Olympic Games ceremony a standard 18-event program was established. In order to open a Games in ancient Greece the organizers would hold an Inauguration Festival. This was followed by a ceremony in which athletes took an oath of sportsmanship. The first competition, an artistic competition of trumpeters and heralds, concluded the opening festivities. The Olympic opening ceremonies represent the official commencement of an Olympic Games. In recent Olympics, athletic competition began prior to the opening ceremonies. For example, the football competitions for both men and women at the 2008 Summer Olympics began two days prior to the opening ceremonies. The 2014 Winter Olympics
2002 Winter Olympics opening ceremony President's Olympic delegation, which featured four future members of their respective sport's Hall of Fame: 2002 Winter Olympics opening ceremony The opening ceremony of the 2002 Winter Olympics took place at the Rice-Eccles Olympic Stadium in Salt Lake City, Utah, on 8 February 2002. U.S. President George W. Bush opened the 2002 Winter Olympics, which took place five months after the September 11 attacks, with: "On behalf of a proud, determined and grateful nation...," then the standard opening formula followed. Prior to the ceremony, the turf inside the stadium was removed and a giant, abstract shaped ice rink, designed by