The Peace Movement on the Occasion of the 21ST Century Olympic Games: Developments and Limitations

Abstract

Olympism is among other things a peaceful philosophy. This means in practice that the most important thing for a researcher who studies peace movement in the Olympic Games is to examine how peace movements have been developed in the Olympic Games. The development of peace movement would be verified by analyzing the torch relay, the opening ceremony, and the Olympic Truce Resolution, in particular. The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the validity of these peace movements in recent Olympic Games and to clarify the problems arising from implementation of peace movement into the Olympic Games.

Resumen

El olimpismo es, entre otras cosas, una filosofía pacífica. Lo que esto significa en la práctica es que uno de los aspectos más importantes, para aquellos comprometidos con un análisis del mismo, es el explorar cómo los movimientos pacíficos se desarrollaron en torno a los juegos olímpicos. Éstos se ponen en evidencia especialmente en relación con el relevo de la antorcha, la ceremonia de apertura, y la resolución de la tregua olímpica. El propósito de este artículo es el clarificar y evaluar la validez de estos movimientos pacíficos en juegos olímpicos recientes, y los problemas que surgen a raíz de los intentos de implementarlos.

Zusammenfassung

Olympismus ist unter anderem eine friedliche Philosophie. Für die Praxis bedeutet das, dass für jene, die sich der Prüfung des Olympismus verpflichtet haben, die Erforschung der Entwicklung der Friedensbewegungen in und um die Olympischen Spiele von großer Bedeutung ist. Diese Bewegungen werden vor allem im Zusammenhang mit dem Fackellauf, der Eröffnungsfeier und dem Beschluss zum olympischen Frieden belegt. Ziel des Beitrags ist, die Gültigkeit dieser Aspekte der Friedensbewegungen für die letzten Olympischen Spiele und die Probleme, die sich aus dem Versuch der Umsetzung ergeben, zu klären und zu bewerten.

Résumé

L'Olympisme est, parmi d'autres choses, une philosophie de la paix. Ce que cela signifie en pratique est qu'un aspect très important, pour ceux qui s'engagent dans une analyse de l'Olympisme, est l'exploration de la manière dont les mouvements de paix furent développés dans et autour des Jeux Olympiques eux-mêmes. Ces mouvements sont mis en évidence particulièrement par le relais de la flamme, la cérémonie d'ouverture et la trêve olympique. Le but de cet essai est de clarifier et évaluer la validité de ces aspects des mouvements de la paix dans les Jeux Olympiques récents et les problèmes qui émanent de la tentative de leur mise en œuvre.

KEYWORDS:

• Olympism
• Torch relay
• Olympic Truce resolution
• International Olympic Truce Centre

Notes

 1. See IOC website: http://www.olympic.org/ioc-unforum

 2. See IOC Factsheet, available at http://www.olympic.org/Documents/Reference_documents_Factsheets/Olympic_Truce.pdf

 3. See the official report of the 1952 games, available at http://www.la84foundation.org/6oic/OfficialReports/1952/OR1952part1.pdf

 4. Masumoto 2009.

 5. See UN website: http://www.un.org/events/olympictruce/appeal.shtml

 6. Ibid.; also www.un.org/events/olympictruce/background.shtml

 7. Resolution of UN General Assembly, A/RES/54/34, available at http://www.un.org/events/olympictruce/resolutions.shtml

 8. Ibid.

 9. IOC 2000.

10. Ibid.

11. Resolution of UN General Assembly, A/RES/54/34.

12. See UN press release, http://www.un.org/News/Press/docs/2000/20000831.sgsm7523.doc.html

13. See Resolution of UN General Assembly A/RES/55/2, available at http://www.un.org/millennium/declaration/ares552e.htm

14. See IOC Factsheet.

15. SOCOG 2001, vol. 2, part 1, 73.

16. For example, see Jennings 1996, and G. Vecsey, ‘Sports of The Times: Samaranch Won't Face A Subpoena’, New York Times 10 Dec. 1999, available at http://www.nytimes.com/1999/12/10/sports/sports-of-the-times-samaranch-won-t-face-a-subpoena.html?src=pm

17. See IOC Factsheet.

18. See IOC News: http://www.olympic.org/media?articleid=55692

19. See Resolution of UN General Assembly, A/RES/58/6, available at http://daccess-dds-ny.un.org/doc/UNDOC/GEN/N03/453/27/PDF/N0345327.pdf?OpenElement

20. See IOTC website: www.olympictruce.org/centre/establishment.php

21. See Greek Embassy website: http://www.greekembassy.org/Embassy/content/en/Article.aspx?office=3&folder=200&article=13037

22. Briggs et al. 2004, 14.

23. ‘Blair appeals for Olympic Truce’, Reuter's, 14 Aug. 2004.

24. Asahi-Shinbun, 14 Aug. 2004 (in Japanese).

25. ‘Bush Campaign Defends Its Use of Olympics in a Television’, New York Times, 21 Aug. 2004. See http://www.nytimes.com/2004/08/21/us/bush-campaign-defends-its-use-of-olympics-in-a-television-ad.html?pagewanted=print&src=pm

26. For the Peace Boat, see http://www.peaceboat.org/info/news/2004/040812.html

27. For the Nagasaki peace flame monument, see http://www1.bbiq.jp/chikai/yobikake.htm

28. TOROC 2006.

29. See http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/other_sports_/winter?sports/4699248.stm

30. IOC, Olympic Charter, 101. This article has now been moved to the IOC protocol guide.

31. Masumoto 2006.

32. See ‘Athletes sign for peace’, IOC news, 21 Feb. 2006, available at http://www.olympic.org/news?articleid=54042

33. See Masumoto 2005.

34. See www.olympictruce.org/special/beijingexhibition/pressrelease01.php

35. See www.olympictruce.org/special/AthensPaintingExhibition/pressrelease01.php

36. See www.olympic.org/content/the-ioc/commissions/international-relations-/olympic-truce/?tab=1

37. For example, see www.olympic.org/en/content/The-IOC/Commissions/International-relations-/Olympic-Truce/?Tab=1

38. For the appeal by the UN secretary general Ban Ki-moon, see http://www.turin2006.com/Documents/Olympic_Truce/en_report_1432.pdf.

39. See the website of Lenovo: http://www-06.ibm.com/jp/pc/ld/olympic-torch-relay/index.shtml

40. Because the BOCOG website has been deleted, see the website of the Nagano City, where the global torch relay was held in Japan: http://www.city.nagano.nagano.jp/upload/1/taiiku-gaiyou.pdf

41. Because the IOC's website has been deleted, see the Chinese news website http://recordchina.co.jp/group.php?groupid=29924&type=4&p=3&s=no

42. The ‘symbolic release of pigeons‘ at the opening ceremony was one of the regulations decided by the Olympic Charter (IOC 2003, 101). In the 2004 version, this part was instead prescribed within the IOC protocol guide.

43. For example, see the website of the Mainichi-Shinbun newspaper: http://mainichi.jp/word/news/20100111ddm007030188000c.html.(accessed on 2010.01.17)

44. Resolution of UN General Assembly Res/64/4, available at http://www.un.org/events/olympictruce/appeal.shtml