous now that the Paris Olympics 2024 are well and truly underway.

The Olympic Games, the flagship sporting event, also has its flagship symbols. The most recognised of these are the five interlaced rings of different colours, part of all Olympic flags, merchandise, sported on jerseys and by the official mascot. This, as well as other Olympic symbols have a lot to do with Pierre de Coubertin, often known as the father of the Modern Olympics movement, and the founder of the International Olympic Association.

We take a look the many symbols proliferating the Olympics scene, as we take a breather between the remaining sporting events.

See the live updates from day 10 of the Olympics here.

Perhaps one of the most widely-known sporting logos in the world, the Olympic symbol has five interlinked rings, usually in five different colours— blue, yellow, black, green and red.

According to the Paris Olympics website, the symbol “expresses the activity of the Olympic Movement” and represents “the union of the five continents” and the meeting of athletes from across the world at the Olympic Games. Each continent, however, is not represented by a specific coloured ring. According to de Coubertin, the five colours, along with the white background of the flag, represent the colours in the flags of all nations.

The rings were designed by Pierre de Coubertin, the founder of the modern Olympic games, in 1913. He reportedly used the logo for the first time as part of a letterhead in 1913, drawing and colouring it in by hand.