The original olympics games

Two years later, he got the approval he needed to found the International Olympic Committee IOC , which would become the governing body of the modern Olympic Games. The first modern Olympics were held in Athens, Greece, in In the opening ceremony, King Georgios I and a crowd of 60, spectators welcomed participants from 12 nations all male , who would compete in 43 events, including track and field, gymnastics, swimming, wrestling, cycling, tennis, weightlifting, shooting and fencing.

The official symbol of the modern Games is five interlocking colored rings, representing the continents of North and South America, Asia, Africa, Europe and Australia. The Olympic flag, featuring this symbol on a white background, flew for the first time at the Antwerp Games in Some 3, athletes with more than women among them from 44 nations competed that year, and for the first time the Games featured a closing ceremony. The Winter Olympics debuted that year, including such events as figure skating, ice hockey, bobsledding and the biathlon.

Eighty years later, when the Summer Olympics returned to Athens for the first time in more than a century, nearly 11, athletes from a record countries competed.

In a gesture that joined both ancient and modern Olympic traditions, the shotput competition that year was held at the site of the classical Games in Olympia. But if you see something that doesn't look right, click here to contact us! Subscribe for fascinating stories connecting the past to the present.

Modern Olympic history is full of heart-thumping victories and painful defeats. From Athens to Rio, in the The Winter Olympics are an international sports competition held every four years.

The event, also called the Winter Games, includes cold-weather events on snow skiing, snowboarding, biathlon and ice figure skating, hockey, speed skating, curling, bobsled, luge, skeleton.

With icy conditions, slick surfaces and freezing temperatures, technological innovation is especially important for the athletes and organizers of the Winter Olympics. From an all-weather torch to a souped-up bobsled, check out some of the many inventions the Games have Although inspired by the ancient Greeks, the Olympic marathon is a thoroughly modern invention. In Greek mythology, Mt. Olympos was the home of the greatest of the Greek gods and goddesses. The ancient Olympic Games began in the year BC , when Koroibos, a cook from the nearby city of Elis, won the stadion race, a foot race feet long.

The stadion track at Olympia is shown here. According to some literary traditions, this was the only athletic event of the games for the first 13 Olympic festivals or until BC.

From BC, the Games were held in Olympia every four years for almost 12 centuries. Contrary evidence, both literary and archaeological, suggests that the games may have existed at Olympia much earlier than this date, perhaps as early as the 10th or 9th century BC. What's that, you ask? A series of bronze tripods have been found at Olympia, some of which may date to the 9th century BC, and it has been suggested that these tripods may in fact be prizes for some of the early events at Olympia.

Source: Deutsches Archaologisches Institut, Athen. Did you know The technique was very similar to today's freestyle discus throw. This was highly valued as a form of military exercise without weapons. It ended only when one of the contestants admitted defeat.

Boxers wrapped straps himantes around their hands to strengthen their wrists and steady their fingers. Initially, these straps were soft but, as time progressed, boxers started using hard leather straps, often causing disfigurement of their opponent's face.

This was a primitive form of martial art combining wrestling and boxing, and was considered to be one of the toughest sports.