The Olympic Games

OLYMPIA

The Olympic Games have a long history. The first olympic Games were inOlympia , Greece.

People think the Olympics began in 776 BC. The Games were at the same place, every four years.

The Gods were the focus of the original Olympics in Greece. The Olympics were held to honor Zeus – the most important God in Greek mythology.The first Olympic event was the Stadion, a 200 metre running race. Other events were added in following years, including: jumping, chariot racing, wrestling, discus throwing, and horseracing Any Greek man who was not a slave could compete. Female athletes unfortunately were not allowed.

THE GAMES ARE PROHIBITEDTHE GAMES ARE PROHIBITED

The Games were held in honor of pagan gods and they were not Christian.

In 394 AD the Christian Emperor of Rome prohibited the Olympics.

THE REVIVAL Pierre de Coubertin, a French Baron, believed

passionately in the Olympic ideal that enemies could be united in a sporting competition. He believed that an event such as the Olympics could be used to promote peace. He helped create the International Olympic Committee and worked very hard to promote his idea to other countries.

The Return of the Olympics

• In 1896 , the games returned to Greece – Athens.

• 14 Nations and 241 male athletes competed in 43 events.

• The Olympics continue to be held every 4 years in a different country.

The Winter Olympics

• In 1924 in Chamonix, France the Winter Olympics began.

• The Winter Olympics are also held every four years.

• The Summer and the Winter Olympics last for more or less 2 weeks.

Television & the Olympics

• The first televised Olympics were in 1936 in Berlin.

• A very controversial Olympics before World War 2 with Nazi Germany being the host.

• Why is this picture historic?

Olympics Today

• Today the Olympics are a huge media event and are watched all over the world.

• The Summer and Winter Olympics have many events in different sporting categories.

Homework• Tell the class about one Olympic

sport

• Write the history and a summary of the sport.

• Tell the class 2 vocabulary words that involve your sport.

• Find 1 photo of the sport on the Internet or in a book.

• Find one photo of a famous athlete.

• Write a summary of your sport. How many players are there? Are there teams? Is it a person vs. person sport? Do you need special equipment to play the sport? What are the rules of the sport? Etc.

• Put all of the information on ONE sheet of paper.

• Stand in front of the class and present the information on your sport.