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Image: Olympic Official Website
Did you manage to catch the 2024 Olympics live in Paris? Well, most of us did not but #didyouknow that many Singaporeans had the chance to back in 2010? That was because Singapore hosted the inaugural Youth Olympic Games (YOG) in 2010! Mooted by the International Olympic Committee, the YOG aims to inspire youths to embrace and express the Olympic values of striving for excellence, demonstrating respect, as well as to celebrate friendship.
The YOG is as much about culture and education as it is about sports. Hence, the Culture and Education Programme (CEP) is a key component of the YOG. Under the CEP, the Singapore edition held activities such as the Singapore 2010 Friendship Camp, dialogues with Olympians, and had booths at the Youth Olympic Village to promote interaction and engender friendships amongst youths across different cultures. It also featured many firsts in the history of the Olympic Movement. These included new sport formats such as three-on-three basketball games and mixed gender events to promote greater gender diversity, as well as introduce elements of unpredictability and thrill for athletes and fans alike.
The YOG 2010 presented an opportunity for Singaporeans to experience an Olympic event on home ground and make history together as we hosted the first-ever YOG. The 12-day event took two years of preparation and involved some 20,000 volunteers. It enabled Singaporean youths to build confidence and skills as they took on various roles at the YOG, as well as showcased Singapore’s hospitality, friendship, efficiency and dynamism to the world.
The YOG is no doubt one of the memorable highlights of Singapore’s sporting history that Singaporeans can be proud of.