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edition 2007

Itroctio

The world’s most important sports event or over a hundred years –Idea o Frenchman Pierre de Coubertin – Olympic Games celebratedin a dierent country every our years – Games o the Olympiad(Summer Games) – Olympic Winter Games.

Eotio o te Games

Athens 1896: past heritage – Innovations: more sports, more ath-letes, participation o women, Winter Games – Establishment o traditions in the opening and closing ceremonies – Sport, art andculture.

Omic sorts

Criteria or inclusion in the programme o the Games – Sports, dis-ciplines and events – The programme o the Summer and Winter Olympic Games – Leading sports and demonstration sports.

Atetes at te Games

Athletes’ lead-up to the Games – Lie in the Olympic Village –Reasons or taking part, unique experience.

Rewars

Medals at the Summer and Winter Games – Diplomas and medalspresented – Ater the Games: winners’ glory.

Te Games i Moer Societ

Improved transport: a benet or the Games – Broadcasting o theGames by the media – Political and diplomatic use o the Games –Geography o the Games.

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Te Moer Omic Games

edition 2007

Itroctio

A SpORTS phEnOMEnOn unlIkE Any OThER

The Olympic Games have become one o the biggest sporting events o our time. Athletesrom the

etire wor

take part. Their achievements are watched rom both near and ar by hundreds o millions o spectators. The ve rings on the Olympic fag represent theinternational nature o the Games.

[see sheets “The Olympic Symbols”]

. What makes the Olympic Games dierent rom other sports events ?The Games are held every our years. They are the largest sporting celebration in terms o the number o sports on the programme, the number o athletes present and the number o people rom dierent nations gathered together at the same time in the same place.The Games are a well-known event, but are also part o a broader ramework which is thato the

Omic Moemet

.The purpose o the Olympic Movement is to:– link sport with culture and education;– promote the practice o sport and the joy ound in eort;– help to build a better world through sport practised in a spirit o peace, excellence,riendship and respect.

ThE SuMMER GAMES And ThE WInTER GAMES

The Olympic Games include the

Games o te Omia (i.e. te Smmer Games)

and the

Omic Witer Games

.The word

Omia

designates the

or-ear erio

that separates each edition o the Summer Games. The Summer and Winter Games originally took place in the same year, but since 1992the Winter Games have been held two years rom the Summer Games. The Summer Games andthe Winter Games continue to be organised once every our years.In the Summer Games, athletes compete in a wide variety o competitions on the track, on theroad, on grass, in the water, on the water, in the open air and indoors, in a total o

28 sorts

.The Winter Games eature

see sorts

practised on snow and ice, both indoors and outdoors.

hISTORy

It was

pierre e Coerti

o France who dreamt up this ambitious project, althoughothers beore him had tried to revive these Games during the 19th century, without havingCoubertin’s success. Drawing inspiration rom the ancient Olympic Games, he decidedto create the modern Olympic Games. With this purpose, he ounded the

IteratioaOmic Committee (IOC) i 1894

in Paris. The new committee set itsel the objective o organising the

frst Omic Games o moer times

.The date o the rst Games,

1896

, marked the beginning o an extraordinary adventurethat has now lasted or over a century!

Te Moer Omic Games

COubERTIn And hIS vIEWO WOMEn

Like most o the men o his time,Pierre de Coubertin was not inavour o the participation o women in the Olympic Games.“… the true Olympic hero, in my view, is the individual adult male.”

Le Sport Suisse, 31st year, 7 August 1935, p. 1.

edition 2007

Eotio o te Omic Games

Pierre de Coubertin drew his inspiration rom the ancient Olympic Games which wereheld in Olympia (Greece) between the 8

century B. C. and the 4

century A.D.

[ see sheet “The Olympic Games in Ancient Greece ].

ThE lEGACy O ThE pAST

In 1896, more than 1,500 years ater the ancient Games were banned, the rst modernOlympic Games eatured many reerences to this legacy o Greek Antiquity.The IOC’s decision to hold them in

Ates

(Greece) was a reminder that the OlympicGames

origiate i Greece

.The majority o the competitions took place in the ancient stadium (the

paateaicStaim

), which was restored or the occasion.Most o the sports on the programme o the ancient Olympic Games were echoed in themodern Games.The organisers even went as ar as inventing a new race, inspired by alegendary event: the

marato race

InnOvATIOnS

Although the modern Olympic Games were inspired by the past, they are also quitedierent:

GAMES AROund ThE GlObE

In contrast with the Olympic Games o Antiquity, each edition o the modern Gamestakes place in principle in a

ieret cit a cotr

lOnGER GAMES

In ancient times, the Games were held rst on one day, and nally over ve days.Today the ocial duration is no more than

16 as

AThlETES ROM All OvER ThE WORld

The ancient Olympic Games were the preserve o Greek citizens, whereas the modernGames are

oe to a

. The 245 participants in Athens in 1896 came rom 14 dierentcountries.The 1912 Games in Stockholm (Sweden) were the rst to boast the presence o nationaldelegations rom the

fe cotiets

. The universality o the Olympic Games was assured.

WOMEn jOIn In

As at the ancient Games, the Olympic Games in Athens in 1896 were an exclusively

mae

preserve. When

wome

made their Olympic debut our years later at the 1900 Games inParis (France), only two sports were open to them: tennis and gol.In early 20th century society, emale athletes had to deal with a great deal o prejudice :there were ears that they would lose their emininity by growing overly muscular or beco-ming sterile. The rst emale athletes had to ace up to this type o preconception. Little bylittle, they earned a place at the Games, sport by sport, and event by event.

Te Moer Omic Games

ThE MARAThOn

This race commemorates theexploit o a soldier who, in 490 BC,ran rom Marathon to Athens toannounce that the Persians hadbeen deeated in battle (distan-ce: approx. 34.5km).The marathon race has been onthe Olympic programme sincethe Athens Games in 1896. TheOrganising Committee o the1908 Games in London xed thelength o the marathon at 42km195m, the last 195 metres beingadded to enable the course to gorom Windsor Castle to the RoyalBox in the London Stadium. Thisbecame the ocial distance aso the Games in 1924.

ThE pAnAThInAIkO STAdIuM

in Athens hosted the ancientsports competitions known as thePanathenaea.