List of Olympic mascots


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The Olympic mascots are fictional characters, often an animal native to the area or human figures, who represent the cultural heritage of the place where the Olympic and Paralympic Games are taking place.

Some Olympic mascot dolls on display at the Argentine Olympic Committee museum.

One of the first Olympic mascots was created at the Grenoble Winter Olympic Games in 1968. It was named "Schuss" and it was a little man on skis, designed in an abstract form and painted in the colors of France: blue, red and white.[1] However, the first official Olympic mascot appeared in the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich. It was Waldi, a Dachshund dog, a popular breed in Bavaria and it represented the attributes required for athletes – resistance, tenacity and agility. On it were three of the colors of the Olympic flag: blue, yellow, and green.[1][2][3]

Starting with the 2010 Vancouver mascots (since 1992), the Olympic and Paralympic mascots have been presented together.

Olympic mascots

Youth Olympic mascots

Games City Name Type Designer Significance Image Refs.
2010 Summer Youth Olympics Singapore Lyo and Merly Red male lion (Lyo), Blue female merlion (Merly) Cubix International The two characters are an allusion to the "Lion City" label of Singapore, and the Merlion, a national symbol of Singapore, respectively.   [19]
2012 Winter Youth Olympics Innsbruck Yoggl Alpine Chamois Florencia Demaría and Luis Andrés Abbiati of Argentina Yoggl represents the character of the host city of these games   [20]
2014 Summer Youth Olympics Nanjing Lele(砳砳) Yuhua Stone LeLe is inspired by a unique natural feature of the host city known as the "Rain-Flower Pebble" (also translated as "Riverstone"). The design of the mascot takes the typical shape and appearance of this stone but in a creative and artistic way, highlighting the colours from the emblem's palette. The word 'lele' represents the sound of stones colliding together and is pronounced like the Chinese word meaning happiness or joy. [21]
2016 Winter Youth Olympics Lillehammer Sjogg Lynx Line Ansethmoen   [22]
2018 Summer Youth Olympics Buenos Aires Pandi Jaguar Human Full Agency Pandi's name is a combination of the scientific name of the jaguar (Panthera onca) and the relationship of the mascot with the "digital world".   [23][24][25]
2020 Winter Youth Olympics Lausanne Yodli A cow, Saint Bernard dog and a goat hybrid. ERACOM Yodli is a cross between a cow, goat, and the Saint Bernard breed of dog, all of which are commonly found in the Swiss mountains. It was named after yodeling.   [26]
2024 Winter Youth Olympics Gangwon Province Moongcho Snowball Soo-Yeon Park The character was conceived as a snowball created in a snowball fight between Soohorang and Bandabi.   [27]
2026 Summer Youth Olympics Dakar TBA TBA TBA TBA

See also

References

Notes

  1. ^ a b "History of Olympic Mascots 1968–2014 – Photos & Origins". www.olympic.org. Retrieved 22 October 2015.
  2. ^ "Olympic Games Mascots". www.topendsports.com. Retrieved 22 October 2015.
  3. ^ "Ολυμπιακές Μασκότ Χειμερινοί Αγώνες – Athens Info Guide". www.athensinfoguide.com. Retrieved 22 October 2015.
  4. ^ "Smoky Quits Olympic Village: Mascot Settles Down in New Home". The Los Angeles Times. 23 September 1932. p. 36. Retrieved 2 August 2024.
  5. ^ "Tokyo 1964 – Mythological Creature (unofficial mascot)". TheOlympicDesign. Retrieved 20 August 2024.
  6. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z aa "A look back at Olympic mascots through the years | NBC Olympics". www.nbcolympics.com. Retrieved 2 August 2024.
  7. ^ Siete, Sofi (23 September 2013). "Vetustideces: Las mascotas de los Campeonatos Deportivos Internacionales celebrados en España (I)". Vetustideces. Retrieved 2 September 2024.
  8. ^ "Mexico 1968 – Chac Mool (unofficial mascot)". theolympicdesign – Olympic Design Webseite!. Retrieved 2 August 2024.
  9. ^ "London 2012 Olympic Mascots | The Import Design Blog". www.theimport.co.uk. 22 May 2010. Retrieved 2 September 2024.
  10. ^ "Sapporo 1972 – Takuchan (unofficial mascot)". TheOlympicDesign. Retrieved 20 August 2024.
  11. ^ "Photos and History". Olympics.com. 17 December 2020. Retrieved 17 January 2024.
  12. ^ Utah Travel Industry. "2002 Winter Olympics: Emblems and Mascots". Archived from the original on 21 November 2010. Retrieved 3 November 2010.
  13. ^ Salt Lake Organizing Committee (2001). Reach: An Educators Guide to the Olympic Winter Games and Paralympic Winter Games of 2002. p. 16. Retrieved 20 October 2010.
  14. ^ "2012 London Mascots launched to the World". Retrieved 21 October 2015.
  15. ^ Farquhar, Gordon (19 May 2010). "BBC Sport – London 2012 unveils Games mascots Wenlock and Mandeville". BBC Online. BBC Online. Retrieved 19 May 2010.
  16. ^ "Avec ses produits dérivés, Paris 2024 veut faire sauter la banque". 29 October 2021.
  17. ^ Belam, Martin (14 November 2022). "Meet the Phryges: Paris 2024 Olympic and Paralympic mascots unveiled". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2 August 2024.
  18. ^ Fenton, Caela (8 February 2024). "Meet Tina and Milo, the mascots for Milano Cortina 2026". Team Canada - Official Olympic Team Website. Retrieved 2 August 2024.
  19. ^ "Singapore unveil mascots for 2010 Youth Olympics". www.insidethegames.biz. 27 November 2009. Retrieved 2 August 2024.
  20. ^ "Innsbruck 2012 Youth Olympic Games mascot unveiled". www.insidethegames.biz. 10 February 2011. Retrieved 2 August 2024.
  21. ^ "Nanjing 2014 Youth Olympic Games Mascot Unveiled". www.olympic.org. Retrieved 22 October 2015.
  22. ^ "Lillehammer 2016 mascot named Sjogg". www.insidethegames.biz. 12 December 2014. Retrieved 2 August 2024.
  23. ^ "Buenos AIres 2018 on Twitter". Twitter (in Spanish). Retrieved 29 May 2018. La elección de #Pandi se debe a la combinación entre su nombre científico que es "Panthera Onca" y su relación con el mundo digital.
  24. ^ "Buenos Aires 2018 unveils #Pandi the jaguar as official mascot". www.insidethegames.biz. 29 May 2018. Retrieved 2 August 2024.
  25. ^ "Buenos Aires 2018 presents mascot for Youth Olympic Games - Trackalerts.com, track and field news website". 29 May 2018. Retrieved 2 August 2024.
  26. ^ "Yodli unveiled as mascot for Lausanne 2020 Winter Youth Olympic Games". www.insidethegames.biz. 8 January 2019. Retrieved 2 August 2024.
  27. ^ "Designer of Gangwon 2024's official mascot reflects on journey : Korea.net : The official website of the Republic of Korea". www.korea.net. Retrieved 2 August 2024.