The History of the Olympic Games

The first written records of the Olympic games date back to 776 BC, though it is believed the games had been going on for many years already. The legend says the Olympic Games were founded by Heracles, a son of Zeus. The games were dedicated to the Olympian Gods; Zeus, Poseidon, Hades, Apollo, and Aphrodite, to name a few. According to a fifth century BC sophist, Hippias of Elis, the first athletic contest was the foot race, and it was held at Olympia in honor of the Olympian god Zeus. The Olympic Games became one of the largest and most famous festivals, and continued to be played every four years for nearly 1200 years.

Unfortunately, in 393 BC, A Roman emperor named Theodosius I abolished the games.  The reason for his decision was based on the fact that he was a Christian and did not like the religious aspect of the games; dedicating them to the Olympian Gods. About 1500 years later, a man named Pierre de Coubertin, a Frenchman, began the revival of the games. In 1890, he organized and founded a sports organization, despite the unenthusiastic interest from France. For a few years, he talked about his idea to bring the Olympic Games back, but gained no interest from the people. Eventually, after being persistent, he sparked interest at a meeting he organized with 79 delegates who represented 9 countries. The delegates fully agreed with Coubertin’s idea to revive the Games. They had him construct an international committee to organize the Games, which is known today as the International Olympic Committee. The chosen revival location was Athens.

Even though the Olympic games were the most famous, and are still taking place today, they were not the first athletic events to take place in the Mediterranean area. The Ancient Egyptians and Mesopotamians carved athletic scenes on the tombs of kings, showing a long tradition of athletic activities. Unlike the Olympic games, these athletic activities were not regular organized festivals.

 The history of the Olympic Games is incredible, especially how early these Games started in 776 BC. I had no idea that there was a period of time where the games didn’t take place because of their abolishment, and 1500 years later, the games were revived again. It is amazing to know something that burnt out for so many years was brought back by the persistence of one man, and still takes place today. The Olympic Games are just one of the amazing aspects of life that we adopted from the ancient Greeks.

 http://www.timelineindex.com/content/view/1022

http://history1900s.about.com/od/fadsfashion/a/olympicshistory.htm