Abstract

The survey revealed that German-speaking students know very little about Coubertin although many know his name. Olympic-related lectures at universities can help to foster the students’ knowledge about Olympic topics and ideals, and make them more sensible for the dangers threatening the Games. The difference in the knowledge of Olympic ideals in East and West which even today exists became obvious. After Atlanta, the profile of the students in the East shifted towards the changes taking place in the entire German-speaking area in all aspects. It can be foreseen that they will be assimilated in the near future. The analysis again revealed that the ideals people have do not depend on the individual person, but on the society they live in. In the GDR, the Olympic idea was interpreted within the Marxist context. Since Marxism is no longer the prevailing ideology new elements of the Olympic idea have been highlighted resulting in an Olympic interpretation similar to that of the West. Verf.-Referat