The Olympic flag depicts the "Olympic rings", five intertwined rings, on a white background. The current version is based on a first design by Baron Pierre de Coubertin in 1913, and the current version of the flag is a symbol known throughout the world as a representation of the Olympic Games and the Olympic movement. The Olympic movement stands for global unity, friendship, and sportsmanship.
According to the Olympic Charter, the Olympic flag can be made in two versions; a two-color version, with the background being white or black, or a six-color version, which have to be in the order blue, yellow, black, green, and red, on a white background. Although there has been some discussion, it is widely speculated that the five rings stand for the five main continents Europe, Asia, Africa, Oceania, and America, respectively. The six colors would represent the totality of the world, taking into account every nation. According to the International Olympic Committee, the six colors were chosen to reflect at least a single color from the flags of each competing country.
The Olympic rings were first presented by Baron Pierre de Coubertin in 1913, at the top of a letter written by him, but they weren't represented at the Olympic Games until Antwerp 1920. During the opening ceremony on the 14th of August, they appeared on the Olympic flag, a version that wouldn't be changed until 1957. In this year, the intersections between the rings were changed for prosperity. In 1986, it was decided that gaps would appear around the intersections, so that the flag would be properly printed, with the existing technology at the time. In 2010, the gaps were removed, bringing the design back to the vision of Pierre de Coubertin.
The Olympic rings and the Olympic flag are the exclusive property of the International Olympic Committee, and the flag can only be used at the Olympic Games. However, athletes are allowed to compete under the Olympic flag if a National Olympic Committee cannot be held responsible for this athlete. This includes athletes without a specific nation to represent (mixed teams, unified teams, refugees), as well as athletes representing nations with a sanctioned NOC under the Olympic Charter. In this case, the athlete is representing the Olympic values, and the Olympic Hymn or Olympic Anthem is played if it were needed.