Origin and History of the Ancient Olympic Games

The Olympic Games as we know them today began in April of 1896 in Athens, where the city welcomed 13 nations to compete, but this video is going way back to the year 776 BCE and it’s going to explore the origin and history of the Ancient Olympic Games. In the year 776 BCE, the first Olympic Games were held at the sacred site of Olympia in the western Peloponnese, in honour of the king of the gods, Zeus. The games were held every four years (much like they are now), until 393 CE when they were ended by Emperor Theodosios I who decreed that all cult practices (including the Olympic Games), be stopped. The very first Olympics in 776 BCE was held on the first full moon after the summer solstice, so in the middle of July sometime, and at the beginning, there was only one event, the stadion foot race. The very first victor was Koroibos of Elis, and every victor was recorded from Koroibos onwards, and each Olympiad (which is the four year period associated with each Olympic game), was named after the vic