On 6th April 1896, the Greek King, George I, officially opened the first summer Olympic games of the modern period at the Panathinaiko Stadium in Athens, Greece. The event was the brainchild of the French educator and historian, Baron Pierre de Coubertin. Two years earlier he shared his hopes for the games:May joy and good fellowship reign, and in this manner, may the Olympic Torch pursue its way through ages, increasing friendly understanding among nations, for the good of a humanity always more enthusiastic, more courageous and more pure.
Over the next nine days 241 athletes from fourteen nations participated in forty-three events. The nine sports competed in were athletics, cycling, fencing, gymnastics, shooting, swimming, tennis, weightlifting, and wrestling. Only mentook part in the inaugural modern Olympics. Women athletes had to wait another four years until the second Olympiad in Paris to compete.
You can read more about the 1896 games on the official site of the International Olympic Committee.
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Thanks for sharing this day in history.
ReplyDeletewow nice historical note there. wonder if that stadium is still used by the greek football club Panathinaikos today.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the comments.
ReplyDeleteDuke: Panathinaikos now play in a stadium that was built in the 1970s, but was itself renovated for use in the recent Athens Olympics.