The Rio de Janeiro Olympics kick off on August 5 for some two weeks of competitive games drawing athletes as well as audiences from around the world. As they prepare to cover the event, Reuters photographers look back on their favourite pictures from past Olympics where they captured the action on the ground as well as the participants' tears and joy that followed. (Photo by Lucy Nicholson/Reuters)

Kosovo- born British singer and actress Rita Ora performs in Pristina on February 17, 2018 on the occasion of the 10 th anniversary of Kosovo Independence. Kosovo celebrates 10 years since it declared independence, a moment of pride for its ethnic Albanian majority, although sovereignty remains fiercely contested by Serbia. (Photo by Armend Nimani/AFP Photo)

Londoners enjoy a “Silent Night” as Big Ben falls silent, London, UK on August 21, 2017. ose Allerston from Clapham, London said “After a stressful day in the office, I couldn't think of anything better than going home and climbing into bed – but when I saw this bed opposite Big Ben I just couldn't resist getting in for a snuggle”. (Photo by Imagewise Ltd/Rex Features/Shutterstock)

Street vendors hold campaign posters for presidential candidate Patrice Talon ahead of the second round of Benin's presidential election on Sunday in Cotonou, Benin, March 18, 2016. (Photo by Charles Placide Tossou/Reuters)

Bella Hadid and sisssster Gigi look boa-tiful as they strike up an Adam and Eve pose complete with a snake in February 2022. The model siblings went nude for a Versace shoot — just like Rocky actor Sylvester Stallone, 75, and supermodel Claudia Schiffer, 51, did back in 1995. (Photo by Mert and Marcus/Versace)

7th August 1941: A Soviet sniper targets the enemy with the telescopic sight on his rifle.

A dancer poses for a photograph as part of the “Dance as Art” photo project in Times Square in New York, on September 22, 2014. (Photo by Carlo Allegri/Reuters)

People participate in the Cordao do Boitata carnival celebration in the Centro City neighborhood on February 16, 2020 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. (Photo by Bruna Prado/Getty Images)