What is the Olympic motto?

The original Olympic motto is made up of three Latin words : Citius - Altius - Fortius. These words mean Faster - Higher - Stronger. 

On the 20th of July 2021, the Session of the International Olympic Committee approved a change in the Olympic motto that recognises the unifying power of sport and the importance of solidarity. The change adds the word “together” after an en dash to “Faster, Higher, Stronger”. The new Olympic motto now reads in Latin “Citius, Altius, Fortius - Communiter” and “Faster, Higher, Stronger - Together” in English.

The original motto was first expressed by the Dominican priest Henri Didon in the opening ceremony of a school sports event in 1881. Pierre de Coubertin, who was present that day, adopted them as the Olympic motto in 1894 with the launch of the Olympic Movement. It expresses the aspirations of the Olympic Movement not only in its athletic and technical sense but also from a moral and educational perspective.

The Olympic motto is an Olympic property.

Learn more:

• The Olympic Charter, Rule 7, "Rights over the Olympic Games and Olympic Properties"
• The Olympic motto