The Olympic Games
The first modern Olympic Games in Athens, Greece, in 1896.
The Olympic Games, originally created to honor Zeus, was the most important national festival of the ancient Greeks. However, all competitions involved individual
competitors instead of teams. Winning an Olympic contest was regarded more highly than winning a battle and was proof of personal excellence. The winners were presented with garlands, crowned with olive wreaths, and viewed as national heroes.
From the beginning, the games at Olympia served to strengthen the Greek sense of national unity. During the Hellenistic period, Greeks who came to live in foreign surroundings such as Syria, Asia, and Egypt, strove to hold on to their culture. One of the ways they did this was to build athletic facilities and continue their athletic traditions. They organized competitions, and sent competitors from their towns to compete in the Pan-Hellenic games. In the 2nd century A.D., Roman citizenship was extended to everyone within the Roman Empire. After this point there were many
competitors from outside of Greece, and the Olympic Games became more internationalized. When the Greek government reinstated the games in 1896, this international character of the competitions was preserved by Baron de Coubertin.
competitors instead of teams. Winning an Olympic contest was regarded more highly than winning a battle and was proof of personal excellence. The winners were presented with garlands, crowned with olive wreaths, and viewed as national heroes.
From the beginning, the games at Olympia served to strengthen the Greek sense of national unity. During the Hellenistic period, Greeks who came to live in foreign surroundings such as Syria, Asia, and Egypt, strove to hold on to their culture. One of the ways they did this was to build athletic facilities and continue their athletic traditions. They organized competitions, and sent competitors from their towns to compete in the Pan-Hellenic games. In the 2nd century A.D., Roman citizenship was extended to everyone within the Roman Empire. After this point there were many
competitors from outside of Greece, and the Olympic Games became more internationalized. When the Greek government reinstated the games in 1896, this international character of the competitions was preserved by Baron de Coubertin.