Burson-Marsteller

Citius, Altius, Fortius

by Valerie von Eberhardt on 21st August 2008 • The Cast Blog, Videos

“Citius, Altius, Fortius” (Faster, Higher, Stronger) has been the Olympic motto since the creation of the International Olympic Committee in 1894.

“The important thing in these Olympiads is not so much winning as taking part”, said the Bishop of Pennsylvania, Ethelbert Talbot, at St. Paul’s Cathedral during the 1908 London Games and inspired Pierre de Coubertin’s creed that “the important thing in life is not victory, but the fight; the main thing is not to have won, but to have fought well.”

In 1914, Coubertin presented the Olympic rings and flag. The initial lighting of the flame in Olympia and the first torch relay took place in the lead-up to the 1936 Games in Berlin.

From the beginning the Olympic Movement has been built on both idealism and the right marketing tools – a brilliant formula for success.

While the 1896 Athens Games welcomed some 240 athletes there are more than 10.500 in Beijing. The Olympic Games are today one of the most effective international marketing and communications platforms in the world, reaching billions of people in over 200 countries – only the Football World Cup can hold this pace. The Olympic brand is recognised as one of the most exclusive brands worldwide. This is not only thanks to Pierre de Coubertin but also to his successors, particularly to Juan Antonio Samaranch who set the course for the Olympic marketing programme that has become the driving force behind the promotion and the financial stability of the Olympic Movement with TV and marketing partners having become an intrinsic part of the Olympic Family. 2004 in Athens, more than 300 television channels delivered images to 3.9 billion people in 220 countries and territories. Beijing will surely mark another record.

Have the Olympic Games been reduced to a huge cash cow for some politicians and IOC members smeared by corruption scandals, ruthless doctors and money-grubbing athletes? Was Samaranch the gravedigger or the saviour? Is the Olympic Movement still contributing “to building a peaceful and better world by educating youth through sport practised without discrimination of any kind and in the Olympic spirit, which requires mutual understanding with a spirit of friendship, solidarity and fair play”, as it is anchored in the Olympic Charter?

There is enough reason to believe that the Olympic Movement has irreparably lost its initial goals and values. Let us not forget, however, that it is still every athlete’s dream to take part in Olympic Games. Olympic victories rank far higher than winning World Championships. Some Olympians might manage to convert their gold medal into cash, but by far not all of them; most of the participating athletes can’t live of their sport. The Olympic Village remains an incredible international meeting place for the youth of the world – attracting young hopefuls and world stars alike: one might run into Rafael Nadal at the laundry or sit next to Dirk Nowitzki in the cafeteria (besides the medical centre of the village stores 100.000 free condoms).

Moreover, the Olympic Movement aims at creating equal opportunities to young athletes and in cooperation with National Olympic Committees offers assistance programmes to athletes from those countries where training conditions might be poor (Olympic Solidarity). Also, the Olympic Games promote and give a platform to sports that are not as popular and profit-yielding as soccer, tennis or swimming (unfortunately not all sports have been kept on the Olympic programme; “Olympic sports of the past” include Croquet, Golf, Polo, Tug-of-war and Lacrosse).

I believe that the Olympic Games can still bring us great stories like Eddie “The Eagle” Edwards, Eric “The Eel“ Moussambani, Cathy Freeman, Halla, Mark Spitz and more recently Michael Phelps (let’s hope he is clean) and Matthias Steiner (let’s hope he is too). As long as the Olympic Games allow a peaceful competition and set emotions free and as long as taking part is an honour and there are enough weightlifters, fencers, judokas and archerists, they will live up to their myth and popularity. Despite the scandals and inconsistencies I must admit that I am still “infected by the Olympic Virus” and I am not the only one. But a question remains: how much faster, how much higher and how much stronger can it get?

---