POSTED: August 25th 2010
NewsUpdate
Olympics can benefit from 'fun' spirit at the Youth Olympics, says IOC president Rogge
NIKKI WICKS / Sports Features Communications
SINGAPORE, Aug 25: Jacques Rogge, creative force behind the Youth Olympics, wants to see the spirit of the inaugural Games in Singapore translated into the ‘senior’ competition in London in 2012 and onwards.
The president of the International Olympic Committee who was the creative force behind the YOG was speaking ahead of the closing ceremony. He said he wanted to see “more of a fun feel” in the Olympic Games at which some events had become “too serious, too heavy and too stressful.”
The YOG have been hailed as a resounding success, particularly in experimenting with new formats including some mixed-gender competition and cut-down events such as 3x3 basketball. However, Rogge rejected suggestions that these formats should be taken up at senior level.
He said: “It would be a mistake to suggest that the YOG programme should automatically be transferred to the traditional Games. The Olympic Games will always be far greater and need a more sophisticated organisational set-up.”
Learning experience
Rogge noted the importance of the YOG learning experience for young athletes. He said: “Young athletes don’t meet athletes from other sports and this is something they need to get used to. We teach them social reflexes that they have to perfect.
"They are put in contact for the very first time with a fantastic educational program. We teach them a healthy lifestyle, the prevention of injuries, the prevention of doping and the pursuit of excellence. It's not that we impose these values. We explain these values and the kids take these for themselves."
The YOG began on August 14 and featured athletes aged between 14 and 18 competing in all 26 Olympic sports.
Keywords · Rogge · YOG · Youth Olympics · Singapore
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