History of the Olympics

Nearly 3000 years ago in Greece, under a baking sun, athletes and spectators gather at the sacred site of Olympia. In honour of the mighty king of the Greek gods, Zeus, the athletes go head-to-head in a 200-metre sprint. It is the first Olympic Games. After these first Games, the Olympics are held every four years for a thousand years. Nearly all the ancient Greek city-states send athletes.

But... Only Greek men are allowed to compete and they do so… naked! They want to show off their muscles and physical power. Tens of thousands of spectators come to watch, although married women are barred from attending. Gradually, more sports are added: boxing and wrestling matches, discus and javelin throwing, and chariot races.

Everyone wants their city-state to win! There is just one winner for each competition. He receives a crown made of olive branches and hero status on his return home. In 146 BCE, the Romans conquer Greece. The Romans are Christian.

They don’t like the idea of an event celebrating Greek gods. Before long, Roman Emperor Theodosius I cancels the Games. But the glory of the ancient Olympics will echo down through the ages… Two thousand five hundred years later, it captures the imagination of a French athlete named Pierre de Coubertin. Coubertin visits the site of the ancient Olympics in Athens and returns home with a plan to bring back the Olympics! The Olympics won’t just be a way to celebrate sport itself, he says; they will also set an example of humans trying their best and of people from around the world getting along peacefully.

The first modern Olympics are held in Athens, Greece, in 1896. Participants come from 14 countries. All of them are male and all are unpaid — amateur athletes. They compete in 43 events including track and field, gymnastics, swimming, shooting, and fencing. From 1896 on, the Olympics are held every four years in countries all over the world except on a few occasions when they are cancelled or postponed due to world events.

In 1900, women are finally allowed to compete, though many countries continue to send only male athletes. New sports are added to the Games, like rugby and golf. But people also want to watch snow and ice sports that can’t be held during the summer... In 1924, the first Winter Olympic Games are held in France. They include figure skating, ice hockey, skiing, and bobsleighing.

Like the Summer Games, the Winter Games are held every four years. During the 1948 Olympics in England, a parallel sporting event is held for soldiers injured in World War II. This event paves the way for the world’s largest competition for athletes with disabilities: the Paralympic Games, held in 1960. Nowadays, there are around 40 official Olympic sports across the Summer, Winter, and Paralympic Games. Women take home as many medals as men, professional athletes compete alongside amateurs, and, since 2016, athletes displaced from their home countries can compete on the Refugee Olympic Team.

The Olympics of recent years look very different to the ancient Greek Games and even the first modern Games. But the vision behind those early modern Games lives on, today expressed in the three Olympic values of excellence, friendship, and respect.