When was the Olympic handover ceremony invented?

Answer 1

The Olympic handover was introduced by Antwerp, hosts of the 1920 Olympic Games. At the following Games in Paris, they presented the hosts with a ceremonial flag with the idea that this be kept in a prominent place in the city or town hall and passed to the next host city in due time. The ritual was slightly altered in subsequent years and the ceremony itself now incorporates a cultural segment by the next host city.The flag itself was replaced by a new one made of Korean silk by the Seoul Olympic Organising Committee ahead of the 1988 Games.

In 1952 Oslo introduced a similar flag for use at the Olympic Winter Games. It should be noted that neither flag flies in the stadium.