In new amendment, IOC adds fourth Olympic motto in view of COVID

During the International Olympic Committee’s session in Tokyo on Tuesday, the Olympic motto was amended to “faster, higher, stronger – together”. This comes as the world is waiting for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, which was delayed by a year, to start on August 23.

The word “together” after a hyphen has been added to the earlier motto, which was made up of three Latin words — Citius, Altius, Fortius, translating to “Faster Higher Stronger” in English.

The proposal was made by IOC President Thomas Bach. This was endorsed by the body’s executive board in April. Bach had suggested the motto should become “faster, higher, stronger – together” in response to the COVID-19 crisis.

The motto now reads ‘Citius, Altius, Fortius – Communis’ in Latin.

The IOC members unanimously approved an amendment to the Olympic Charter.

During the session, IOC president emphasised the importance of solidarity within the Olympic Movement and beyond.

“Solidarity is at the heart of everything we do. Solidarity fuels our mission to make the world a better place through sport. Because we can only go faster, we can only aim higher, we can only become stronger, if we stand together – in solidarity,” Bach said.

“Strengthening solidarity in this way also helps us to accomplish our 3,000-year-old mission to contribute to peace through sport. Without solidarity, there is no peace,” he added.

The Olympic motto was adopted with the launch of the Olympic Movement in 1894. This was done after founder Pierre de Coubertin said he wanted a slogan that expressed excellence in sport.

Bach was determined to ensure the Olympics takes place this year despite the uncertainty around the COVID-19 pandemic.

“When you look at this situation in hindsight today, it may appear like it was smooth sailing. This is far from the truth. Over the past 15 months, we had to take daily decisions on very uncertain grounds.

“We had doubts every day. We deliberated and discussed. There were sleepless nights. Like everyone else in the world, we did not know, I did not know, what the future would hold.”