The Olympic Anthem is born
The Olympic Anthem was performed for the first time at the Games of the I Olympiad, though it was not officially adopted until the 1960 Olympic Winter Games.
The Olympic Anthem is now an integral part of the Opening and Closing Ceremonies, when it is played to accompany the raising and lowering of the Olympic flag.
Written by Greek poet Kostis Palamas and performed to music written by the well-known composer Spyros Samaras, the anthem was sung for the first time at the Olympic Games Athens 1896, with Samaras conducting a total of nine philharmonic orchestras and 250 singers.
It was not used again until the Opening and Closing Ceremonies at the Olympic Winter Games 1960 in the Lake Tahoe region, USA, having been re-adopted by the International Olympic Committee at its 55th Session in Tokyo in 1958. English lyrics were used on its reappearance, while Italian words were sung in Rome a few months later. The anthem has since been sung in other languages and in different ways. At the Closing Ceremony of Tokyo 2020, for example, it was performed by Japanese soprano Tomotaka Okamoto, while a choir made up of Australians of Greek descent sang it at the Opening Ceremony of Sydney 2000.
The Anthem can also be played at medal ceremonies for gold medallists competing independently, as was the case for the Olympic champions from the Unified Team at Barcelona 1992, which was made up of athletes from 12 of the 15 former Soviet republics.