cil) Ancient Olympics Today, before an Olympic site is awarded to a city, a group of world class cities compete to win over the Intemational Olympic Committee (IOC) who is responsible for choosing the location of the Olympic games. In ancient times, this was not the case. The Original Olympic Games took place in Olympia located on the West coast of Greece - a location with no population at all. According to Greek mythology, Zeus, the king of gods, initiated the Games. After defeating his father, Kronos, in a wrestling match for control of the world, Zeus decided to hold a contest among the gods to celebrate his victory. There are numerous other mythological stories that offer versions of the origin of the Games. One thing is certain - the Greeks had great respect for heroes. One such hero was Herakles, the founder of the Olympic Games. He was a son of Zeus and famous for his 12 Labours, which involved wrestling alion and holding up the sky. When he died, he became a god - the only hero to do so. The Games may have been discontinued for some time until King Iphitos of Elia, acting on a message from the oracle of Delphi, believed that he could save Greece from plague and war by bringing back the Games. Iphitos invited the states of Greece to assemble at Olympia for a competition. The first of these early Games consisted of one running race (the stade race), which was won by a local runner known as Koroibos This single event blossomed into the largest, and most important athletic event in the world - the modern day Olympics as we know them. miiteaicctig An ‘Match the underlined words from the passage with the meanings. 1. population + * ® epidemic 2. initiated . + crew 3. numerous . . e@ group together 4. versions : * © toundation 5. origin . *@ started 6. plague . . @ inhabitants 7. assemble . * © types 8. blossomed . € @ many\ nn mlienfor ter Boe Give answers to the following questions. Refer to the reading passage for information. 1, Why did King Iphitos bring back the Games? 2. Which Greek hero is thought to be the founder of the Olympic Games? 3. What significant accomplishment did Koroibos make to the early Games? 4, What is the role of the |OC? 5. What is the historical importance of the city of Olympia? 6. Name two of the 12 Labours. 7. What role did Zeus play in the origin of the Olympic Games? 8. Why did Zeus fight Kronos? Making Assumptions Give your own ideas in response to the following questions. 1. Why were heroes so important to the ancient Greeks? 2. How successful would the athletes of ancient times be in today’s games? 3. What qualities in a modem city make it an ideal site for the Olympic Games?