International Exhibition of Culinary Art

The International Exhibition of Culinary Art (in German: Internationale Kochkunst Ausstellung or IKA) termed the Culinary Olympics, is a quadrennial chef competition, and the biggest culinary exhibition in the world. Last held in 2012, the event has in recent years been arranged in Erfurt, Germany.

Though the Bocuse d'Or of France is frequently referred to as the culinary equivalent of the Olympic Games, it is biannual and not separated by an olympiad, i.e. a period of four years.

History

Conceived by a group of German chefs in 1896 with an aim to promote German cuisine to the world while receiving impulses from other cooking cultures, the first competition was arranged in 1900 in Frankfurt with four nations participating. Initially named the International Verband Koche Deutschland, it became subject to Hitler's ban of all international societies during World War II. Every event took place in Frankfurt until 1996 when it was moved to Berlin. Since 2000 it has been staged at Erfurt.

2016 Summer Olympics

The 2016 Summer Olympics (Portuguese: Jogos Olímpicos de Verão de 2016), officially known as the Games of the XXXI Olympiad, and commonly known as Rio 2016, are a major international multi-sport event that will take place in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, from August 5 to August 21, 2016. Record numbers of countries and sets of medals are awaiting in the games. More than 10,500 athletes from 206 National Olympic Committees (NOCs), including from Kosovo and South Sudan for the first time, will take part in this sporting event. With 306 sets of medals, the games will feature 28 Olympic sports — including rugby sevens and golf, which were added by the International Olympic Committee in 2009. These sporting events will take place on 33 venues in the host city and additionally on 5 venues in the cities of São Paulo (Brazil's largest city), Belo Horizonte, Salvador, Brasília (Brazil's capital), and Manaus.

The host city of Rio de Janeiro was announced at the 121st IOC Session held in Copenhagen, Denmark, on 2 October 2009. The other finalists were Madrid, Spain; Chicago, United States; and Tokyo, Japan. Rio will become the first South American city to host the Summer Olympics, the second city in Latin America to host the event after Mexico City in 1968, and the first since 2000 in the Southern Hemisphere. This will be the third time the Summer Olympics are held in a developing country, after the 1968 Games in Mexico and the 1988 Games in South Korea.

Olympic Games

The modern Olympic Games or Olympics (French: Jeux olympiques) are the leading international sporting event featuring summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a variety of competitions. The Olympic Games are considered to be the world's foremost sports competition with more than 200 nations participating. The Olympic Games are held every four years, with the Summer and Winter Games alternating by occurring every four years but two years apart.

Their creation was inspired by the ancient Olympic Games, which were held in Olympia, Greece, from the 8th century BC to the 4th century AD. Baron Pierre de Coubertin founded the International Olympic Committee (IOC) in 1894. The IOC is the governing body of the Olympic Movement, with the Olympic Charter defining its structure and authority.

The evolution of the Olympic Movement during the 20th and 21st centuries has resulted in several changes to the Olympic Games. Some of these adjustments include the creation of the Winter Olympic Games for ice and winter sports, the Paralympic Games for athletes with a disability, and the Youth Olympic Games for teenage athletes. The IOC has had to adapt to a variety of economic, political, and technological advancements. As a result, the Olympics has shifted away from pure amateurism, as envisioned by Coubertin, to allowing participation of professional athletes. The growing importance of mass media created the issue of corporate sponsorship and commercialization of the Games. World wars led to the cancellation of the 1916, 1940, and 1944 Games. Large boycotts during the Cold War limited participation in the 1980 and 1984 Games.

Culinary art

Culinary art, in which culinary means "related to cooking", is the art of the preparation, cooking and presentation of food, usually in the form of meals. People working in this field – especially in establishments such as restaurants – are commonly called "chefs" or "cooks", although, at its most general, the terms "culinary artist" and "culinarian" are also used. Table manners ("the table arts") are sometimes referred to as a culinary art.

Culinarians are required to have knowledge of food science, nutrition and diet and are responsible for preparing meals that are as pleasing to the eye as well as to the palate. After restaurants, their primary places of work include delicatessens and relatively large institutions such as hotels and hospitals.

Careers in culinary arts

Related careers

Below is a list of the wide variety of culinary arts occupations.