What do the five Olympic rings mean?

The 2024 Summer Olympics draw near, and this means the entire world will shift its focus to one part of the world where the best in sports will clash for supremacy. The 2024 Games will be taking place in Paris, France between Friday, July 26 and Sunday, August 11.

The five cities that bid to host the 2024 Summer Olympics included Los Angeles (United States), Hamburg (Germany), Rome (Italy), Budapest (Hungary), and ultimate bid winner Paris (France). Whilst Hamburg, Rome, and Budapest withdrew their bids, Los Angeles was chosen as the host of the 2028 Games. 10,500 athletes representing 206 National Olympic Committees are expected to compete at the Paris Games. This includes 33 athletes in the Individual Neutral Athletes committee and 37 under the Refugee Olympic Team.

All in all, 32 sports are on the sports program for the 2024 edition, and this includes the introduction of sports such as breaking (breakdance), skateboarding, sport climbing, and surfing. In turn, the Paris event will see the exclusion of karate, softball, and fan-favorite baseball. 329 events are expected to take place in the city of Paris and its metropolitan region. This includes the neighboring cities of Saint-Denis, Le Bourget, Nanterre, Versailles, and Vaires-sur-Marne.

Whilst there will be several ceremonies and symbolic moments, the one constant throughout the Games will be the visibility of the Olympic flag. The symbolic Olympic flag is easily identifiable by its rings, and it is one of the most notable symbols in all of sports. But what exactly do the five Olympic rings mean?

What do the five Olympic rings mean?

The Olympic flag is known for its five interlocking rings. These rings are colored blue, yellow, black, green, and white on a white background. The symbol was originally created in 1913 by the former President of the International Olympic Committee, Pierre de Coubertin. These rings represented the five inhabited continents - Africa, America, Asia, Europe, and Oceania.

Whilst the Olympic rings were created in 1913, they were only incorporated and created into the Olympic flag in 1914. Furthermore, it was only in 1920 that the Olympic rings debuted at the official Olympic games. There have been slight variations to the design of the Olympic rings over the years, including one that saw spaces between the rings incorporated worldwide. However, 2010 saw a return to the timeless original Olympic rings, and they have stayed that way since.

There are seven official versions of the Olympic rings. The six-color version with the white background is the most common and preferred but there are others. The five other flags are monochrome, with all five rings being one of the five-ring colors, and this is on a white background. For example, there is a white background flag with five interlocked all-black rings. The same is the case for all the other colors.

The 2024 Summer Olympics take place in Paris, France between Friday, July 26 and Sunday, August 11. Follow along as FanSided MMA provides all the latest happenings from the Games.