Although records cannot verify games earlier than 776 B.C., the contests in Homer's Iliad indicate a much earlier competitive tradition. Held in honor of Zeus in the city of Olympia for four days every fourth summer, the Olympic games were the oldest and most prestigious of four great ancient Greek athletic festivals, which also included the Pythian games at Delphi, the Isthmian at Corinth, and the Nemean at Argos (the Panathenaea at Athens was also important). The Olympics reached their height in the 5th–4th cent. B.C.; thereafter they became more and more professionalized until, in the Roman period, they provoked much censure. They were eventually discontinued by Emperor Theodosius I of Rome, who condemned them as a pagan spectacle, at the end of the 4th cent. A.D.
Among the Greeks, the games were nationalistic in spirit; states were said to have been prouder of Olympic victories than of battles won. Women, foreigners, slaves, and dishonored persons were forbidden to compete. Contestants were required to train faithfully for 10 months before the games, had to remain 30 days under the eyes of officials in Elis, who had charge of the games, and had to take an oath that they had fulfilled the training requirements before participating. At first, the Olympic games were confined to running, but over time new events were added: the long run (720 B.C.), when the loincloth was abandoned and athletes began competing naked; the pentathlon, which combined running, the long jump, wrestling, and discus and spear throwing (708 B.C.); boxing (688 B.C.); chariot racing (680 B.C.); the pankration (648 B.C.), involving boxing and wrestling contests for boys (632 B.C.); and the foot race with armor (580 B.C.).
Greek women, forbidden not only to participate in but also to watch the Olympic games, held games of their own, called the Heraea. Those were also held every four years but had fewer events than the Olympics. Known to have been conducted as early as the 6th cent. B.C., the Heraea games were discontinued about the time the Romans conquered Greece. Winning was of prime importance in both male and female festivals. The winners of the Olympics (and of the Heraea) were crowned with chaplets of wild olive, and in their home city-states male champions were also awarded numerous honors, valuable gifts, and privileges.
The Modern Olympics
The modern revival of the Olympic games is due in a large measure to the efforts of Pierre, baron de Coubertin, of France. They were held, appropriately enough, in Athens in 1896, but that meeting and the ones that followed at Paris (1900) and at St. Louis (1904) were hampered by poor organization and the absence of worldwide representation. The first successful meet was held at London in 1908; since then the games have been held in cities throughout the world (see Sites of the Modern Olympic Games, table). World War I prevented the Olympic meeting of 1916, and World War II the 1940 and 1944 meetings. The number of entrants, competing nations, and events have increased steadily.
To the traditional events of track and field athletics, which include the decathlon and heptathlon, have been added a host of games and sports—archery, badminton, baseball and softball, basketball, boxing, canoeing and kayaking, cycling, diving, equestrian contests, fencing, field hockey, gymnastics, judo and taekwondo, the modern pentathlon, rowing, sailing, shooting, soccer, swimming, table tennis, team (field) handball, tennis, trampoline, the triathlon, volleyball, water polo, weight lifting, and wrestling. Olympic events for women made their first appearance in 1912. A separate series of winter Olympic meets, inaugurated (1924) at Chamonix, France, now includes ice hockey, curling, bobsledding, luge, skeleton, and skiing, snowboarding, and skating events. Since 1994 the winter games have been held in even-numbered years in which the summer games are not contested. Until late in the 20th cent. the modern Olympics were open only to amateurs, but the governing bodies of several sports now permit professionals to compete as well.
As a visible focus of world energies, the Olympics have been prey to many factors that thwarted their ideals of world cooperation and athletic excellence. As in ancient Greece, nationalistic fervor has fostered intense rivalries that at times threatened the survival of the games. Although officially only individuals win Olympic medals, nations routinely assign political significance to the feats of their citizens and teams. Between 1952 and 1988 rivalry between the United States and the Soviet Union, rooted in mutual political antagonism, resulted in each boycotting games hosted by the other (Moscow, 1980; Los Angeles, 1984). Politics has influenced the Olympic games in other ways, from the propaganda of the Nazis in Berlin (1936) to pressures leading to the exclusion of white-ruled Rhodesia from the Munich games (1972). At Munich, nine Israeli athletes were kidnapped and murdered by Palestinian terrorists. The International Olympic Committee (IOC), which sets and enforces Olympic policy, has struggled with the licensing and commercialization of the games, the need to schedule events to accommodate American television networks (whose broadcasting fees help underwrite the games), and the monitoring of athletes who seek illegal competitive advantages, often through the use of performance-enhancing drugs. The IOC itself has also been the subject of controversy. In 1998 a scandal erupted with revelations that bribery and favoritism had played a role in the awarding of the 2002 Winter Games to Salt Lake City, Utah, and in the selection of some earlier venues. As a result, the IOC instituted a number of reforms including, in 1999, initiating age and term limits for members and barring them from visiting cities bidding to be Olympic sites.
History
Games held in ancient times on the plain of Olympia in Greece every four years. It was a time for laying aside political and religious differences, as athletes from all the Greek cities and districts competed. The games included patriotic and religious rituals as well as athletic contests, and high honors were given to the winners. The Greeks counted their years by olympiads (periods of four years) and dated events from the first Olympics in 776 b.c.
The Olympic Games deteriorated under Roman rule of Greece and were halted in the fourth century. They were revived in the late nineteenth century, with goals of peace and fellowship modeled on those of the ancient Olympics. The modern Olympics include many athletic events of the original games, such as the discus throw.
古代奧運會的產生
奧運會的全稱是“奧林匹克運動會”,“奧林匹克”壹詞源於希臘的地名“奧林匹亞”。奧林匹亞位於雅典城西南360公裏的阿菲斯河山谷,這裏風景如畫,氣候宜人.古希臘人在這裏建起了許多神殿,因此,古人把這塊土地叫做阿爾菲斯神城,也稱"聖地"奧林匹亞,依當時的信念,它象征著和平和友誼。
古代希臘和地中
海區域其他國家的人們在祭典和收獲季節,常常舉行盛大集會,並進行各種遊樂和競技活動,熱鬧非凡。最初這項活動分散在各地,也不定期,但以奧林匹亞的集會最為盛大。
公元前884年,古希臘爆發戰爭,各地戰火連綿,瘟疫成災,農業欠收.希臘平民非常渴望和平,懷念當年的那種慶典活動。於是,奧林匹亞所在的伊利斯城邦國王聯絡其他幾個城邦的國王,達成了壹項定期的奧林匹亞舉行運動會的協議,並規定在運動會年實行“神聖休戰日”。“神聖休戰日”期限是三個月。在這期間,任何人不得動刀兵發動。即使正在交戰的雙方,也得放下武器,準備去奧林匹亞參加運動會。從此,就產生了全希臘性的賽會.到公元前776年,第壹次用文字記錄下獲獎者安全名。這就是後人所說的第壹屆古希臘運動會。之後,這種賽會每四年舉行壹次.因此比賽地點在奧林匹亞,也稱它是古代奧林匹克運動會,簡稱古代奧運會。從公元前776年到公元349年,古代奧運會被羅馬帝國的皇帝廢除為止,古代奧運會壹***舉行了293屆。
古代奧運會並不都是歡樂
古代奧運會對普通奧運觀眾並不意味著歡樂。壹個典型的奧運觀眾，如果是從雅典出發，他必須跋山涉水穿過大半個伯羅奔尼撒半島，沿著壹條崎嶇不平的朝聖者古道，頭頂地中海夏季的炎炎烈日，步行或借助騾馬的腳力，用兩個星期的時間才能走完雅典到奧林匹亞的300多公裏路程。如果來自海外殖民地，走海路則需要更長時間
當筋疲力盡的觀眾終於抵達奧林匹亞，真正的考驗才剛剛開始。奧林匹亞基礎設施極為簡陋，僅有壹家稍微像樣的旅店，並且只向外交使團和官員開放，級別不夠的貴族只能自己搭帳篷解決住宿問題。至於另外8萬名普通觀眾——其中將近壹半是兜售飲食、紀念品的小商販——不得不到宙斯神廟附近的曠野裏自便。於是，奧運期間這裏變成了壹片衛生狀況惡劣的露營地。
奧林匹亞的運動場不設觀眾席，也沒有樹陰遮蔽，因為宗教原因，奧運會上不允許觀眾戴帽子，人們只能從早到晚站在塵土飛揚的運動場中間，暴曬於烈日底下。由於夏季河水斷流，井水供不應求，觀眾脫水、中暑的情況時有發生。那時，希臘沒有完善的排汙系統，幹涸的河床成了幾萬人的臨時廁所，垃圾就地堆放，再加上遍地的蒼蠅，衛生狀況可想而知。
就是在這樣的條件下，古代奧運會連續舉辦了壹千多年。據說，奧運會的臟亂程度令人聞之色變，以至於有這樣壹種說法——對於不服管教的奴隸，主人會以威脅的口氣對他說：再不聽話，就罰妳去奧林匹亞看奧運會！ （《南方周末》8.19賦格文）
奧運會會歌
現代首屆夏季奧運會於1896年4月6日在雅典開幕,開幕典禮中,演奏了壹曲莊嚴的古典弦樂,1958年國際奧委會將它定為奧運會會歌,會歌作曲者為希臘薩馬拉斯,作詞者為帕拉馬斯。
奧運會會旗
1913年,法國顧拜旦建議設國際奧委會會旗,並設計為白底,無邊,中央從左至右有藍,黃,黑,綠,紅5個套連圈環,依次代表歐亞非澳美5洲,白底意指所有國家都能在自己旗幟下參賽。1914年7月,奧林匹克大
會首次懸掛奧林匹克旗。1920年,舉辦第5屆夏季奧運會的比利時奧委會贈送國際奧委會壹面同樣的旗,奧運會期懸掛,後成定制,歷屆奧運會開幕由上屆舉辦城市轉交此旗,由舉辦城市保存,比賽期間主運動場僅懸掛借用品,1952年,奧斯陸市贈送國際奧委會冬季奧運會旗,交接,保存和使用方法同夏季奧運會。1970年,國際奧委會在《奧林匹克評議》第4期上對會旗賦予新含義：它象征5大洲團結,運動員以公正,坦率的競賽和友好的精神在奧運會上相見。
奧運聖火
1934年,國際奧委會雅典會議決定恢復古奧運會舊制,奧運會期間主體育場燃燒奧林匹克聖火,聖火火種取自奧林匹克,采用火炬接力方式傳到主辦國,在此之前1928年的第9屆奧運會在荷蘭的阿姆斯特丹市
的主體比賽上自始至終有壹高塔燃著熊熊的焰火。火種用聚光鏡集陽光點燃而成,然後通過接力傳送經4個國家至東道國主辦地,這是奧運會首次舉行這種活動。1936年7月20日,奧林匹亞為第11屆夏季奧運會舉行點火儀式後每人手持火炬跑1公裏的接力,經保加利亞,南斯拉夫,匈牙利,奧地利,捷克斯洛伐克,8月1日傳到柏林,全程3075公裏,參加接力的***有3075人,從這屆起,國際奧委會正式規定點燃奧林匹克火焰是每屆奧運會開幕式不可缺少的儀式.此外,燃點聖火是為了紀念壹次大戰中犧牲的戰士,而火炬傳送則象征在世界各地傳播和平的友誼。
現代奧運會的奠基人——皮埃爾?德?顧拜旦
皮埃爾·德·顧拜旦是現代奧運會的奠基人。他出生於巴黎貴族家庭。中學畢業後入巴黎大學攻讀法律、政治、後又去英國深造，學教育學。當時英國的戶外體育對顧拜旦震動很大，他立誌
回去要改變法國對體育的漠不關心，他更向往的是擴大世界的體育交流。1863年，顧拜旦提出舉辦類似古奧運會的比賽，但不是照搬，而是把過去只限於希臘人參加的古奧運會擴大到世界範圍。盡管顧拜旦的主張遭到壹些反對派的杯葛，但在他不懈努力下，1894年6月16日終於有20個國家派代表在法國巴黎大學召開了第壹屆“重建國際奧林匹克運動會國際會議”。6月23日晚，委員會正式宣布成立國際奧林匹克委員會，這壹天，對世界體育運動的發展，對奧林匹克運動都具有劃時代的意義。不少國家把這壹天作為體育節日，中國也於1986年將這天定為奧林匹克日。
現代奧運會的歷史
奧運會自公元 776 年於希臘的奧林匹亞舉行以來，已經有 1200 年的歷史。當時的運動項目有五項全能（包含鐵餅、標槍、跳遠、賽跑和摔跤）、賽跑、拳擊、摔跤、Pankration（拳擊和摔跤的混合運動）、四輪馬車賽跑和騎馬。
奧林匹克的復興始自 1896 年，當時希臘的雅典舉辦了第壹次現代奧運會，當時有來自 14 個國家的 245 名運動員參加。 此後，參賽運動員、參賽國家和比賽項目與日俱增，在 2000 年澳大利亞的悉尼奧運會上，有來自 199 個國家的 10,000 多名運動員參賽。
冬季體育項目最早在 1908 年添加到奧運會中，當時是花樣滑冰運動。冰球項目自 1920 年加入。在 1924 年，冬奧會第壹次在法國的查米尼斯單獨舉行。 自 1994 起，冬奧會定於不和夏季奧運會同年舉行，因此目前奧運會為每兩年壹屆，冬季奧運會和夏季奧運會交替進行。
奧林匹克運動有壹系列獨特而鮮明的象征性標誌，如奧林匹克標誌、格言、奧運會會旗、會歌、會徽、獎牌、吉祥物等。這些標誌有著豐富的文化含義，形象地體現了奧林匹克理想的價值取向和文化內涵。今天，隨著奧林匹克運動的不斷發展壯大，奧林匹克標誌也已經在全世界家喻戶曉、深入人心。
《奧林匹克憲章》規定，奧林匹克標誌、奧林匹克旗、奧林匹克格言和奧林匹克會歌的產權屬於國際奧委會專有。國際奧委會可采取壹切適當措施使奧林匹克標誌、旗、格言和會歌在各國和國際上獲得法律保護。為了加強對奧林匹克知識產權和奧林匹克標誌的保護，保障和維護奧林匹克知識產權人和奧林匹克標誌權利人的合法權益，我國先後頒布了《北京市奧林匹克知識產權保護規定》（2001年10月11日北京市政府令第85號發布）和《奧林匹克標誌保護條例》（2002年2月4日中華人民***和國國務院令第345號發布）。
當今世界上流傳最廣的標誌要數奧林匹克五環了，隨著奧林匹克運動的發展，它已成為奧林匹克精神與文化的形象代表，五環“轉”到哪裏，奧林匹克運動就在哪裏生根開花。
說起五環的來歷，曾經有過這樣壹個有趣的故事。 1936年第11屆柏林奧運會第壹次舉行火炬傳遞活動，火炬的傳遞路線自奧林匹亞開始，從希臘北部出境，沿多瑙河穿過奧地利，最後進入德國。為了烘托這壹具有象征意義的活動，奧運會組委會主席卡爾?迪姆及其同事幾乎完全按照古奧運會的情景來布置沿途經過的古希臘遺址。火炬到達德爾菲帕那薩斯山的古代運動場時要舉行壹個特別儀式，這時，迪姆突發奇想，在壹個高約3英尺的長方形石頭的四面設計並刻上了現代奧林匹克運動的五環標誌，放在了古運動場的起跑線壹端。儀式結束後，火炬繼續北上，而這塊作為道具的石頭卻被留在了古運動場。
由於極少有人知道這塊刻有五環標誌石頭（後被稱做“迪姆之石”）的真實身份，此後的很長壹段時間，它被當做了“有3000年歷史的古代奧運會遺跡”。這個以訛傳訛的錯誤直到20世紀60年代才被德爾菲的希臘官員指出。1972年5月，這個假文物被送到德爾菲的另壹個地方——古羅馬廣場入口處。
事實上，現代奧林匹克運動的五環標誌出自現代奧運會創始人顧拜旦之手。顧拜旦認為奧林匹克運動應該有自己的標誌，這個念頭在他的腦海裏盤桓已久。1913年，他終於構思設計了五環標誌和以白色為底印有五環的奧林匹克旗，打算在國際奧委會成立20周年之際推出這個標誌。
1914年6月15日～23日，國際奧委會在法國巴黎索邦學院舉行代表大會，同時慶祝國際奧委會成立20周年。在紀念大會上，顧拜旦興致勃勃地拿出自己設計的五環標誌和壹面印著五環的旗幟向大家展示，並建議將它們作為奧林匹克運動的標誌。聽了顧拜旦對五環標誌的說明後，會議確定將奧林匹克五環和奧林匹克旗作為奧林匹克標誌。
奧林匹克五環標誌由5個奧林匹克環從左至右套接而成，可以是單色，也可以是藍、黃、黑、綠、紅5種顏色。最初的解釋是五種顏色代表各國國旗的顏色，後來又將5個不同顏色的圓環解釋為五大洲的象征。
奧運會會旗，3米長，2米寬，以白色為底，象征純潔。藍、黃、黑、綠、紅五環，環環相扣。1914年，在巴黎舉行的奧林匹克大會首次懸掛了奧林匹克旗。1920年，奧林匹克旗第壹次飄揚在安特衛普夏季奧運會體育場。這屆奧運會後，比利時奧委會贈送了國際奧委會壹面同樣的旗，在奧運會期間懸掛，後成定制，歷屆奧運會開幕式上由上屆舉辦城市轉交此旗，由舉辦城市保存，比賽期間主運動場僅懸掛代用品。1952年，奧斯陸市贈送國際奧委會冬季奧運會會旗，交接、保存和使用方法與夏季奧運會相同。
1979年6月，國際奧委會正式宣布了會旗和五環的含義：根據《奧林匹克憲章》，奧林匹克旗幟和5個圓環的含義是：象征五大洲的團結以及全世界運動員以公正、坦率的比賽和友好的精神在奧運會上相見。