The Ancient Olympic Games are primarily a part of a religious festival in honor of Zeus. The festival and the games were held in Olympia, a rural sanctuary site in the western part of Greece. From 776 BC, the Games were held in Olympia every four years for almost 12 centuries. Additional athletic events were gradually added until, by the 5th century BC, the religious festival consisted of a five-day program. In the first 13 Olympic games there were only athletic events. The marathon was NOT an event of the ancient Olympic games. The marathon is a modern event that was first introduced in the Modern Olympic Games of 1896 in Athens, a race from the Marathon northeast of Athens to the Olympic Stadium, a distance of 40 kilometers.

There was also nudity in the ancient Olympics. One story says that it was a runner from Magara, Orrhippos who in 720 B.C. was the first to run naked in the ‘stadium’ race when he lost his shorts in the race. Another story says that it was the Spartans who introduced nudity to the Olympic Games in the 8th century B.C. as it was a Spartan tradition. It was fairly clear that by the late 8th century nudity was common for the male contestants.

In the Ancient Olympics, only free men (no slaves allowed!) who spoke Greek, could compete in the contests. Not only were women not permitted to compete personally, married women were also barred from attending the games, under the penalty of death. Maidens were allowed to attend. Athletic competitions for women did exist in the ancient Greece. The most famous was a maidens’ footrace in honor of the goddess Hera, which was held at the Olympic stadium. There were 3 separate races for girls, teenagers, and young women.

The sports they did the Ancient Olympic Games were: boxing, chariot, racing, riding, pentathlon, discus, javelin, jump, running, and wrestling. Athletics were a key part of education in the ancient Greece. Many Greeks believed that developing the body was equally important as improving the mind for the overall health. Also, regular exercise was important in a society where men were always needed for military service. Greek youth therefore worked out in the wrestling-school (palaestra) whether they were serious Olympic contenders or not. Young men worked with athletic trainers who used long sticks to point out incorrect body positions or other faults. Trainers paid close attention to balancing the types of physical exercise and the athlete’s diet. The Greeks also thought that harmonious movement was very important, so athletes often exercised to flute music.

Judges were drawn from Elis, local region which included Olympia to judge. The number of judges were all the Eleans, local Elean Greeks were still allowed to compete in the Olympics. The Elean people had such a reputation for fairness that an Elean cheating at the Games was a shock to other Greeks.

A winner of the Olympic Games received a crown made from olive leaves, and was entitled to have a statue of himself set up at Olympia. Although the winner did not receive money at the Olympics, the victor was treated much like a modern sports celebrity by his home city. His success increased the fame and reputation of his community in the Greek world. It was common for victors to receive benefits such as having all their meals at public expense or front-row seats at the theater and other public festivals.

The original (ancient) Olympic Games came to an end in 393 A.D., when the Roman emperor, Theodosius I banned the Greek god Zeus, they were considered a pagan festival and banned.

The Modern Day Olympics were started in 1896 in Athens, Greece by Baron Pierre de Coubertin . The games are held every 4 years in a different country every time. With the Modern Day Olympics, men and women could compete in the Games. Usually, it is the International Committee who decides where the Olympics are held every four years.

The Modern Day Olympic creed is: “The most important thing in the Olympic Games is not to win but to take part just as the most important thing in life is not the triumph, but the struggle. The essential thing is not to have conquered, but to have fought well.” The Olympic creed came to be in 1896.

The Modern Day Olympic oath is: “In the name of all competitors, I promise that we shall take part in these Olympic Games, respecting and abiding by the rules that govern them, in the true spirit of sportsmanship, for the glory of sport and the honor of our teams.” This oath was created in 1920.

The Modern Day Olympic motto is: “Citius, altius, forties” which is a Latin phrase meaning: “swifter, higher, stronger.” The Olympic motto was originally created by the father of Pierre de Coubertin to respect the best aspirations of all Olympic athletes in 1921.

The first official emblem of the Olympic games was designed only for the Fourth Olympics in London with the inscription “Olympic Games, London 1908” along with a laurel branch and the helmeted head of the Greek warrior. The five inter-twined Olympic rings first appeared on the emblem of the 1924 Paris Games. Since then they have been the necessary part of each coming official Olympic emblem, artists usually blending them with the symbol of the country hosting the Games. Many Olympic stamps reflected these emblems at different times.

The difference between the winter games and the summer games is quite obvious. There are different sports like, for the winter games, skiing, snowboarding, ice skating, snow mobilizing, ice skating. And for the summer games, there are track and field, swimming, gymnastics, wrestling, volleyball, long jump, marathon, diving, water polo, soccer, basketball, synchronized swimming, rhythmic gymnastics, and pole-vaulting. The summer and winter games are also held in different times.

The Olympic journey incorporates parades and picnics and a visiting exhibition.

When someone wins the Olympics, they are awarded, either, a bronze, silver, or a gold medal. Sometimes, someone might win a sportsmanship award. They also get known world wide and often set a world record.

The next Olympic Games are going to be held in China in 2008