The ancient Olympic games originated in Olympia in 776BC. They were predominantly part of a Greek religious festival, held in honour of Greek Gods, Goddesses and Zeus. Olympia, located in the Western Peloponnesus, was chosen as the site to entertain the festival as it was accredited as the Sanctuary of Zeus. The Sanctuary was named in honour of Mount Olympus, which is renowned in Greek Mythology as the location of Zeus’ throne as well as the abode of the Gods and Goddesses. Due to Olympia’s recognition and importance within their religion, Greeks sharing the same religious ideologies would travel from across the world to attend the festival.
Research suggests that the first and only athletic event for the first thirteen Olympic festivals was the stadion race, a foot race 600 feet long. The race started in 776BC and was won by Koroibos, a chef who originated in Elis. An increasing number of athletic events were added to the Olympic games to form 23 events at the games. These events were divided into equestrian events, boy’s events, and men’s track and field events. By 200BC the Olympic festival was an intense five-day program that continued to occur every four years till 393AD when it was discontinued.
In 1894, 1503 years later, Baron Pierre de Coubertin took interest in the games and petitioned to have it resume in France in 1900. Worldwide people were captivated by the idea and delegates from 34 countries concluded that the first modern Olympic games should be held in 1896, Athens. The Modern Olympic games differed from the ancient games as they introduced new events such as the marathon.
The marathon consisted of a 40km running race from northeast Athens to the Olympic stadium. The marathon was introduced as a commemoration of Pheidippides, also known as the ancient ‘day-runner’. Pheidippides was admired and idealised for running an estimated 149 miles from Athens to Sparta within the next day to deliver news of the Persian landing and request aid from the Spartans. The marathon has continued to develop as in 1908 the marathon was standardised to 42.195km. Coincidentally, in 1908 the Olympic Games were hosted in London and the marathon started at Windsor Castle to White City Stadium, which was precisely 42.195km.
Antithetically, the Olympic Oath originated in the ancient Olympic Games, it was an Oath taken by athletes that would be participating in the games. The Oath originally included the sacrifice of an animal to ratify the Oath. However, as the ancient games were dismantled the Oath lost the inclusion of animal sacrifice, in replacement of the Olympic flag. Through the rebirth of the Games, the Olympic Oath is now acknowledged as an essential element of the Olympic Games Opening Ceremony. It was inaugurated in the 1920 Games in Antwerp, by Victor Boin, a Belgian fencer. It is now seen as custom for the Oath to be taken by a selected athlete on behalf of all the host country and athletes. Further development of the Oath has occurred to adapt to the modernisation of sporting competitions. This notion is epitomised during the 2000 Olympic Games, which were hosted in Sydney. The Oath was edited so that each representative would agree to ‘the spirit of fair play, inclusion, and equality’(1), which explicitly addressed the issue of doping for the first time in Olympic history.
The Games are undoubtedly a remarkable event as it provides the opportunity for athletes to compete and gain recognition internationally against athletes at a similar standard. Moreover, the Games in 2010 was estimated by Gordon Brown to have created 50,000 permanent jobs in preparation for the Olympics alone (2). In addition, studies in 2012 have shown a large surge in people’s interest in sports throughout the lead-up to the event (3). In turn, people are adopting healthier lifestyles and building stronger communities as they unite in support of their country. Fundamentally, the Olympics are a source of hope and unity internationally and will continue to evolve since the creation of the modern Games to reflect the progression of sport across generations.
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