The first Olympic Games were held in Ancient Greece as long ago as 776 BC, according to Olympic.org. The Greeks held the games every four years in the summers. In 1892, Baron Pierre de Coubertin, a French aristocrat, introduced the idea of reviving the Olympic Games in modern times. Since the first modern Summer Olympics in Athens in 1896, the International Olympic Committee has held 25 more Summer Olympic Games. The summer Olympics were not held in 1916, 1940 and 1944 due to World War I and World War II.
Election of Host City
Cities wanting to be considered as potential Olympic host cities must submit an application to the International Olympic Committee. The IOC then selects several of these applicants as candidate cities. Representatives from each candidate city must make presentations to the IOC demonstrating their city's readiness to host the games. The IOC eventually chooses one city during a vote at IOC headquarters in Lausanne, Switzerland. The IOC typically chooses the host city for an Olympic Games at least six years in advance.
Past Host Cities
The first modern summer Olympics was held in Athens in 1896. Since then, the Olympics have been held in Europe 15 times, in North America five times, in Asia three times, in Australia twice and in Mexico once. In 2016, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil will host the Summer Olympics, becoming the first South American city to host an Olympic Games. The Olympics have not yet been held in Africa.
Selection of Sports
For a sport to make it onto the program of the Olympic Games, the IOC must first recognize it. The sport must have an International Federation that provides standardized rules for the sport. The sport must enjoy global popularity and it must meet certain IOC criteria. The IOC also may also drop a sport from the Olympic program at its discretion. Baseball, cricket, croquet, lacrosse, polo, rackets, roque, softball and tug of war have all been featured in the Summer Olympics at some point and removed. Rugby and golf will return to the Summer Olympics in 2016.
Boycotts
In 1976, more than 25 African nations boycotted the Montreal Olympics because of the inclusion of New Zealand, whose rugby team had toured South Africa, then banned from most international competition because of apartheid. In 1980, Jimmy Carter responded to the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan by leading a boycott of the Olympics in Moscow that year. More than 50 nations participated. Many American athletes opposed Carter's decision, feeling he had robbed them of their chance to represent their country at the Olympics. A 1996 article in the "New York Times" cites runner Craig Virgin's assertion, "If I could have brought home a medal that year I would have been on a par with the top professional athletes in the country at the time." In response to the Carter-led boycott of 1980, 14 Eastern Bloc countries, including the USSR and East Germany, boycotted the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles. North Korea also boycotted the 1984 games. In 1988, North Korea, joined by Cuba and Nicaragua, boycotted the Seoul Olympics.
Member Comments