Former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger has a suggestion for achieving success in global relations: Look to the Olympics.
"Under the auspices of the Games, the nations of the world come together despite the differences in culture and history that define their diverse systems," Kissinger, one of two honour members of the International Olympic Committee, writes in an opinion piece for The Los Angeles Times. "In the peaceful competition of the Olympics, the achievement of one nation encourages the efforts of others, spurring all to new heights in human excellence."
He noted that when French educator and historian Baron Pierre De Coubertin revived the ancient Olympic tradition in 1894, it came at a time when the map of Europe had been redrawn and "imperial ambitions were causing dislocation and conflict around the world."
However, De Coubertin's "vision of amity of trust" has led to a tradition that has been able to withstand division, political exhaustion, and upheaval said Kissinger.
This year marks the International Olympic Committee's 125th anniversary and the 25th anniversary of the first United Nations’ Olympic Truce, said Kissinger, who is 96 years old, pointing out that he's now lived through 46 Olympic Games and has attended several in person.
"Throughout its history, the Olympics has demonstrated its ability to promote human understanding even where political agreement has proved elusive," he wrote, pointing out that in the eight years from 1956 to 1964, East and West Germany competed as a single team.
"Of course, the Games alone cannot prevent wars or end conflicts," said Kissinger, "but, by providing a framework in which competition and cooperation coexist, the Olympics may be taken as inspiration in an international search for understanding through and alongside contestation."
Sandy Fitzgerald ✉
Sandy Fitzgerald has more than three decades in journalism and serves as a general assignment writer for Newsmax covering news, media, and politics.
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