Vinicius and Tom facts for kids
Vinicius is the mascot for the 2016 Summer Olympics, and Tom is the mascot for the 2016 Summer Paralympics. These fun characters represent Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, where the games were held. Vinicius shows off the amazing animals of Brazil, with parts of cats, monkeys, and birds in his design. Tom, on the other hand, represents Brazil's beautiful plant life.
A Brazilian company called Birdo created these mascots. The Olympic organizers wanted only Brazilian companies to design them. Birdo's designs were chosen in August 2013. The mascots were first shown to the public on November 23, 2014, but they didn't have names yet! The public was asked to vote for their names. People chose to name them after famous Brazilian musicians, Vinicius de Moraes and Tom Jobim. These two artists wrote the well-known song "The Girl from Ipanema".
The Olympic organizers even made a children's TV show about the mascots. They also created many toys and other items featuring Vinicius and Tom. Wrestling coaches at the Olympics received soft dolls of Vinicius. If a coach disagreed with a referee's decision, they would throw the doll into the ring to challenge the call. Many people found this quite funny! Paralympic medal winners received special dolls of Tom. These dolls were unique because the leaves on Tom's head matched the color of their medals (gold, silver, or bronze). Some people really liked how the mascots looked, while others thought they were a bit unusual.
Contents
How the Mascots Were Created
Designing the Mascots
The organizers of the 2016 Summer Olympics (Rio 2016) started looking for mascot designs in November 2012. Since the games were in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, they wanted only Brazilian companies to submit designs. Experts from the Brazilian film festival Anima Mundi helped the Rio 2016 team choose the best mascots.
After reviewing many designs, the Rio 2016 organizers picked three favorites. They then asked children aged six to twelve from Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo to help them choose the final mascots. The organizers didn't tell the children that the designs were for the Olympics. Instead, they just talked about the mascots' personalities. The children gave comments like, "This is my friend," or "This one has cool hair." The organizers used these comments to make the designs even better.
A group of judges made the final choice in August 2013. This group included people from the Rio 2016 team, the International Olympic Committee, and the Brazilian Olympic and Paralympic Committees. It also had experts in animation, illustration, advertising, and market research. Everyone agreed to choose two mascots: one for the Olympic Games and one for the Paralympic Games. A company from São Paulo called Birdo created these mascots. Birdo and the organizers then secretly started making cartoons and other things with the mascots.
Naming and Showing the Mascots
The mascots were first shown to the public on November 23, 2014. However, they didn't have names yet! The next day, November 24, 2014, the mascots appeared in costumes for the first time at a school in Rio for young athletes. The organizers let the public vote online to pick the names. There were three choices:
- "Oba and Eba" – These are Brazilian Portuguese words that show joy.
- "Tiba Tuque and Esquindim" – "Tiba" means "a lot" in a local language. "Tuque" comes from a Brazilian music style called batuque. "Esquindim" is a Brazilian Portuguese word for a natural sway or rhythm.
- "Vinicius and Tom" – These names honor the musicians Vinicius de Moraes and Tom Jobim. They wrote the famous song "The Girl from Ipanema".
The voting lasted for three weeks and ended on December 14, 2014. "Vinicius and Tom" won with 44 percent of the 323,327 votes!
What Vinicius and Tom Represent
Vinicius is the Olympic mascot, and he is named after the Brazilian musician Vinicius de Moraes. Vinicius's design shows off Brazil's amazing wildlife. He combines "the quickness of cats, the sway of monkeys, and the grace of birds." Vinicius can stretch his arms and legs as long as he wants! His goal is "to spread joy around the world and celebrate the friendship that grows between people from all over the world" at the Olympic Games.
Tom is the Paralympic mascot, named after Brazilian musician Tom Jobim. Tom's design represents the many plants found in Brazilian forests. Tom has a special ability: he can pull any object out of his head! His goal is "to inspire everyone to use their creativity and determination to always reach further and have fun."
Both Vinicius and Tom "were born from the joy of Brazilians" after Rio de Janeiro was chosen to host the 2016 Summer Olympics and Paralympics. Their names honor Vinicius de Moraes and Tom Jobim, who together wrote the 1962 bossa nova song "The Girl from Ipanema".
Mascots in Media
Animated TV Show
On August 5, 2015, Cartoon Network Brazil started showing animated short films with the mascots. The show is called Vinicius e Tom – Divertidos por Natureza, which means "Vinicius and Tom – Fun by Nature." The series has 32 episodes, and each one is two minutes long. This show is the third cartoon series ever made about Olympic mascots. It's also the first cartoon about Olympic mascots created in the Americas. The show follows Vinicius and Tom as they live in Brazilian forests and cities. Sometimes, they are joined by the "Carioca Sisters" (Portuguese: Irmãs Cariocas), named Bela, Sol, and Vida.
The TV show was made to help people get to know the mascots better. Turner Broadcasting System, which owns Cartoon Network, spent $750,000 to create the series. Cartoon Network helped make the show because they won a competition held by the Rio 2016 organizers. A director named Beth Lula said that the mascots "are one of the main ways to connect the public with the Games." She added that "The cartoon will bring them to life, making people feel more connected to the event." The show is for children, but the people who made it said that adults would enjoy it too.
Mascot Merchandise
Vinicius and Tom were featured on many products for the Rio 2016 Games. These items ranged from a Lego building set to life-size dolls. Paralympic medal winners received special stuffed toys of Tom. The leaves on these dolls' heads were colored gold, silver, or bronze to match the medals. The Vinicius and Tom Lego set was the first time Lego ever made a commercial version of Olympic mascots. An employee at a Rio 2016 store said that the mascots were "the most popular thing by far. ... Kids and adults all love them, especially Vinicius, he is the favorite."
The Rio 2016 organizers thought that mascot products could make up a quarter of all merchandise sales. In the end, sales were 11 percent higher than they expected! The best-selling item was a hat shaped like Vinicius's head. The second-best-selling item was a pair of Havaianas flip-flops with a picture of Vinicius on them.
Vinicius in Olympic Wrestling
In the sport of wrestling, coaches can challenge a referee's decision by throwing a "soft object" into the ring. Usually, this is a foam brick. However, the wrestling rules don't say exactly what the soft object has to be. The Rio 2016 organizers gave wrestling coaches soft plush dolls of Vinicius to throw into the ring when they wanted to challenge a call. One wrestler's coach got a Vinicius doll with a red shirt, while the opponent's coach got one with a blue shirt.
Many people thought this was very funny. NBC Sports commentators even started calling Vinicius "the challenge mascot." Dustin Nelson, a writer for the website Thrillist, said that the mascot "took a little of the anger out of a challenge." Jason Bryant, the official wrestling commentator for the 2016 Olympics, was surprised to see this. He noted that the Olympics usually have very strict "protocol." However, Bryant later said that it doesn't matter what the challenge object is if it has cultural meaning to the place where the competition is happening. Coach Mike Malinconico, though, argued that the Olympic organizers should not have done this.
Images for kids
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The logo for the animated TV series "Vinicius and Tom – Fun by Nature."
See also
In Spanish: Vinícius y Tom para niños
