Hide-and-seek (sometimes known as hide-and-go-seek) is a popular children's game in which at least two players (usually at least three)[1] conceal themselves in a set environment, to be found by one or more seekers.

[6] In some versions of the game, after the first hider is caught or if no other players can be found over a period of time, the seeker calls out a previously-agreed phrase (such as "Olly olly oxen free", "Come out, come out wherever you are" or "All in, All in, Everybody out there all in free") to signal the other hiders to return to base for the next round.

A second century Greek writer named Julius Pollux mentioned the game for the first time.

This game was also found in an early painting discovered at Herculaneum, dating back to about the second century AD.

[15] The 2016 and 2017 competitions took place in Consonno, a ghost town[16] or "The Italian Las Vegas",[17] located in the district of Lecco, Lombardy.

[18][19] The winning team was awarded "The Golden Fig Leaf",[20] which is biblically the symbol of hiding, referring to the story of Adam and Eve.

[citation needed] Yasuo Hazaki, a graduate of Nippon Sport Science University, and professor of media studies at Josai University in Sakado, Japan, had set up a campaign in 2013 to promote hide-and-seek for the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo.