Angel
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Join date : 2010-05-08
 |  Subject: Do you Know.?.....Olympic Games History  Sun Jul 04, 2010 6:42 am | |
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The Ancient Olympics:
The ancient Greeks dedicated the Olympic Games to the god Zeus. The original games were held on the plain of Olympia in Peloponnesos, Greece.
The Greeks held the first Olympic games in the year 776 BC (over 2700 years ago), and had only one event, a sprint (a short run that was called the "stade"). The race was run by men who competed in the nude. A wreath of olive branches was placed on the winner's head (in Greek, this is called a kotinos). The olive tree was the sacred tree of Athens, Greece.
Women were neither allowed to compete in the games nor to watch them, because the games were dedicated to Zeus and were therefore meant for men.
The four-year period between the Olympic games was called an olympiad. Every four years, for 1,170 years, the Greeks held an Olympics, which continued to grow and change.
The Flag of the Olympic Games:
The flag of the Olympic Games has five interlocking rings (blue, yellow, black, green, and red) on a white ground. The rings represent the five parts of the world that were joined together in the Olympic movement: Africa, the Americas, Asia, Australia and Europe.
Pierre de Frédy, Baron de Coubertin (1863-1937), a French educator and sportsman, revived the Olympic Games in 1896; the all-male 1896 games were held in Athens, Greece. Baron de Coubertin designed the flag of the Olympics in 1913-1914.
History of the Olympic Flame
The tradition of the Olympic flame began during the ancient Olympic Games, over 2700 years ago in Greece. A flame was lit for each Olympics, every four years, and it burned throughout the games. The flame symbolized the death and rebirth of Greek heroes. There was no torch relay in the ancient Olympics. The first torch relay took place at the 1936 games in Berlin, Germany.
The Torches of the Olympics:
For each Olympics, a new flame is started in the ancient Olympic stadium in Olympia, Elis, Greece, using a parabolic mirror to focus the rays of the Sun. This flame begins its Olympic Torch Relay by touring Greece. The flame is normally taken to the country where the games will be held (usually by airplane). The flame is then carried around the country where the games are to be held, using a series of torches carried by people running, walking, riding horses and camels, scuba diving, and using other means of human conveyance. The last runner uses a torch to light the large Olympic torch which burns throughout the games. The flame is extinguished during the closing ceremony. A new Olympic torch is designed for each of the games.
The Olympic Motto:
The Olympic motto is, "Citius, Altius, Fortius," which means "Swifter, Higher, Stronger."
Olympic Events:
The events in the Summer Olympics include: archery, badminton, baseball, basketball, boxing, canoeing, cycling, diving, equestrian, fencing, football (soccer), gymnastics, handball, hockey, judo, kayaking, marathon, pentathlon, ping pong, rowing, sailing, shooting, swimming, taekwando, tennis, track and field (many running, jumping, and throwing events), triathlon, volleyball, water polo, weightlifting, wrestling (freestyle and Greco-
Champions and Medalists
The athletes or teams who place first, second, or third in each event receive medals. The winners receive gold medals–solid gold until 1912, after which they were made of gilded silver and now gold plated silver. Every gold medal must contain at least 6 grams of pure gold)[98] The runners-up receive silver medals and the third-place athletes are awarded bronze medals | |
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