The Olympic Oath
The Olympic Oath, which is taken by an athlete of the host nation on behalf of all athletes, was introduced at the 1920 Olympic games in Antwerp, Belgium. The first athlete to recite the oath was Belgian fencer and water polo player Victor Boin.
The original oath was:
In the name of all competitors I promise that we will take part in these Olympic Games, respecting and abiding by the rules which govern them, in the true spirit of sportsmanship, for the glory of the sport and the honor of our teams.
It was changed at the 2000 games in Sydney to include a phrase abjuring drug use:
In the name of all the competitors I promise that we shall take part in these Olympic Games, respecting and abiding by the rules which govern them, committing ourselves to a sport without doping and without drugs, in the true spirit of sportsmanship, for the glory of sport and the honour of our teams.
Since 1972, a judge from the host country has taken this oath on behalf of all the judges and officials:
In the name of all the judges and officials, I promise that we shall officiate in these Olympic Games with complete impartiality, respecting, and abiding by the rules which govern them, in the true spirit of sportsmanship.
Athletes who have taken the oath at the Summer Olympics:
1920 Victor Boin, Belgium, fencing and water polo1924 Georges André, France, track and field
1928 Henri Denis, Netherlands, soccer
1932 George Calnan, United States, fencing
1936 Rudolf Ismayr, Germany, weightlifting
1948 John Mark, Great Britain, track and field
1952 Heikki Savolainen, Finland, gymnastics
1956 John Landy, Australia, track and field
1960 Adolfo Consolini, Italy, track and field
1964 Takashi Ono, Japan, gymnastics
1968 Pablo Lugo Garrido, Mexico, track and field
1972 Heidi Schüller, Germany, track and field
1976 Pierre Saint-Jean, Canada, weightlifting
1980 Nikolay Andrianov, Soviet Union, gymnastics
1984 Edwin Moses, United States, track and field
1988 Hur Jae, Korea, basketball, and Son Mi-na, Korea, handball
1992 Luis Doreste Blanco, Spain, sailing
1996 Teresa Edwards, United States, basketball
2000 Rechelle Hawkes, Australia, field hockey