History
The Olympic Games are an invention of the ancient Greeks, they were dedicated to the Greek god Zeus. At Olympia, some mythological accounts credit Zeus with beginning the Games to celebrate his victory over Kronos.
Ancient Olympic Games
Historically, the Games were created to provide unity to the Hellenic world, which, at that time, was split into city-states which were constantly at war. These Games were held every four years. This four-year period acquired the name “Olympiad”
The Panhellenic Games
- The Games at Olympia (Olympic Games): every four years
- The Games at Delphi (Pythian Games), 582 B.C.: every four years
- The Games at the Isthmus of Corinth (Isthmian Games), from 580 B.C.: every two years
- The Games at Nemea (Nemean Games), from 573 B.C.: every two years
The first modern Olympic Games
The modern International Olympic Games credit as their founder Baron Pierre de Coubertin (1863-1937), IOC president in 1896. He wrote the Olympic Charter, protocol, and athletes’ oath, and he also planned the ceremonies. Coubertin was of the belief that ‘organised sport can create moral and social strength’.
The first modern Olympic Games were held in 1896 in Athens, Greece — a fitting place to rekindle the spirit of the early Greek Games. The second modern Olympic competition was relegated to a sideshow of the World Exhibition, which was being held in Paris in the summer of 1900.
In 1924, the first truly successful Olympic Games were held in Paris, involving more than 3,000 athletes, including more than 100 women, from 44 nations.
Modern Olympic Games – HISTORY
| 2020 |  | Tokyo - Japan | XXXI Olympiad |
| 2016 |  | Rio de Janeiro - Brazil | XXX Olympiad |
| 2012 |  | London - Great Britain | XXIX Olympiad |
| 2008 |  | Beijing - China | XXVIII Olympiad |
| 2004 |  | Athens - Greece | XXVII Olympiad |
| 2000 | | Sydney - Australia | XXVI Olympiad |
| 1996 |  | Atlanta - United States | XXV Olympiad |
| 1992 |  | Barcelona - Spain | XXIV Olympiad |
| 1988 |  | Seoul - South Korea | XXIII Olympiad |
| 1984 |  | Los Angeles - United States | XXII Olympiad |
| 1980 |  | Moscow - Russia | XXI Olympiad |
| 1976 |  | Montreal - Canada | XX Olympiad |
| 1972 |  | Munich - Germany | XIX Olympiad |
| 1968 |  | Mexico City - Mexico | XVIII Olympiad |
| 1964 |  | Tokyo - Japan | XVII Olympiad |
| 1960 |  | Rome - Italy | XVI Olympiad |
| 1956 |  | Melbourne - Australia | XV Olympiad |
| 1952 |  | Helsinki - Finland | XIV Olympiad |
