Back to the Olympics Newsfeed

Original drawing of Olympic Rings sells for more than $200,000

An original 1913 drawing of the Olympic rings by modern Olympic founder Pierre de Coubertin was sold via a French auction house for $216,000 on Sunday.

A Brazilian collector paid 185,000 euros, with an extra 27 percent added for a total of more than $275,000, according to the auction house.

De Coubertin had the idea to revive the Olympic Games. The first modern Olympics were held in Athens in 1896. In 1913, the rings were first unveiled. They debuted at the Olympics in 1920 in Antwerp, Belgium, as part of the Olympic Flag.

They are a symbol of global unity — five interlocking rings — blue, yellow, black, green and red — representing the union of five continents: Africa, the Americas, Asia, Australia and Europe.