Abstract
One of the International Olympic Committee's (IOC) objectives is to reignite interest in Olympic sports in the midst of a generation of adolescents who have become increasingly overweight and inactive. In an effort to accomplish this objective, the Youth Olympic Games (YOG) were created, and the inaugural event was held in the summer of 2010. The event has evoked a positive response from loyal advocates and equally negative feedback from committed critics. Public awareness and effective messaging of the YOG will play a critical role in the future success of subsequent Games. The purpose of this research was to collect awareness and opinion data from the sports community in Greece regarding the upcoming YOG. These findings are described and evaluated in comparison to prior research data in order to provide insight related to the launch of this new international sport festival. The timing of the findings and the subsequent analysis are critical to the future success of the YOG as public awareness and effective messaging are key components for drawing sponsorship and investment dollars needed to fund the event. [PUBLICATION ABSTRACT]