The Olympic Games: ancient and modern
History · Key Stage 2 · The School
A religious festival first
The ancient Olympic Games began at OLYMPIA. This was traditionally in 776 BCE. They were held every four years. They were part of a religious festival. It honoured the god Zeus. To the ancient Greeks, sport and religion were not separate things at all. Athletes competed in the god's honour, not just for fame.
Who could take part
Only free Greek men could compete. Greek city-states often fought each other. So a special TRUCE was declared. It let athletes and spectators travel safely to Olympia. Married women were banned from even watching. A Greek writer called Pausanias said the penalty was death. Unmarried women may have been allowed to watch. Enslaved people could not take part at all.
What winning meant
There were no medals at all. A winner received a simple olive wreath instead. Back home, though, winning athletes were treated as heroes. Some cities even knocked down part of their own city wall. A champion could walk straight through the gap. It was as if the city no longer needed defending. Poets even wrote songs in their honour.
Let us work out how long the Games were gone. The date usually given for the end of the ancient Games is 393 CE. Some evidence shows Games went on a little later, so it is only a rough guide. The first modern Games were in Athens in 1896. A Frenchman named Pierre de Coubertin was the main person behind bringing them back. He was not the only person with the idea. Women took part in the modern Games for the first time in 1900. Now we take away: 1896 minus 393. First take away 400 to get 1496. That was 7 too many, so add 7 back to get 1503. Because 393 is only a rough guide, 1503 is rough too. So we say the Games were gone for about 1,500 years.