Lausanne, Switzerland: After a 112-year absence, golf is returning to the Olympic programme in 2016 in Rio de Janeiro. To mark this event, The Olympic Museum, in collaboration with the International Golf Federation (IGF), is devoting an exhibition to golf.
The exhibition will be on at the Olympic Museum in Lausanne until January 31, 2016.
Staged at two editions of the Games (Paris 1900 and St Louis 1904), golf is getting its Olympic swing back.
The design, with its six ‘holes’, offers a ‘walk through the course’ to visitors, enabling them to discover everything about this sport before the upcoming Games: its origins, the equipment, Rules, courses and the biggest golfing icons. No ‘green fee’ is required to enter, as the exhibition is free of charge.
After its time at the Olympic Museum, the Swing exhibit will have a lasting legacy. It will be presented in the fan zone at the golf venue during the Rio 2016 Olympic Games and following that will visit the museums, tournaments and offices of a vast number of the IGF’s 168 members around the world.
With its interactive quizzes to test one’s knowledge about golf and the Omega Putt Challenge, this exhibition has something for everyone.
During the inauguration ceremony of the exhibition, Peter Dawson, IGF President, said: “The IGF is extremely grateful to the IOC for the wonderful opportunity this exhibit provides to showcase the return of golf as an Olympic sport. As you will see in this exhibit much has changed in our sport since it was last in the Olympic programme.
“But what has not changed are the values of golf and the spirit in which golf is played and governed. Integrity, respect, excellence and solidarity are values that are in harmony with those of the Olympic movement and on display in this exhibit.
“Golf’s admission to the Olympic programme has unified our sport. This exhibition is a great example of this unity and how daily the IGF collaborates with its membership in fulfilling its mission.”
Francis Gabet, IOC Director of Culture & Heritage, echoed Dawson’s sentiments. “The return of golf to the Games is not only good news for all golf fans around the world, but this exhibition also highlights values that are really important for the development of the Olympic spirit.