Aug. 14, 2010: Debut of Youth Olympic Games
On this day—Aug. 14, 2010, the first Youth Summer Olympic Games were held in Singapore. Much like the current Olympic Games format, the YOG are held every four years in staggered summer and winter events. The age limit of the athletes is 14-18, and the number of athletes allowed to attend depends on the season. The games featured 26 sports in 31 disciplines, and the first gold medal went to Yuka Sato, an 18-year old Japanese triathlete.
Singapore was chosen as the host after mail voting by 105 members of the International Olympic Committee. While bidding for the opportunity to host, Singapore was the first nation to launch its official campaign website, and students launched a campaign to get 1 million signatures in support of hosting the Games. Singapore beat out nine other nations, including Greece, Thailand, Italy, and Moscow.
