Ancient Olympic Games

Here we are in the first historical anecdote. We have chosen to talk about the Greek Olympic Games thanks to the help of Youtubers and historians' articles.

The first Olympic Games of antiquity took place in 776 BC in Olympia, a sacred place dedicated to Zeus, the king of the gods. Every four years for about 1200 years, the Games were held in Olympia, for a total of 293 successive Games. In ancient Greece, it was very important to make a pilgrimage to Olympia to attend the Games and participate in the festivities. Many people made the trip several times. Around 400 AD, the Roman emperors, who were Christians, banned the Games, seeing them as a pagan festival that hindered the spread of Christianity.

The first twelve or so Games consisted of only one event, the stadion (200m race). The distance corresponds to the length of the stadium track. At first, the Games lasted only one day, but this changed as more events were added. The athletes, all male, competed naked. Since there were no stopwatches, the times of the winners were not recorded, but the names of the winners and the events they won over the years were meticulously recorded. In 724 BC, a 400m race was included, and then other events (wrestling, boxing, chariot races, pentathlon, longer races) were successively added, making the Games more popular and contributing to their success.

Wars and personal quarrels were suspended, and bandits and mercenaries took their leave so that travellers could make the journey to and from the Games in safety. The journey can be quite challenging, depending on the time and distance involved. Despite the difficulties, a remarkable number of Greeks, including Socrates, make the journey, more than once.

Socrates gives the following advice to someone who is hesitant to make the journey:

"What are you afraid of? You walk all day in Athens, don't you? You're going home for dinner, aren't you? And for dinner? And to sleep? You see, if you take into account the distance you normally cover in five or six days, you can easily make it from Athens to Olympia."

For the athletes, it's not just a matter of showing up on the day of the event and participating. Thirty days before the Games begin, they must register in person with the ten Olympic judges. Many of them are accompanied by their personal coaches. First, the judges confirm that the athletes are truly Greek and have the right to compete. Secondly, they make sure that those who want to participate can do so at the highest level. For this, exercises and tests are carried out. Team sports do not exist.

For information, the modern Olympic Games were created on 23 June 1894 by Pierre de Coubertin.