3 unconventional approaches to Olympic-themed team building activities

Is your team known for your love for an active lifestyle? Then you’re going to love these team building Olympics ideas! 

Don’t worry, we are not suggesting you release firearms for a quick biathlon session and we won’t send your sales department on a swimming marathon. Instead, we’ve prepared five Olympic team building events to help your sporty colleagues showcase their talent. 

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If you want to master team building, also read our resources on: 

• Free virtual team building activities to supercharge your team‍
• The best apps for virtual team building
• Top exercises to develop leadership skills

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1. Office Olympics: team building activities for every employee

Did you know that you can promote corporate wellness and encourage some healthy competition right there at your company’s building? Just run your very own Office Olympics! 

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Here are some ideas for the Olympic team building games at your office: 

• Chair racing. You can keep things simple and aim for the fastest way to complete the course. Alternatively, you could spice the game up a little bit and add obstacles along the way. 
• Marker darts. Use a whiteboard instead of the board and aim for your “dart” to leave a visible mark. With the right attitude and spirit, this exercise can also become an inspiring problem-solving activity. 
• Paper planes throwing. Work in teams or individually to see who’s the craftiest of them all. Build the planes that last and run a short parade of the best models for your closing ceremony. 
• Olympic charades. Who said you can’t fully experience each of the sports the Olympic Games have to offer without leaving your office? Just use your imagination and act them out for the opposite team to guess! This activity is also perfect for practicing your communication skills. 

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2. Olympic-style team building games in the open air

If you want to take your Olympic games for team building seriously, you should consider organizing the sports event outside. You can hire a professional company to help you find a venue and come up with the contests, such as a survival-themed activity. Alternatively, you can take it in your own hands and create a unique and special event that your colleagues will remember for the years to come. 

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Basically, you can take any sports and turn it into a fun Olympic-style team building game. But here are some of our favorite activities:

• Space hopper racing. Why run if you can jump? This fun exercise is an amazing opportunity to have some fun and work out some of your core muscles. Need an extra challenge? Partner up and compete in tandems! 
• Archery. For this one, you’ll need a trained professional to explain the basics of the activity as well as the safety guidelines. But once the instructions are out of the way you will get a chance to try yourself in a brand new type of sport.
• Bouncy-castle volleyball. Teamwork requires a lot of coordingation and balancing of the ideas. With this Olympic-themed mini game, you will be balancing for real, relying not only on your colleagues, but also the gravity to get your back. 
• Rowing. Want to include some watersports? Rowing is a perfect summer team building activity because it encourages the participants to work together in order to achieve the best results. 
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3. Virtual mini-Olympics team building ideas for remote teams 

Not every team has an opportunity to meet up in real life. Fortunately, online team building has never been more accessible! With the right virtual conference software and a little bit of creativity you can run your very own virtual Olympic games for team building. 

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Here are some ideas to get you started:

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• Passing the torch. This ceremony lies at the heart of the Olympics. Now you and your colleagues will have an opportunity to join the movement. Start with one person lighting up a cangle or a lighter and passing it to the end of their frame. The next player than must retrieve their own source of fire from the right end and pass it on. 
• Typing race. Use a readily available platforms, such as TypingTest, complete the challanges and share the resutls. The fastest 3 players deserve a prize, don’t you think?  
• Guess the anthem. Olympics are first and foremost an international spectacle. Bring that spirit to your next online call and play a quick session of Name That Tune featuring national anthems only. 
• Olympic trivia. It’s not all about physical abilities! Put your intelligence to a test with an Olympics-themed quizz and learn who is the most dedicated learner of you lot.

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Other articles on online games that might be up your alley:

• ‍8 great game show team building ideas‍
• The top virtual family feud games for teams
• ‍10 online scavneger hunt activities you shouldn't miss
• Spooky virtual murder mystery games for remote teams

Want to make your Olympic Games team building extra special? 

Here are some of the ideas that could take your Olympics team building activity really feel like a global spectacle: 

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• Give out special medals to all the participants and build a real podium for the winners;
• Do the Opening Ceremony where all the contestants greet each other;
• Go big with the theatrics: use decorations, megaphone announcements, balloons, etc.; 
• Provide supportive equipment: ribbons, barriers, markers, etc.;
• Split your company into the teams (e.g. countries or roles at the company) and tell them to dress up accordingly;
• Suggest a paid membership and donate all the profits to your local charity. 

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