athletes from around the world participate in a variety of competitions. The Olympic Games are considered the world's foremost sports competition with more than 200 teams, representing sovereign states and territories, participating. By default, the Games generally substitute for any world championships during the year in which they take place (however, each class usually maintains its own records). The Olympic Games are held every four years. Since 1994, they have alternated between the Summer and Winter Olympics
every two years during the four-year Olympiad.
Their creation was inspired by the
Olympic Movement, which encompasses all entities and individuals involved in the Olympic Games. The Olympic Charter
defines their structure and authority.
The evolution of the Olympic Movement during the 20th and 21st centuries has resulted in numerous changes to the Olympic Games. Some of these adjustments include the creation of the Winter Olympic Games for snow and ice sports, the
professional athletes participating at the Games. The growing importance of mass media has created the issue of corporate sponsorship and general commercialisation of the Games. World Wars I and II led to the cancellation of the 1916, 1940, and 1944 Olympics; large-scale boycotts during the Cold War limited participation in the 1980 and 1984 Olympics; and the 2020 Olympics were postponed until 2021 as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic
International Olympics Committee (IOC) bans Kuwait's Sheikh Ahmad Al-Fahad Al-Ahmed Al-Sabah from all positions within the committee for 15 years over ethics breaches. Sheik Ahmad was previously banned by the IOC for three years in 2023 over his alleged interference in the Olympic Council of Asia elections, as well as for forgery and a fake arbitration procedure. (Reuters)
Paris 2024 will feature the debut of breakdancing as an Olympic event, and it will be the final Olympic Games held during the IOC presidency of Thomas Bach. The Games are expected to cost €8.3 billion.
The 2026 Winter Olympics (Italian: Olimpiadi invernali del 2026), officially the XXV Olympic Winter Games (Italian: XXV Giochi olimpici invernali) and also known as Milano Cortina 2026, is an upcoming international multi-sport event scheduled to take place from 6 to 22 February 2026 in the Italian cities of Milan and Cortina d'Ampezzo. The joint bid from the two cities beat another joint bid from Swedish cities Stockholm–Åre by 47–34 votes at the 134th Session of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) in Lausanne, Switzerland, on 24 June 2019.
This will be the
Winter Olympics since Sarajevo 1984 where the opening and closing ceremonies will be held in different venues. Events will also take place in seven other north-northeastern Italian cities. The games will mark the 20th anniversary of the Winter Olympics in Turin
, the 70th anniversary of the Winter Olympics in Cortina d'Ampezzo and the first time that Milan will host an Olympic Games.