The Olympic Games originated in antiquity in Greece, in Olympia, now a small town. They glorified a healthy and harmonious human body, the unity of the nation. In Russia, the Olympic movement began to take shape at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries, when people began to realize the importance of sports.
The Russian Olympic Committee appeared in March 1911. At the Olympic Games in Stockholm in 1912, the Russian delegation won two silver and two bronze medals. To identify young talents, they began to hold All-Russian Olympiads. Then Russian and Soviet athletes participated in the Olympics many times and won a large number of medals.
The Olympic Movement brings together organizations, athletes and other persons governed by the Olympic Charter. The constituents of the Olympic Movement are the International Olympic Committee, International Sports Federations and National Olympic Committees. It also includes the organizing committees of the Olympic Games, national associations, etc.
The goal of the Olympic Movement is to contribute to a better world by educating youth and encouraging sports. Recognition by the International Olympic Committee is a criterion for belonging to the Olympic Movement. Among the tasks is to combine sport with education and culture.
According to the Olympic Charter, the philosophical foundation of modern Olympism is the harmony of body, will and mind. The purpose of the Olympic Movement is also to promote and explain the main ideas, values and ideals of Olympism, among which is brotherhood and friendship of peoples, harmonious development of the individual as a guarantee of peace. It is also an orientation towards a healthy lifestyle and an understanding of the need for efforts to achieve goals.
Some critics, noting the positive orientation of the Olympic ideology, say that in practice, the organization of competitions orients athletes to sacrifice their health for the sake of victory, to win at any cost, to focus on the development of only the body. They believe that in this way the ideals of Olympism are undermined.
