The ancient Olympics began over 2,700 years ago in Olympia, Greece and were held every four years in honor of Zeus. Only men could compete in sports like running, wrestling, and chariot racing. The modern Olympics revived the ancient tradition and now occur every two years, alternating between Summer and Winter Games. Both male and female athletes from around the world compete together for gold, silver, and bronze medals.

1. An c ie n t G a m e s a n d
Mo d e r n Ga m e s

2. The Ancient
lym p ics

3. The Olympic Games began
over 2,700 years ago (in 776
b.c.) in Olympia, in
southwest Greece.
 The Games were part of a religious festival, were held in
honour of Zeus, king of the gods, and were staged every
four years at Olympia.
 People from all over the Greek world came to watch
and take part.

6.  Visitors to Olympia stared in
wonder as they entered the great
Temple of Zeus.
 Inside was a huge statue of the
king of the gods, sitting on a
throne.
 People called it one of the Seven
Wonders of the World.
 The statue was covered in gold
and ivory, and was six times
bigger than a man.

7.  During the ancient
games, only young men
were able to participate.
 Men had to play in the
nude or with very little
clothing (“gymnos”)
 Running was the only
event at the first Games.

8. Gradually more events
were added to make four
days of competition.
They include:
•Wrestling
•Boxing
•Long jump
•Throwing the javelin
In the pentathlon, there were five •Throwing discus
events: running, wrestling, javelin, •Chariot racing
discus and long jump.

9.  In Greece, there was no
Second Place.
 Only winners were
honored, the losers were
ignored.
 Winners were given a
laurel wreath for their
head and a pot containing
olive oil.

10. About 50,000 people could
sit in the stadium.
Married women were not
allowed into the Olympic
Games.
It was hot, overcrowded
and the water supply was The Games ended with a
poor. feast. Lots of oxen were
roasted in a giant barbecue.

11.  Only male athletes were
allowed to participate.
 Unmarried women had
their own festival at
Olympia every four years.
 This was the Heraia, held in
honour of Hera, wife of
Zeus. Women could
compete in running races.

12.  Ended in 394 AD by
the Roman Emperor
Theodosius, who was a
Christian.
He considered them
“pagan” games

13.  Revived in 1896 and first
hosted in Athens, Greece.
 In the modern Olympics
male and female athletes
compete in the same
stadium at the same time but
not against each other.
 Winners receive a medal if
they come first, second or
third. These medals are
gold, silver or bronze.

15. The Olympic Medals
Bronze Silver Gold

16.  The Olympic Rings are
five interlocking rings
that stand for the five
original continents,
(Africa, America, Asia,
Australia, and Europe)  The colours of the rings
and the athletes from are blue, yellow, black,
around the world. green, and red
respectively. They were
chosen because at least
one of these colours is
found on the flag of every
nation.

17. On the Olympic flag, the rings
appear on a white background.
At the Olympic Games, the flag
is brought into the stadium
during the opening ceremony.
After its arrival, the flag is
hoisted up the flagpole.
It must fly in the stadium
during the whole of the Games.
When the flag is lowered at the
closing ceremony, it signals the
end of the Games.

18.  The motto of the Olympic
Games is Faster, Higher,
Stronger. These three words
Stronger
encourage the athlete to give his
or her best during competition,
and to view this effort as a
victory in itself.
 To better understand the motto,
we can compare it with the
following well-known phrase :
The most important thing is
not to win but to take part !

19. The lighting
 In memory of the Olympic
Games’ origins, the flame
is lit in Olympia, Greece,
some months before the
opening of the Games. The
Olympic flame can only be
lit by the sun’s rays.
The relay route
The torch is carried by relay from Olympia to the host city of
the Games.

20. Arrival at the stadium
 The day of the opening of the
Games, the flame enters the
stadium. With the lighting of the
cauldron by the last relay runner the
flame is transferred from the torch
to the place where it will continue to
burn for the entire length of the
Games.
 The flame is extinguished on the
final day of the Games at the closing
ceremony

21. The sports

23.  The 2012 Summer
Olympic Games will be
held in London from 27
July to 12 August 2012.
 We expect 205 nations to
take part in 300 events at
the Olympic Games in
2012.
 London has hosted the
Olympic games in 1908
and 1948.

24. Wenlock and
Mandeville