American Olympian Christopher Jacobs is credited with starting the Olympic ring tattoo trend after competing in the 1988 Seoul Olympics.

After noticing some Canadian athletes had their country's flag tattooed on their chest, he decided he would do his own spin on a tattoo marking his time at the Games after winning three medals.

He initially had a small Olympics logo on his hip, so it would be easily hidden under his speedos in future competitions.

Jacobs then got another Olympic tattoo a bit higher up on his hip, before getting a big one on his inner bicep.

He revealed to USA Today that the reason why Olympians have started getting the rings tattooed on them is because it has "become a rite of passage. It's almost like a little card for a somewhat exclusive club.

"They represent a lot to a lot of people. I wanted to mark that period in my life, I suppose."

However, some Olympians believe that you should only get an Olympic tattoo after they competed in the Games.

US shooter Mary Tucker revealed that she had known of at least four athletes who got inked before they qualified for any Games, and never ended up competing in any Olympics.

Recently, beloved TV personality Hamish Blake explained why he got the Olympic rings tattooed on his arm, not realising that it was offensive to Olympians.

Blake had gotten the rings inked on his upper arm to symbolise the Bi-Bi-Tri-Bi-athalon they completed in 2010 during his Gap Year days with his comedy partner Andy Lee.

The pair completed 24 sports in one weekend, and Lee explained to 9Entertainment that Blake had gotten the tattoo to "inspire him with greatness."