Athens: ancient & modern Olympic Games

Greek royal family opening the 1896 Games

followed by British Prince of Wales and Russian Duchess Olga
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The first Olympic Games in the Southern Hemisphere EVER were in Mel­bourne in 1956. These Games put our beautiful city on the map, got my father’s engineering career famous and led me to be an Olympics fanatic. But I knew very little about any Games before 1956.

Ancient Olympics The Games were a religious festival and a good excuse for Greeks to enjoy the festivities in Olympia in the NW Peloponnese. During the festival, animals were slaugh­t­ered in honour of Zeus, King of the Greek Gods. For the first 250 years, all the action (sports & religious ev­ents) took place in this sanctuary. Zeus’ sacred olive tree, from which the victory wreaths were cut, marked the finishing line for all races.

The Games took place every 4 years from 776BC to 393AD. All free Greek males were all­owed to take part, from farm hands to royal heirs, although the maj­ority of Olympians were soldiers. Women could not compete, or even attend.

The first arena was no more than the natural embankments of the surrounding hills. But by the mid C4th BC, a proper stadium was actually built. This spacious, more modern venue allowed spectator attend­ance to grow rapidly. The final version of the stadium came in the C1st, fuelled by the return of chariot racing to the programme. The popularity of the Games soared.

The ancient Games were initially a one-day event until 684 BC, when they were extended to three days. In the C5th BC, the Games were extended again to cover five days. 40,000 spectators pack­ed the stadium each day at the height of the Games’ popularity, with more selling their wares outside. Perhaps it was because all athletes competed naked.

The ancient Games included these events:
a]Pentathlon became an Olympic sport with the addition of wrestling in 708 BC, and included: stade foot race (200m); the diaulos (two stades - 400m) and dolichos (long distance).
b]Long Jumpers used lead weights to increase their jumps.
c]Discus was first made of stone and later of iron or lead
d]Wrestling was a military exercise without weapons.
e]Boxers wrapped straps around their hands, aiding the wrists. There were no time or weight limits.
f]Pankration was a martial art combining wrestling & boxing.
g]Equestrian events included horse races and chariot races.

Training also took place at Olympia, at first outdoors but during the Hellenistic period (323-31BC) the gymnasium was built. Home to practitioners of wrestling, boxing, pankration and the long jump, the gym’s main feature was a large, square inner-courtyard. And an extensive bathing system! The gymnasium was an elongated rectangle with space for both the javelin and discus throwers to practise. Both buildings were centres of intellectual debate and learning, with philosophers and teachers taking advantage of the young minds. Artists went there to put their skills on display.

The Olympic Games were the sporting, social, cultural and tourist highlight of the ancient Greek calendar for hundreds of years. The last of the ancient Games were held in 393 AD.

 100 metres sprint, 1896

Britannica

Modern Olympics

Athens had been chosen to stage the inaugural modern Games during a congress organised by Baron Pierre de Coubertin in Paris in June 1894. The International Olympic Committee/IOC was also created then, specifically because Greece had held the Ancient Games.

In June 1894, Coubertin organised the Sorbonne congress, to present his plans to representatives of sports societies from 11 countries. Following his proposal's acceptance by the congress, a date for the first modern Olympic Games was chosen, 1896, and then they selected the host city: Athens.

Demetrius Vikelas was elected first President of the new Int­ernational Olympic Committee/IOC. Coubertin said that Crown Prince Constantine got great pleasure from the Games being inaugurated in Athens. The King and the Crown Prince would con­fer their patronage on the holding of these games, but the country was in financial and polit­ical turmoil.

With the prospect of reviving the Games in doubt, Coubertin and Vikelas announced that the Crown Prince would become President of the Organising Commit­tee. Prince Constant­ine's enthusiasm sparked a wave of patriotic cont­ributions from the Greek public and businessman George Averoff paid generously for the rest­oration of the Panathenaic Stadium.

The first regulation voted on by the new IOC in 1894 was to allow only amateur athletes to participate in the Games.

Thus the 1896 Summer Olympics Games were the first international Olympics held in modern history. The opening ceremony was held in the Panathenaic Stadium, during which most of the competing athletes were on the grass, grouped by nation. After a speech by Crown Prince Constantine, his father officially opened the Games. 9 bands and 150 choir singers performed.

Some of the athletes took part in the Games because they hap­pened to be in Athens at the time the Games were held, for work or hol­iday. And the athletes had to provide their own lodging. Women were not allowed to compete, although they were invited to Paris only four years later i.e 1900.

Fencing, 1896

Academy of Fencing

7 venues were used for the 1896 Summer Olympics, the main venue Panathenaic Stadium hosting 4 sports. The City of Marathon hosted the marathon and the individual road race events. Swimming was held in the Bay of Zea, a seaport in the Athens area. Fencing was at the Zappeion, shooting at Kall­ithea, and tennis at the Athens Lawn Tennis Club.

The 1896 Olympics were a great success. The Games had the largest international participation of any sporting event to that date, with huge crowds in watching the sports stars.  Competing national teams came from 14 countries - Australia, Austria, Hungary, Bulgaria, Chile, Sweden, Italy, Greece, UK, France, Switzerland, USA, Germany and Denmark. Belgium and Russia originally submitted the names of competitors, but failed to send teams.

As of 2016, only 5 countries shared in every Summer Olympic Games – Australia, France, Greece, UK and Switzerland.