By Gary Anderson

Canadian athletes got Happy has they celebrated Olympic Day ©COCCanadian athletes have taken part in a specially filmed video featuring the song Happy by popstar Pharrell Williams as millions around the world joined in celebrations to mark Olympic Day.

The video was filmed over three days as athletes toured Ontario and Alberta as part of the recent 2014 Celebration of Excellence following their exploits at Sochi 2014.

The athletes showed off their dancing skills as they visited schools and hospitals as part of the tour.

The song pretty much sums up the whole week," said Sochi 2014 speed skater Gilmore Junio.

"It was great being able to have some fun with each other as we celebrated our achievements in Sochi."

The video has been released by the Canadian Olympic Committee to mark Olympic Day which is dedicated to the founding of the international Olympic Movement by Pierre de Coubertin on June 23, 1894.

Olympic Day aims to spread the ideals of the Olympic Movement and promote participation in sport across the globe regardless of age, gender or athletic ability.



A host of events and activities have been held around the world over the past few days to mark the occasion.

In Lausanne, International Olympic Committee (IOC) President Thomas Bach launched the Olympic Capital Run, which saw more than 1,000 runners taking part in the 5.5 kilometre annual race while he also unveiled a new bronze statue of de Coubertin at the IOC's headquarters.

Elsewhere, the Prince Khalifa Bin Salman Park in Arad, Bahrain hosted a number of special events featuring activities such as sport folk games, children's games and a skeet board show.

A two-week programme of events came to a close in Turkey which saw 3,000 students across ten primary schools taking part in an Olympic Education programme and a host of various sport activities organised by the Turkish Olympic Committee (TOC) and its new partner, Koç Holding.

Children in ten schools across Turkey took part in activities marking Olympic Day over the past two weeks ©TOCChildren in ten schools across Turkey took part in activities marking Olympic Day over the past two weeks ©TOC



" We, as the Turkish Olympic Committee, have been participating in Olympic Day celebrations for 26 years," said TOC President Uğur Erdener.

"These celebrations are not just a reason to have fun through playing sport; the Olympic Day is much more than that.

"It is an opportunity to promote the Olympic values of friendship, excellence and respect.

"I hope that, through Olympic Day celebrations, we can teach the Olympic values to more and more students every year."

In Suva, the Fiji Association of Sports and National Olympic Committee hosted an Olympic Day Sports Fair which saw children and adults given the opportunity to try a sport at stations set up by a range of national sport federations while hundreds took part in the Olympic Day Run.

Participants pound the road during the Olympic Day Run in Suva, Fiji ©FASANOCParticipants pound the road during the Olympic Day Run in Suva, Fiji ©FASANOC



Earlier this month a record 4,500 runners took part in a variety of races in Phnom Penh, Cambodia as part the National Olympic Committee of Cambodia's Olympic Day celebrations, while a series of programmes running over 10 days in Nepal, beginning on June 14, saw children and adults taking part in running, cycling and table tennis events.

Meanwhile the International Rugby Board (IRB) joined in the Olympic Day celebrations ahead of rugby sevens debut at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games, by encouraging men, women and children to join in its Get Active and Get into Rugby campaign.

Former New Zealand rugby star Jonah Lomu demonstrated his support for Olympic Day ©IRBFormer New Zealand rugby star Jonah Lomu demonstrated his support for Olympic Day ©IRB




The campaign claims to have engaged more than 500,000 participants to date since its launch in 2013 and to mark Olympic Day a host of rugby stars posted messages of support and photos on social media outlets including All Blacks legend Jonah Lomu.

"Sport is about bringing people together, having fun and getting active," said IRB chairman, Bernard Lapasset. 

"Sport has the power to drive social change through its strong values and today we join our sporting friends from around the world in celebration of sport."

The International Surfing Association (ISA) also marked the occasion by combining events with its 50th anniversary celebrationss as a way of expressing surfing's dedication to the Olympic spirit.

The ISA encouraged its 84 National Federations, surfers, fans of all ages and other relevant stakeholders to host group surfing activities for communities across towns, on beaches and in oceans.

Surfers took to the water to join in Olympic Day celebrations ©ISASurfers took to the water to join in Olympic Day celebrations ©ISA



"With our young fans, the international calendar of major surfing events and our star surfing competitors, the sport uniquely connects with the public via powerful social media platforms," said ISA President Fernando Aguerre.

"We are at the frontier of youth engagement at a time when this is vital for the Olympic Movement.

"The values of Olympism – excellence, fair play and respect – are embedded in surfing's culture and it is these values and the sport's unique ethos that make surfing a true sport for all.

"These are the attributes that we will continue to promote as we continue on our path towards Olympic inclusion."

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