1. What are the two most well-known myths about how the ancient Olympic Games were started?
There are several Greek myths about how the games were started. The most common myth was the story of the hero Pelops, after whom the Peloponnese is named ("Pelops’ isle"). The story of Pelops was displayed prominently on the east pedimental sculptures of the Temple of Zeus. Pelops was a prince from Lydia in Asia Minor
who sought the hand of Hippodamia, the daughter of King Oinomaos of Pisa. Oinomaos challenged his daughter's suitors to a chariot race under the guarantee that any young man who won the chariot race could have Hippodamia as a wife. Any young man who lost the race would be beheaded, and the heads would be used as decoration for the palace of Oinomaos. With the help of his charioteer Myrtilos, Pelops devised a plan to beat Oinomaos in the chariot race. Pelops and Myrtilos secretly replaced the bronze linchpins of the King's chariot with linchpins made of wax. When Oinomaos was about to pass Pelops in the chariot race, the wax melted and Oinomaos was thrown to his death. Pelops married Hippodamia and instituted the Olympic games to celebrate his victory.Another myth about the origin of the Olympic Games comes from the Tenth Olympian Ode of the poet Pindar. He tells the story of how Herakles, on his fifth labor, had to clean the stables of King Augeas of Elis. Herakles approached Augeas and promised to clean the stables for the price of one-tenth of the king's cattle. Augeas agreed, and Herakles rerouted the Kladeos and Alpheos rivers to flow through the stables. Augeas did not fulfill his promise, however, and after Herakles had finished his labors he returned to Elis and waged war on Augeas. Herakles sacked the city of Elis and instituted the Olympic Games in honor of his father, Zeus. It is said that Herakles taught men how to wrestle and measured out the stadium, or the length of the footrace.
Source: www.nostos.com
2.What is the Olympic symbol? What is the Olympics motto? What is the Olympic flag and what do the symbols on it mean?
The Olympic symbol, better known as the Olympic rings, consists of five intertwined rings and represents the unity of the five inhabited continents (considering North and South America as a single continent).
The Olympic motto is Citius, Altius, Fortius, a Latin expression meaning "Faster, Higher, Stronger".Coubertin's ideals are further expressed in the Olympic creed: The most important thing in the Olympic Games is not to win but to take part, just as the most important thing in life is not the triumph but the struggle. The essential thing is not to have conquered but to have fought well.
The colored version of the rings—blue, yellow, black, green, and red—over a white field forms the Olympic flag. These colors were chosen because every nation had at least one of them on its national flag.The Olympic flag ... has a white background, with five interlaced rings in the centre: blue, yellow, black, green and red ... This design is symbolic ; it represents the five inhabited continents of the world, united by Olympism, while the six colors are those that appear on all the national flags of the world at the present time.
—Pierre De Coubertin (1931)
Sources: en.wikipedia.org
en.wikipedia.org
3. When did women first take part in the modern Olympic Games?
Olympic events for women made their first appearance in 1912. Women’s swimming and women’s
diving all made their Olympic debuts.Sources: www.solarnavigator.net
www.olympic.org
4. Why aren’t the Winter Olympic Games held in leap years now?
The first international multi-sport event specifically for winter sports were the Nordic Games, held in 1901 in Sweden. The first Olympics after the World War I, the 1920 Games in Antwerp featured figure skating with the addition of ice hockey. In 1925 the IOC decided to create a separate Olympic Winter Games, and the 1924 Games in Chamonix were retroactively designated as the first Winter Olympics. The next Winter Olympics was the first to be hosted outside of Europe. Fewer athletes participated than in 1928, as the journey to Lake Placid, United Sates, was a long and expensive one for most competitors, and there was little money for sports in the midst of the Great Depression. Alpine skiing made its Olympic debut in Germany, but skiing teachers were barred from entering because they were considered to be professionals. This decision caused the Swiss and Austrian skiers to refuse to compete in the Olympics. After not being able to host the Games in 1944 due to the World War II, Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy, was selected to organize the 1956 Winter Olympics. At the opening ceremonies the final torch bearer, Guido Caroli, entered the Olympic Stadium on ice skates. As he skated around the stadium rink his skate caught on a cable and he fell, nearly extinguishing the flame. He was able to recover and lit the cauldron. Held in the French town of Grenoble, the 1968 Winter Olympics was the first Olympic Games to be broadcast in color. The 1998 Winter Olympics was the first Games to host more than 2,000 athletes.
Winter Olympic games are no longer held on leap years because in 1986, the IOC voted to separate the Summer and Winter Games, which had been held in the same year since the latter's inception in 1924, and arrange them in alternating even-numbered years. So the winter olympics in Lillehammer were arranged two years early.Sources: en.wikipedia.org
en.wikipedia.org
5. What are the principles of the modern Olympic movement?
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) actively pursues the goals of protecting the interests of the athletes and sport in general, and contributing to the search for peaceful and diplomatic solutions to the conflicts around the world.
The IOC's other principles are:
- Sport belongs to everyone
- Promoting women's participation
- Environment: Preserving precious resources
- Development through sport: Putting human beings first
- Education through sport: Developing body, will and mind
6. When have the modern Olympic Games been cancelled and why?
Summer olympics have been cancelled in 1916 because of World War I, in 1940 and in 1944 because of World War II.
Winter olympics have been cancelled in 1940 and 1944, also because of World War II
Source: kiat.net
7. How many types of Olympic Games are there nowadays? When and where were the first Special Olympic Games officially held?
Nowadays there are 5 different games. The Summer Olympics, the Winter Olympics, the Paralympic Games, the Special Olympic Games and the Youth Olympic Games.
The first International Special Olympics Games were held in Chicago in 1968. Anne McGlone Burke, a physical education teacher with the Chicago Park District, began with the idea for a one-time Olympic-style athletic competition for people with special needs.Sources: en.wikipedia.org
en.wikipedia.org
8. Where will the next winter Olympic Games take place?
In 2003 the IOC awarded the 2010 Winter Olympics to Vancouver, thus allowing Canada to
host its second Winter Olympics. With a population of more than 2.5 million people, Vancouver will be the largest metropolitan area to ever host a Winter Olympic Games. Vancouver is a low-altitude, seaport city with a relatively mild oceanic climate. Most of the venues will be located in the Vancouver metropolitan area.Source: en.wikipedia.org
9. Why are the Olympic Games of 1936 and 1972 specific?
1936
The 1936 Berlin Olympic Games had been handed to Berlin before the Nazis came to power but now it was the perfect opportunity for Hitler to demonstrate to the world, how efficient the Nazi Germany was. The Berlin Olympic Games gave the Nazis an opportunity to show off to the world as 49 countries were competing bringing with them their assorted media. The vast Olympic stadium was completed on time and held 100,000 spectators. 150 other new Olympic buildings were completed on time for the event. Signs that stated "Jews not welcome here" were not longer visible - anything was done to ensure that the Games went smoothly and caused no upset. In fact, the upset was caused in the stadium itself. The 'racially inferior' Owens won four gold medals; in the 100m, 200m, long jump and 4 x 100m relay. During the Games he broke 11 Olympic records and defeated Lutz Lang in a very close long jump final. Hitler refused to place the gold medal around Owen's neck.
1972
The 1972 Summer Olympics were the second Summer Olympics to be held in Germany, after the 1936 Games in Berlin. The Munich Olympics were intended to present a new, democratic and optimistic Germany to the world, as shown by its official motto, "the Happy Games." The Games also saw the introduction of the now-universal sports pictograms designed by Otl Aicher. Soon, however, the killings of 11 Israeli athletes by Palestinian terrorists in an event known as the Munich massacre took center stage.Sources: www.historylearningsite.co.uk
en.wikipedia.org
10.What is the historical background of the marathon of the ancient and modern Olympic Games? Who hold the world records of the modern Olympic Games among men and women?
When the idea of a modern Olympics became a reality at the end of the 19th century, the initiators and organizers were looking for a great popularizing event, recalling the ancient glory of Greece. The idea of organizing a marathon race came from Michel Bréal, who wanted the event to feature in the first modern Olympic Games in 1896 in Athens. The women's marathon was introduced at the 1984 Summer Olympics (Los Angeles, USA) and was won by Joan Benoit of the United States with a time of 2 hours 24 minutes and 52 seconds.
The Olympic men's record is 2:06:32, set at the 2008 Summer Olympics by Samuel Kamau Wanjiru of Kenya.
The Olympic women's record is 2:23:14, set at the 2000 Summer Olympics by Naoko Takahashi of Japan.
Source: en.wikipedia.org
