text: One day ahead of the opening ceremony of the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia, Google has made a strong pro-LGBT statement with its latest homepage Google Doodle, which appears on every country's version of Google, including the Russian homepage. 
   
   "The practice of sport is a human right," reads the quote from the Olympic Charter underneath a rainbow-colored sports doodle. "Every individual must have the possibility of practicing sport, without discrimination of any kind and in the Olympic spirit, which requires mutual understanding with a spirit of friendship, solidarity and fair play." The rainbow flag, designed in San Francisco in 1978, has since been used to promote LGBT rights around the world. 
   
   See also: Gay Rights Activists See Insult and Opportunity in Sochi 
   
   Russia's practice of restricting the rights of gay citizens and banning anything it deems "homosexual propaganda," as well as President Vladimir Putin's discriminatory statements on the matter, have played a front-and-center role in the run-up to the Olympic Games. 
   
   Olympic brands have been slow to show their support for the gay community, but AT&T and American Apparel waded into the debate this week. "Russia’s law is harmful to LGBT individuals and families, and it’s harmful to a diverse society," AT&T, which is a sponsor of Team USA, wrote on its blog. American Apparel, which has no official sponsorship ties to the games, launched a line of merchandise based on the charter’s Principle 6, which states that "Sport does not discriminate on grounds of race, religion, politics, gender or otherwise.” 
   
   None of the official sponsors of the games, though, including Coca-Cola, Visa, Samsung, McDonald’s, Procter & Gamble, Omega, General Electric and Dow Chemical, have yet made any statements in favor of LGBT rights in Russia. The U.S.-based Human Rights Campaign has been putting pressure on them to speak out. 
   
   If Putin uses Google, though, he'll presumably get the message. ||||| Google debuted its latest "doodle" on Thursday evening, just one day before the Sochi Olympics opening ceremonies, and the company seems to be taking a stand against Russia's anti-gay "propaganda" law. 
   
   Featuring silhouettes of athletes above the letters, the coloring is the same pattern as the rainbow gay-pride flag. Clicking the image takes you to the search result of "Olympic Charter." 
   
   The main point the company wants to make, it seems, is being against discrimination. Below the search box, Google has this text taken from the Olympic Charter: 
   
   "The practice of sport is a human right. Every individual must have the possibility of practicing sport, without discrimination of any kind and in the Olympic spirit, which requires mutual understanding with a spirit of friendship, solidarity and fair play." 
   
   Gay rights have become an issue at the Sochi games after Russian President Vladimir Putin signed off on the controversial law in July. Even the president of the IOC has weighed in, telling Los Angeles Times on Monday that "we stand against any kind of discrimination for whatever reason." 
   
   We reached out, but Google declined to give a statement. 
   
   The change isn't just to the U.S. homepage either. Even Google.ru is getting the message: 
   
   
   
  
target: – As the Sochi Olympics kick off, Google has taken a swipe at Russia's record on gay rights with its latest doodle. The doodle features images of winter athletes on the rainbow colors of the gay pride flag, along with a pointed quote from the Olympic Charter, Business Insider reports. "The practice of sport is a human right," the quote reads. "Every individual must have the possibility of practicing sport, without discrimination of any kind and in the Olympic spirit, which requires mutual understanding with a spirit of friendship, solidarity, and fair play." The doodle appears on Google homepages in every country, including Russia, Mashable notes.