Whether running, cycling, swimming or dancing, millions of people – young and old – across the world got off the couch and got active celebrating the 70^th anniversary of the Olympic Day, on 23 June 2018.

The Olympic Day was introduced in 1948 to commemorate the birth of the modern Olympic Games on 23 June 1894 at the Sorbonne in Paris. From then, the IOC has called upon the Olympic Movement to help promote the importance of movement and leading an active life. From nine nations to over 150 in 2017, Olympic Day festivities have been enjoyed by six million people, playing and participating in sporting and cultural activities, such as fun runs, exhibitions, music and educational seminars.

According to the World Health Organisation, globally one in four adults is not active enough, and more than 80 per cent of the world’s adolescent population is insufficiently physically active. However, as per its Global Action Plan on Physical Activity 2018-2030 released earlier this month, physical activity has unquestionable health, social and economic benefits.

For this reason, National Olympic Committees (NOCs), International and National Sports Federations, Organising Committees for the Olympic Games and Youth Olympic Games, National Olympian Associations, Young Change-Makers and athletes were all called to play their part to bring sport and its values to the people and inspire individuals from all walks of life to move and embrace the Olympic spirit.

In the lead-up to 23 June, many European countries made their voices heard and mobilised to show their support by staging activities in their region.

To list but a few, in Lithuania, a record-breaking 28,000 people, including 40 Olympians, attended the big fun event, while Israel opted for a more academic activity, conducting a satellite Olympic studies programme within the framework of the 5th International Congress of Exercise and Sports Sciences; in Georgia, the NOC paid tribute to its generation of athletes in a unique event gathering over 250 Olympians from the 1952 Helsinki Olympic Games through 2018 Winter Olympics in PyeongChang; Belarus has put in place sport competitions, games and events for kids and their parents in the “Olympic sport complex” in Minsk, one of the venues of the 2^nd European Games; earlier, in May, Kosovo celebrated with 5,000 young people taking part in events across seven cities.

To mark this year’s milestone, the IOC has launched a campaign with the banner United By in celebration of the power of Olympism to build bridges and bring people together regardless of age, gender, religion, nationality or ability, 365 days a year.