The History of the Olympics

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The first Olympic Games in written history took place in 776 bce. Scholars believe that the Games had been going on for years before then, but that no one ever recorded them.

There was only one event in that first recorded Olympic Games. It was the 210–yard (192–meter) dash. The Games were played for the next 1,200 years. Then a Roman emperor outlawed the event. He felt the Games did not fit with the values of Christianity. Another 1,500 years passed before the Games began again.

An Olympic committee was formed in 1894. They voted to hold the first modern Olympics in Athens, Greece. The event took place in April 1896.

The Olympic Games were not advertised. Contestants came to Athens on their own. They paid their own expenses. Some of the three hundred contestants were not even athletes. The contestants wore athletic club uniforms. Today Olympic athletes wear national team uniforms. Participants in the ancient Games wore nothing at all.

The next Olympic Games were held in 1900 in France. Women were allowed to compete for the first time.

Today the Olympic Games are more popular than ever. People from all over the world attend the Games. The Summer Games are held every four years. They last for a period of seventeen days. In 1924, Winter Games were added. These Games were held a few months earlier and in a different city than the Summer Games. Starting in 1994, the Winter Games were held two years apart from the Summer Games.

There are thirty–one events in the Summer Olympics. The Winter Games include fifteen events.