Dr. J’s Illustrated Olympics
(written in 1998 well before the
successful 2004 Olympics in Athens)
The ancient Olympics began in 776 BC and were ended in AD 393 by decree of Pope Theodosius I. An example of the curious intersection of politics and religion in ancient Greek history, it was the pagan nature of the institution that caused the church to outlaw them.
The Olympic Games were revived in 1896 by Pierre de Coubertin, a French historian. His heart is entombed on site. Athens’ bid to host the Centennial Games (1996) was lost to Atlanta, but the city proudly won the competition for host city for the 2004 Olympic Games. And isn’t that what it is all about? Friendly competition? This (left) is the official logo of the 2004 Games…and it’s on everything.
First
take this short
test
to see how much you know about the Olympics.
Then educate yourself!
Learn
about
Little known facts
about the Greek Olympics
Olympic athlete stories
2004 Olympics in Athens
Neato clickable time-line for
Olympic facts
and Dartmouth’s
The Ancient Olympics “Museum”