With just one month before the start of the Olympic Games Paris 2024, the President of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), Dennis Francis, made a solemn appeal to the UN Member States for the observance of the Olympic Truce.
The tradition of the “Olympic Truce”, or “Ekecheiria”, was established in Ancient Greece in the ninth century BC through the signing of a treaty between kings to allow safe participation in the ancient Olympic Games for all athletes and spectators from Greek city-states, which were otherwise almost constantly engaged in conflict with each other.
Considering that the political reality of nowadays is not very different, the International Olympic Committee decided to revive the institution of the Olympic Truce in the 20th century. Since 1993, the United Nations (UN) General Assembly has repeatedly expressed its support for the Olympic Truce ideal by adopting a resolution entitled “Building a peaceful and better world through sport and the Olympic ideal”.
On June 25, the Hellenic Mission to the United Nations attended the 2024 solemn appeal at the United Nations General Assembly Hall, joining the rest of the world in celebrating the true and inspiring spirit of the Olympic movement.
International Olympic Committee: Olympic Truce – Promoting an Ancient Greek Tradition
