August 14th: The Day the Youth Olympic Games Began

August 14^th 2010 was the day the Youth Olympic Games began for the first time ever, offering the next generation the chance to compete at a variety of summer and winter sports against other children aged 14 to 18. 

   The Games of 2010 took place at Singapore, and was developed from the idea of the Austrian Johann Rosenzopf in 1998. Rosenzopf’s notion was sparked from the increasing amount of childhood obesity across the world, and the lack of motivation and promotion of sport and healthy lifestyles. The hope is that, like the regular Olympic Games, especially most recently London 2012, the high level of excitement and enthusiasm surrounding the event will spur young people on to develop a sport and maintain this healthy image. Rosenzopf’s idea was finally approved by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) in July 2007, which then began planning for the 2010 multi-sport competition.

   The 2010 Summer Youth Olympic Games lasted 12 days, inviting a maximum of 3,530 athletes and 451 IOC officials to attend. The 2012 Winter Youth Olympic Games lasted 10 days, with 970 athletes and 580 officials participating in the event. If you’re experiencing Post-Olympic blues after 2012’s hype, the next Summer Youth Olympic Games is only 2 years away and will take place in Nanjing, and the next Winter Youth Games will be Lillehammer 2016. Another excellent function of the Youth Games is the opportunity for young aspiring athletes, such as Great Britain’s Thomas Daley, to practise competing in a similar environment, with all the intense pressure and seriousness of the Olympic Games. Did you know about the Youth Olympic Games? Do you think they will succeed in promoting sport to the youth of today as effectively as the actual Olympics?