Basic facts of Youth Olympic Games

The Youth Olympic Games (YOG) is an international multi-sport event organized by the International Olympic Committee. The games are held every four years in staggered summer and winter events consistent with the current Olympic Games format.

The first summer version was held in Singapore from 14 to 26 August 2010 while the first winter version was held in Innsbruck, Austria from 13 to 22 January 2012. The age limitation of the athletes is 14 to 18.

The idea of such an event was introduced by Johann Rosenzopf from Austria in 1998. On 6 July 2007, International Olympic Committee (IOC) members at the 119th IOC session in Guatemala City approved the creation of a youth version of the Olympic Games. The costs of hosting the event will be shared by the IOC and the host city, while the travel costs of athletes and coaches are paid by the IOC.

The summer edition lasted 13 days and the winter version lasted ten days. The IOC will allow a maximum of 3,530 athletes and 481 IOC accredited officials to participate the summer games,[4] while 970 athletes and 580 officials are expected to attend the winter games. The Games will also feature cultural exchange programs and opportunities for participants to meet Olympic athletes.

Several other Olympic events for youth, like the European Youth Olympic Festival are held every other year with summer and winter versions, and the Australian Youth Olympic Festival, have proven successful. The Youth Games are modelled after these sporting events. The YOG are a successor to the discontinued World Youth Games.

The next Summer Youth Olympics will be held in Nanjing in 2014 while the next Winter Youth Olympics will take place in Lillehammer in 2016.