WASHINGTON — The five interlocking rings that make up the Olympic logo are one of the most recognizable symbols in the world. But there are actually two meanings behind the colorful imagery.
The rings were introduced in 1913, according to the International Olympic Committee. In the center of a white background, the rings appear in the order of blue, yellow, black, green and red. The rings made their official debut seven years later at the 1920 Olympics in Antwerp, Belgium.
The logo has received minor variations of the years, including white spaces between the rings where they intersect with each other. By 2010, it had reverted to its original form with no spaces.
The first, and most obvious meaning, is tied to the colors.
According to Rule 8 of the Olympic Charter, “The Olympic symbol expresses the activity of the Olympic Movement and represents the union of the five continents and the meeting of athletes from throughout the world at the Olympic Games.”
The five continents referred to are Africa, Asia, the Americas, Europe and Oceana.
The ring colors on the white background represent the nations of the world. Every country in the world has at least one of these five colors on their flag (although they might be a different shade).
The other meaning is referenced at the end of the rule: the meeting of athletes.
All five rings are interconnected, symbolizing how the games bring the world together to compete.
"These five rings represent the five parts of the world now won over to the cause of olympism and ready to accept its fecund rivalries," Olympic Movement founder Pierre de Coubertin said of the symbol.
This year, Olympic organizers have added a special regional flair to the decoration for the Games.
To mark the 50-day countdown before the games, Paris Olympics organizers unveiled a display of the five Olympic rings mounted on the Eiffel Tower in the French capital.
The structure of rings, made of recycled French steel, was displayed on the south side of the 135-year-old landmark in central Paris, overlooking the Seine River. Each ring is 9 meters (30 feet) in diameter.
The tower, nicknamed La Dame de Fer (The Iron Lady), will feature prominently in the July 26-Aug. 11 Paris Games and the following Paralympics.
Men’s and women’s volleyball players will compete at the foot of the 330-meter (1,083-foot) monument. They will be watched by nearly 13,000 fans at the temporary Eiffel Tower Stadium on the nearby Champ de Mars, where Parisians and tourists like to have picnics on the grass or watch July 14 firework displays.
The Olympic and Paralympic medals in Paris are also being embedded with pieces from a hexagonal chunk of iron taken from the tower.