The creation of special multi-sport competitions for athletes aged 14 to 18 was approved by the 119th IOC Session, held from 4 to 7 July 2007 in Guatemala. Their main idea is to introduce the younger generation of athletes to Olympic values and allow them to experience the atmosphere of a global sports celebration.
In addition to the competitions, the Youth Olympic Games programme traditionally includes cultural and educational events. A second distinctive feature of these Games is the inclusion of disciplines in which representatives of different NOCs compete as part of the same team. Following such competitions, 146 medals have already been awarded.
