the-olympics-olympics

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One day left!

FINAL ROUND

Blaze vs Fu Niu Lele vs Sumi

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FINAL ROUND

Blaze vs Fu Niu Lele vs Sumi

#mascots #olympics #tournament #poll #design #finals

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WE HAVE A WINNER!

Smoky, the unofficial mascot of the Los Angeles 1932 Olympic Games (and first Olympic mascot) has been awarded the gold medal in the "Best Olympic Mascots" tournament. It was a close race in the end, only beating out silver medal winners Quatchi, Miga, and Mukmuk (Vancouver 2010) by just 3.2% of the vote!

Of course, my beloved Misha (Moscow 1980) made a good effort and ended up going home with the bronze.

Thank you to everyone who voted. If you're interested, stick around for more Olympics polls whenever I get to them!

And for all of the Smoky fans out there, here are a couple of fairly rare photos of him that I found:

#thinking of doing a poll about posters next #results

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Round 2: Blaze vs Petra!

#mascots #olympics #tournament #poll #design #round two

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Round 2: Shuey Rhon Rhon vs Sumi!

#mascots #olympics #tournament #poll #design #round two

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Round 2: Fu Niu Lele vs The Gomdoori!

#mascots #olympics #tournament #poll #design #round two

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The Paralympic Phryge is an anthropomorphic Phrygian Cap based on the one Marianne wore at the time of the French Revolution. Also the first Paralympic mascot since the 1994 Winter Paralympics with an obvious disability with a prosthetic left leg.

Lizzie, the frill-necked Lizard was chosen as the mascot for the Sydney 2000 Paralympic Games. The frill of the Paralympic mascot, colored in green and gold and in the shape of Australia, represents the country, with the ochre body mirroring the color of the land. Lizzy’s strength, determination, and attitude symbolize all Paralympic athletes participating at the Games.

Bandabi is a symbol of will and courage. "Banda" means "half-moon" or a "half-moon beast", and "bi" means to celebrate the competition. Bandabi is a warm-hearted friend who "has strong will and courage, is at the forefront of equality and harmony," and supports the enthusiasm of the players in the Paralympics so that they can overcome their limitations.

#mascots #olympics #tournament #poll #design #round one

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Help decide the third-place winner!

Misha was the first mascot of a sporting event to achieve large-scale commercial success in merchandise. During the closing ceremony of the 1980 Olympic Games, a giant effigy of Misha the Bear holding a cluster of balloons was paraded in the stadium. On one side of the stadium where the Olympic Torch was situated, there was a placard mural of Misha which shed tears of happiness from his left eye. At the end of the ceremony, Misha with his balloons was released and rose in the air away from the stadium, and this nostalgic moment has been fondly remembered by Russians.

Waldi was the first official Olympic mascot. He was based on a real long-haired Dachshund named Cherie von Birkenhof, which Aicher used as a model. Although Waldi appeared in a variety of different color schemes, it is occasionally reported that the main scheme was designed to match the colors of the Olympic rings, ergo, blue, yellow, orange, and green. However, there were no black or red in the main scheme, which was a conscious decision on the part of Aicher to exclude those colors related to the Nazi Party.

#mascots #olympics #tournament #poll #design #finals #(propaganda is allowed here too)

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THE FINAL ROUND

Smoky was born on January 2nd, 1932, on the day that construction began on the Olympic Village (which was the first Olympic Village built for the Games, a tradition that continues to this day.) The athletes soon fell in love with him, which caused considerable distress throughout the village when the pup wandered off for a day just before the Olympics began. After the Games ended, he was adopted and lived the rest of his life as a family pet.

Quatchi, Miga, and Mukmuk were based on the local wildlife, as well as First Nations legends, mythologies, and legendary creatures. During the design process, an early name for Quatchi was dismissed when the undisclosed word was found to have a rude connotation in another language. Mukmuk, although a designated "sidekick", was a run-away success, "capturing the hearts of Games-goers everywhere"; including an impromptu "protest" at the Vancouver Art Gallery to make him a full-fledged mascot

#mascots #olympics #tournament #poll #design #finals #as always.. propaganda is accepted. I know both contenders have some BIG fans out there!

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This poll is painfully close! Which one will you send to the finals against Smoky?

SEMI-FINALS

Two crowd favorites are competing this round... who's going to the finals?

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Blaze is a phoenix, a mythical bird that rises from ashes to experience a renewed life. The phoenix appears in Greco-Roman, Egyptian, Arabian, Chinese, Russian, and Native American folklore and in all instances symbolizes strength, vision, inspiration, and survival. The phoenix has long been the symbol of Atlanta's rebirth after its devastation in the American Civil War. But most importantly, it is the personification of the will, perseverance, and determination of youth and adults with physical disabilities to achieve full and productive lives.

Mandeville is a drop of steel named after Stoke Mandeville Hospital in Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire. In 1948, Stoke Mandeville Hospital organized the first Stoke Mandeville Games, considered to be the precursor to the Paralympics. The three spikes on Mandeville's helmet represent the Paralympic Agitos. He also represents friendship.

Dan D. Lion was designed by Maryanne McGrath Higgins, an art teacher. The character wore running shoes and jogging clothes. The name was then voted on by students of the Human Resources School, a special education institution for students with severe physical impairments requiring specialized support, in Albertson, New York, later renamed Henry Viscardi School in honor of its founder.

#mascots #olympics #tournament #poll #design #round one

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Olympic stadium, Montreal, 1976. From the Budapest Municipal Photography Company archive.

#oooh maybe i should do a stadiums poll #or a financial blunders poll 😬🤭

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Noggi and Joggi were the mascots of the Arnheim 1980 Paralympic Games. The first ever Paralympic mascots were created through a competition held by AVRO, a Dutch broadcasting company, in which entrants were asked to send in hand-made models. The winning bid, a pair of squirrels crafted by Necky Oprinsen from St. Michelsgestel, the Netherlands, was printed on memorabilia sold in Arnhem.

Petra was made by the same creator of Cobi, Javier Mariscal. Petra is a positive, outgoing, independent, energetic, courageous girl who has no arms. Her inspiration came from a friend of Mariscal's, disabled trans artist Lorenza Böttner. She was the mascot of the Barcelona 1992 Paralympic Games.

Ray of Light and Snowflake were the mascots of the Sochi 2014 Paralympic Winter Games. Ray of Light came from a different planet that was perpetually hot and landed on earth. With amber skin and bright, large eyes and hair looking like flames, he was overwhelmed by the new experiences he made. Ray of Light soon found out that he and the people of Earth had a lot in common, he took up Nordic skiing and became friends with the people around him. As the only alien on earth, though, he became lonely, until one day he saw a shooting star falling to earth, which turned out to be Snowflake – a girl with skin as white as snow, coming from a planet that was perpetually cold. Snowflake and Ray of Light became friends, inventing the sports of ice sledge hockey and wheelchair curling. The Paralympic mascots Ray of Light and Snowflake stayed on earth, finally acknowledging that, through sport, they are not so different from humans after all.

#mascots #olympics #tournament #poll #design #round one

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Shuey Rhon Rhon is an anthropomorphic Chinese lantern. Lanterns represent harvest, celebration, warmth, and light. The wishful shape at the top symbolizes auspicious happiness. The continuous pattern of the dove of peace and the Temple of Heaven symbolize peaceful friendship and highlight the characteristics of the place where the events are held. The decorative pattern incorporates traditional Chinese paper-cutting art. The snow on the face represents the meaning of "a fall of seasonable snow gives promise of a fruitful year" (瑞雪兆丰年). It also reflects the anthropomorphic design and highlights the mascot's cuteness.

Proteas the seahorse was created to express the values of the Athens 2004 Paralympic Games – Strength, Pursuit, Inspiration, and Celebration. Spyros Gogos, the creator of Proteas, took a deliberate step away from previous Paralympic mascot designs and created what he felt best represented the nature of the competitions and the athletes’ constant goal of achieving excellence. Proteus was named after the mythical sea god or god of rivers and oceanic bodies of water.

Someity is a figure with pink-checkered patterns inspired by cherry blossoms and also the Games' official logo. The character is described as "usually calm" but can become "very powerful when needed". The character can fly using its checkered cape and send telepathic messages using its cherry blossom-shaped antennae. It can also "talk to stones and the wind" and move objects by looking at them. Someity is named after someiyoshino (染井吉野), a type of cherry blossom, and it is also intended to refer to the English phrase "so mighty".

#mascots #olympics #tournament #poll #design #round one

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SEMI-FINALS

Two crowd favorites are competing this round... who's going to the finals?

#mascots #olympics #tournament #poll #design #semifinals

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Tom was named after Brazilian musician Tom Jobim, one of the writers of the song "The Girl from Ipanema" (along with Vinicius de Moraes, the namesake of Olympic mascot Vinicius). Vinicius's design represents Brazilian wildlife, combining "the agility of cats, sway of monkeys and grace of birds." The character's arms and legs can stretch unlimited distances. Vinicius's mission is "to spread joy throughout the world and celebrate the friendship that flourishes between people from all over the world" at the Olympic Games.

Sondre is based on the trolls depicted in Scandinavian folklore. The one-legged skiing troll was created as a result of a nationwide competition among schools, with the winning design handed in by Janne Solem. In a separate competition, the name “Sondre” was chosen for the Paralympic mascot as a reference to Sondre Norheim, one of the pioneers of modern skiing.

Sumi was the mascot for the 2010 Winter Paralympics. He is an animal guardian spirit with the wings of the mythical Thunderbird and legs of an American black bear who wears a killer whale-like hat in the artistic style of the Haida people.

#mascots #olympics #tournament #poll #design #round one

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SEMIFINALS

It's dog vs. dog in this poll! Which pup will go on to the finals?

#mascots #olympics #tournament #poll #design #semifinals