For my son's 8th Birthday, he wanted an "Olympics" party.  We were able to find invitations at the local print shop that were bordered in different flags from different nations.  There was also an Olympic torch on the invitation.  I had them printed at the print shop with all of the relevant information. We downloaded flags from 20 different nations and printed them in color on 8X10 sheets of paper off our printer. When the guests arrived, they had to first stop at the "Athletes Check in Table".  At the table, they were each assigned a country to represent. Then, we pinned their flag from that country to their shirt. Each team consisted of 5 players or "countries".  We planned 5 events for the "Olympics". One event was a Team Event (Tug of War), one event was a "luck" event (Bingo) on was a "Skill" event (Oreo stacking) and 2 "athletic" events (Basketball Shot and Standing Broad Jump). This way, even the most un-athletic child could potentially win a "medal"...and for the Team event (Tug of War)everyone won.  We downloaded the Olympic Theme and played that for the Parade of Nations, which was done in our backyard. We fashioned a "torch" out of tin foil and cotton balls dipped in orange paint. We had a torch bearer ( an adult) who brought in the torch and it was on display throughout the "games". We had 5 adult helpers for this party. Each helper was assigned an event. The kids split into their groups of 5 and rotated events.  We ahd tallysheets to keep track. We served hotdogs, popcorn, soda, cake and ice cream. For the cake, I bought an undecorated sheet cake frosted in white. At the World Market, I found minature candy bars wrapped in flags of different nations. I bordered the cake with the wrapped candies.  It looked great.  I served ice cream in individual cups.  After we ate, it was time for the "Closing Ceremonies". By this time, parents had begun to arrive, so we even had an audience. For each event, we awarded gold, silver and bronze medals. For the medals, I found chocolate coins, again at World Market.  We had gold ones, silver ones, and bronze ones. I glued red ribbon on each coin to make a medal that could be worn around the neck.  We fashioned podiums out of utility boxes, with the "gold medal stand" being highest and center.  For each event, there was a lot of anticipation to hear the winners. We announced the winners as, "Representing Great Britian...Johnny Jones", "Representing Mexico...Billy Smith", and so forth. With the Tug of War, everyone won either a gold medal or a silver medal.  Some kids took home more than others, but everyone got at least one. They were also welcome to take home their flag that was pinned to their shirt. Overall, the party was a blazing success.  I had 20 boys (ages 7-8) and not one tear or complaint. They all stayed outside the entire party (it even rained!)and thanked me profusely for such a fun afternoon.  Several of the parents commented that it was a fun, but educational party.