De Coubertin’s bust at the Olympic Village in Rio. The inseparable harmony between sport and culture

A bust of Pierre de Coubertin is situated at the Olympic Village in Rio de Janeiro. This site will be, in a certain sense, a ‘spiritual centre’ of the Olympic Village during the whole period of the Olympic Games. The sculpture is made of iron by the German artist Karlheinz Oswald who lives in Zürich (Switzerland). After the Olympic Games, this sculpture will be housed permanently in the Olympic Museum in Rio.

It was an initiative of the International Pierre de Coubertin Committee (CIPC) and its President Prof. Norbert Müller to have the sculpture of Pierre de Coubertin at the Olympic Village. Prof. Müller was joined by the President of the UNION INTERNATIONALE DE PENTATHLON MODERNE (UIPM), Dr. Klaus Schormann, who wishes to highlight that Coubertin was not only the founder of the modern Olympic Games but also the creator of the sport of Modern Pentathlon, Coubertin’s favourite sport. UIPM donated this piece of art to the Organizing Committee of the Games of XXXIst Olympiad in Rio de Janeiro 2016.

This initiative stresses the philosophy of Coubertin’s Olympism, the inseparable harmony between sport and culture.