Ὀλύμπια

Olympia is a place in the western Peloponnese, at the confluence of the Alpheus and Kladeos rivers. The ancient Olympic Games were held there every four years starting in 776 BCE — or so tradition claims. The site was a religious sanctuary dedicated to Zeus, not an athletic complex. The games were a festival, and the competition was part of the worship. The word Olympic simply means 'of Olympia.'

For over eleven centuries, the games continued. Wars paused for them — the ekecheiria, or Olympic truce, allowed athletes safe passage through hostile territory. Events included the stadion sprint, wrestling, boxing, chariot racing, and the pankration, a no-rules combat sport. Winners received olive wreaths, not medals. Their home cities might tear down a section of wall for their return, since a city with an Olympic champion needed no fortifications.

In 393 CE, Emperor Theodosius I banned the games as part of his suppression of pagan worship. The sanctuary at Olympia was destroyed by earthquakes and floods in the sixth century and buried under silt. It was not excavated until German archaeologists began digging in 1875. By then, Pierre de Coubertin had already conceived of reviving the games. The first modern Olympics opened in Athens on April 6, 1896, with 241 athletes from 14 nations.

The ancient games lasted 1,169 years. The modern games have lasted 130. The word Olympics now refers almost exclusively to the modern version — a global television event with over two hundred participating nations. The small sanctuary in the Peloponnese where it all began is a museum site visited by tourists who may not realize that Olympic is just a place name.