The Ancient Olympic Games

The Olympic Games were celebrated 320 times -- every four years -- in the sacred stadium at Olympia, Greece, beginning in 776 B.C. Though boxing and wrestling were added later, the first Olympic event was a sprint. The prize was an olive leaf and deification by poets, as well as recognition as a hero forever.

The Modern Olympic Games

Athens 1896

In 1892, French educator Baron Pierre de Coubertin proposes a renaissance of ancient Greek competition. In 1896, his dream is realized as England, Greece, Italy, Russia, Spain, Sweden and the United States open Games. James B. Connolly wins triple jump (the first medal in modern Olympic history); American flag is raised and Star Spangled Banner played, beginning tradition of honoring victor and his/her country.

Paris 1900

Games opened to women. First female winner: Charlotte Cooper of Great Britain in singles tennis. Margaret Abbot of Chicago wins a gold medal in golf. Alvin Kraenzlein of U.S becomes first to win 4 gold medals.

St. Louis 1904

Staged as part of St. Louis World's Fair, Games are reduced to exhibition because many European athletes refuse to travel to American Midwest. Boxing staged for time, U. S. wins all 7 weight classes.

London 1908

2,000 athletes compete, Britain dominates with 141 medals. Marathon -- 26 miles to Olympic stadium and 365 yards inside it -- is run for the first time at its current length.

Stockholm 1912

First use of electronic timing devices and a public address system. Jim Thorpe, an American Indian, wins both pentathlon and decathlon -- a feat that remains unmatched.

Berlin 1916

Games not celebrated because of World War I.

Antwerp 1920

Defeated in WWI, Austria, Bulgaria, Germany, Hungary and Turkey are not allowed to participate. Olympic flag unfurled for first time; its five colored rings (black, blue, yellow, green and red) incorporate at least one color found in flag of every nation on earth.

Paris 1924

44 nations send 3,000 competitors. Scotland's Eric Liddell wins 400-meter race, England's Harold Abrahams wins 100-meter. Their story becomes 1981 movie Chariots of Fire.

Amsterdam 1928

Slow-motion film techniques used to judge close finishes; women's track and field competitions held for first time. Mikio Oda wins men's triple jump to become Japan's first gold medalist. Johnny Weismuller of U.S. defends his 100-meter freestyle title.

Los Angeles 1932

16 world records and 33 Olympic records set -- 105,000 attend opening opening ceremonies, 65,000 go per day. Eddie Tolan of U.S. becomes first African-American to win Olympic gold.

Berlin 1936

Before 100,000 spectators, Jesse Owens wins 4 gold medals, he is one of six African-American stars on team that captures 12 gold medals. Olympic torch run is established -- more than 3,000 runners carry the flame between Olympia, Greece, and Berlin.

Tokyo 1940

Games not celebrated because of World War II.

London 1944

Games not celebrated because of World War II.

London 1948

Fanny Blankers-Koen of Netherlands is first woman to win 4 gold medals in a single Games. Bob Mathias of U.S., age 17, becomes youngest American Olympic decathlon champion.

Helsinki 1952

Soviet Union rejoins Games after 40-year absence. Mathias wins his second decathlon gold.

Melbourne 1956

11 world records, 36 Olympic records; Australian swimmers capture 8 of 13 golds in sweeping men's and women's freestyle events.

Rome 1960

83 nations, 5,000 athletes. Abebe Bikila of Ethiopia shatters world mark in marathon. Cassius Clay wins boxing title with soon-to-be legendary flamboyance.

Tokyo 1964

Japan invests $3 billion in preparation. Opening ceremonies broadcast via satellite to U. S. for first time. Larissa Latynina of Soviet Union dominates women's gymnastics. Native-American Billy Miles wins 10,000 meter run.

Mexico City 1968

American Bob Beamon leaps 29-feet-21/2 inches, shattering previous long jump record by almost two feet. Vera Caslavska of Czechoslovakia is first woman to win 4 individual golds in a Summer Games.

Munich 1972

Worldwide TV audience:1 billion. Mark Spitz wins 7 gold medals in swimming and sets 7 world records. Olga Korbut of Soviet Union wins 3 gold medals in gymnastics, Soviet Union defeates U.S. in basketball. But stunning tragedy overshadows games: Arab terrorists assassinate 9 athletes from Israeli team.

Montreal 1976

4'11", 88 pound Nadia Comanici becomes first Olympic gymnast to score a perfect 10 in competition; her 7 perfect scores result in 3 golds, 1 silver, 1 bronze. Edwin Moses of U. S. wins gold in 400 hurdles; American Bruce Jenner wins decathlon; Sugar Ray Leonard takes light welterweight boxing championship.

Moscow 1980

U.S. leads 50-nation boycott to protest Soviet invasion of Afghanistan. USSR gymnast Alexander Dityatin wins record 8 medals.

Los Angeles 1984

Despite Soviet boycott, record number of athletes and nations, 6 million spectators, and largest TV audience in history. American Joan Benoit wins first women's Olympic marathon. Carl Lewis wins 4 golds in track and field, matching Jesse Owens' long-standing record.

Seoul 1988

9,600 athletes, including American Florence Griffith Joyner, who captures 3 golds. Anthony Nesty of Surinam sets Olympic 100-meter butterfly record, the first Black swimming champion and Surinam's first medalist. Ben Johnson of Canada and 10 other competitors disqualified for using performance-enhancing drugs. Matt Biondi wins 7 gold medals in swimming; Greg Louganis earns golds in platform and springboard diving.

Barcelona 1992

More than 15,000 athletes, coaches and officials from 165 countries, including South Africa's first integrated team. Lithuania, Estonia and Latvia celebrate independence by competing for first time. U.S. "Dream Team," with Larry Bird and Magic Johnson, easily dominates basketball. Carl Lewis takes two more golds in track and field.

What do the Olympic rings signify?

According to most accounts, the rings were adopted by Baron Pierre de Coubertin (founder of the modern Olympic Movement) in 1913 after he saw a similar design on an artifact from ancient Greece.  The five rings represent the five major regions of the world: Africa, the Americas, Asia, Europe, and Oceania. Every national flag in the world includes at least one of the five colors, which are (from left to right) blue, yellow, black, green, and red.  It is important to emphasize that Pierre de Coubertin never said nor wrote that the colors of the rings were linked with the different continents
The Olympic Flag made its debut at the 1920 Olympic Games in Antwerp, Belgium. At the end of each Olympic Games, the mayor of that host-city presents the flag to the mayor of the next host-city. It then rests at the town hall of the next host-city for four years until the Opening Ceremony of their Olympic Games.

 

 

The Olympic Games

When were the first Olympic Games?
The first known Olympic Games was recorded in around 776 BC in Olympia, Greece. They were celebrated until 396 AD.
What events took place in the Ancient Olympic Games?
The Ancient Olympic Games consisted of only one race, the "stade" race, which was the length of the stadium and between 180 and 240 metres long (we don't know for sure). Over the years more running races and other events were added, including boxing, wrestling, chariot racing, long jump, javelin and discus throwing.
Who took part in the Ancient Olympic Games?
Only young men could take part. They had to be free men, and speak Greek. They usually competed nude, and the prize was a crown of olive leaves (a sign of hope and peace).

Make an Olive leaf crown
Were women allowed at the Ancient Olympic Games?
Women were not allowed to take part. Married women were not even allowed to watch!

Greek alphabet

The Greek alphabet is over 2500 years old! Even though it is very old, it still works. People living in Greece today use this alphabet to make words, just as we use our alphabet to make words. Many people think the idea of an alphabet is an ancient Greek invention, but the Greeks borrowed their alphabet from another culture, the Phoenicians.  The Greeks traded with the Phoenicians.  When they saw the Phoenicians writing things down, they thought that was very clever.  The Greeks could easily see the usefulness of a written language.  They changed the Phoenician alphabet a bit to suit themselves. For one thing, they added vowels. The Greek alphabet was the first alphabet to include vowels.

Once they had a written language, the ancient Greeks began to write down all their fables and myths and legends. They wrote letters to each other that shared their daily life. They wrote business contracts. They kept reports of meetings. They wrote huge epics and wonderful stories and plays. Scientists today have learned a great deal about the ancient Greeks from this legacy of writings.  

One of the many gifts we received from ancient Greece was our  alphabet with vowels. The word "alphabet" is a made-up word that combines the first two letters of the Greek alphabet - alpha and beta - alphabet. 

Like the ancient Greeks before us, we made some changes. We changed the look of the letters. We changed the way we said the letters out loud. Over time, we even changed the order of the letters. In our English alphabet, the first three letters are ABC. In the Greek alphabet, the first three letters are ABG! 

This is the Greek alphabet:  

  

Toys and Pets in Ancient Greece

TOYS:  Ancient Greek children played with many toys, including rattles, little clay animals, horses on 4 wheels that could be pulled on a string, yo-yo's, and terra-cotta dolls.  

PETS:  Birds, dogs, goats, tortoises, and mice were all popular pets! Cats, however, were not!

Geography

Greece is a peninsula, which means that it is surrounded on three sides by water. Greece has a lot of smaller peninsulas sticking out from it, which means Greece enjoys many natural harbors. 

Greece is also covered with mountains. They are not huge mountains but if you are trying to go from place to place in Greece, you'll find the mountains a bit of a hindrance. 

Three thousand years ago, it was very difficult to get from place to place in ancient Greece by walking. But it was easy to get from place to place in Greece by boat. 

In the ancient world that grew up around the Mediterranean Sea, the Greeks became known as great sailors. They sailed about the Mediterranean, setting up colonies and outposts where they could.