Sports

Greece has risen to prominence in a number of sporting areas in recent decades. Modern Greek champions have been awarded with numerous medals in individual and team sports such as track & field, gymnastics, shooting, sailing, and others. Many of them have gained international recognition through their participation in world championships and Olympic Games. In 2004 the Olympic Games returned to their birthplace when the Games where held in Athens.

The Ancient Olympic Games

The Olympic Games and Marathon races held around the world have their origins in ancient Greece. They promote world peace, fair play and the three Olympic values: excellence, respect and friendship.

Olympia in the western Peloponnese was the home of the ancient Olympic Games, established by Hercules, according to mythology, in honor of the Olympian gods who were the first competitors. Archeological evidence indicates that games were initially held at Olympia in the 9th century BC. Named after the highest mountain in Greece, Olympus, the Games were recorded as held every four years since 776 BC. By 676 BCE they acquired pan-Hellenic significance, and by 576 BC, their prestige had reached its peak.

Special messengers were sent in every direction to announce the beginning of a sacred truce and during the Games there was a suspension of all disputes and warfare among Greek city-states. The largest cities were represented by official ambassadors to Olympia. The competitions, testing strength and endurance, lasted five days and included a wide variety of events. Additional contests included a four-horse chariot race.

Chariot and horse races took place in the hippodrome, while athletic contests were held in the stadium. Jumping, discus-throwing, javelin-throwing, running, and wrestling were included in the pentathlon. Wrestling and boxing were combined in the pankration.

The victors of the games were honored by all Greeks. Memorials were erected and they were praised in poems and songs. Victorious competitors did not receive any trophies or medals. The emblem of supreme honor was an olive wreath placed on their heads. Some cities were said to tear down sections of their walls to let their victorious athletes pass through, signifying that with defenders of such strength there was no need for fortifications.

The Olympic Games and other popular festivals were more significant as institutions than the individual honors accorded to athletes who competed. In addition to inspiring succeeding generations to pursue competitive sports, they also contributed to a sense of unity between the Greek city-states, as indicated by the Olympic truce that was respected for the duration of the Games.

For a thousand years, the Games were held at regular intervals of four years. The Games continued to be held well after the decline of Olympia as a sanctuary and the Roman conquest of Greece. The advent of Christianity inspired radical social and religious changes and the old monuments were used to build a castle. The Games continued until AD 393, when the Byzantine Emperor Theodosius I banned them by decree, while, in AD 426, Theodosius II ordered the total destruction of the sanctuary's temples.

In the following centuries, the river Kladeos covered the sacred land with sand and pebbles. It was not until 1875 that archaeologists brought it back to light and re-discovered ancient Olympia.

More information on the archaeological site of Olympia

Modern Olympics

The first modern games took place in Athens in 1896. The modern-day revival of the Olympic Games is associated with Pierre de Coubertin (1863-1937) who, in January 1894, in a letter to the athletic organizations of every country, pointed out the educational value of sports to humankind, if practiced in accordance with the ideals of ancient Greece.

Since the Olympic revival, the Greek athletes always lead the parade that marks the opening of the Games, preceded by the lighting of the Olympic torch. The flame that is used to light the torch originates from the sacred site of Olympia, where it is lit from the sun's rays and then carried by a relay of runners to the city where the games are being held.

Many of the original Olympic contests were retained when the Games were revived in 1896, with new events added. One of the original events still contested is the Marathon race, commemorating the feat of an unknown Athenian warrior. In 490 BC, he ran in full armor the distance of 42.195 km (26 miles, 385 yards or 42.2 kms), from the battlefield of Marathon to Athens, to bring the news that the invading Persians had been defeated. He could only utter the words "Rejoice, we are victorious," before falling dead from exhaustion.

The Marathon race is nowadays regarded as the pinnacle of the Olympic Games. The first modern-day Olympic Marathon race, held in 1896, was won by a Greek runner, Spyros Louis, in 2 hours, 58 minutes and 50 seconds.

Since their revival in Athens in 1896, the Olympic Games have been celebrated every fourth year, except for interruptions caused by World Wars. Athens hosted the Olympic Games of 2004 with a celebration of sports and culture that linked antiquity with the modern world.

Athens 2004 Olympic & Paralympic Games

The 2004 Summer Olympic Games was a premier international multi-sport event held in Athens from August 13 to August 29, 2004 with the motto “Welcome Home”. 10,625 athletes competed accompanied by 5,501 team officials from a record 201 countries. There were 301 medal events in 28 different sports.

Athens 2004 marked the first time since the 1996 Summer Olympics that all countries with a National Olympic Committee were in attendance. It was also the first time since 1896 that the Olympics were held in Greece, marking the return to the birthplace of both the ancient and modern Olympic Games.

The Authentic Athens Marathon race

Every year, thousands of runners from all over the world participate in the Authentic Athens Marathon race.

This race was born by a true historic and heroic event and follows the same route a news-bearing foot soldier took in 490 BC to bring the joyous news of victory of the Greeks over the Persian from Marathon to Athens.

Apart from the sporting experience, athletes who participate in the Authentic Athens Marathon have the chance to enjoy the traditional Greek hospitality, discover the fascinating landscape of our country and explore the vibrant, rich in history and culture, capital city of Greece, Athens.