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The Olympic Games - Then and Now

The ancient Greek Games were both parts of Greek religion and society. Originally, the games were a type of religious ceremony. Some were held in honor of living gods, others as offerings of thanksgiving. Later, the games honored famous living people. The Greek games were accompanied by processions, feasts and music. They played an important role in developing a keen sense of beauty that was reflected in Greek art and literature. At first, the participants were not professional athletes but rather amateurs. The Olympian Games were the most famous of the four ancient games held in Ancient Greece, the other three being the Isthmian, Pythian, and Nemean games.

The Olympian Games were held in honor of Zeus and took place every four years at Olympia, the location of the deity's principal shrine. The Olympian Games were held in summer, and early in each year of the games, messengers were sent throughout the Greek world to invite the city-states to compete. The competitions were open only to honorable men of Greek descent. In fact, with the exception of the priestess of the god Demeter, no women were even allowed to watch the games. Pottery from around 550 BC shows men taking part in the games naked or wearing only a thong.

The order of the events is not precisely known, but the first day of the festival was devoted to sacrifices. On the second day, the foot-race, the main event of the games, took place in the stadium, an oblong area enclosed by sloping banks of earth. On other days, wrestling and boxing were held. In wrestling, the aim was to throw the opponent to the ground three times. Boxing became more and more brutal as time went on. At first, the fighters wound straps of leather over their fingers to soften the blows. But later, pieces of metal were used to do more damage to the opponent.

The Olympian Games were the inspiration for the modern Olympic Games, the international athletic competition held every four years at different locations throughout the world. The first modern games were organized by a French sportsman and educator Baron Pierre de Coubertin in April, 1896. This competition evolved into the Summer Olympics. The Winter Olympics were begun in 1924. The total number of participating athletes has grown from 285 who competed in Athens in 1896 to the approximately 10,800 who competed in Atlanta in 1996.