Does anyone know why the very first Olympics started?

Question

PLEASE HELP ME!!!!!!!

Answer 1

The first Olympics took place in 776 BC at Olympia in the Greek district of Elis, on the banks of the Pinios River on the Greek penninsula. It was some distance from the urban center of Athens and from other city-states, and most of the time was a sleepy backwater where nothing much happened. This shows the location. http://www.gtp.gr/LocPage.asp?id=4347

The ancient Olympic games were a sacred festival, and all enmities between city-states were suspended for the duration of the games. A sacred truce held sway during the games.

Initially the Games consisted of nothing more than a footrace, but gradually over time other events were added. The events were built around the kinds of things that men might have to do in war: javelin throws, discus, footrace, and the wrestling/fighting matches. At first the games were deemed to be the test of a warrior and there were no specialist athletes, but over time that changed. Athletes began to specialize in events, to the point where the all-around athlete of the type haled as the ideal when the games first started was essentially pushed out of competition by the specialists.

Athletic games were a part of Greek culture even before the Olympics began. Homer cites the funeral games held during the Trojan war, and even then the tradition of having games as part of a religious celebration wasn't new. Games of various sorts were held all over the greater Greek territories by all men of Greek heritage. The Olympics were conceived as a pan-Greek religious festival where people came together to worship and compete

Answer 2

No matter what the historians say, I think the games were a display of warring potential.  This way the city states can test each others' skills and determination to stay in battle.

Back then some fights were settled by the best soldier of one city battled the best soldier of another.  this way a war can be decided by the death of only one soldier.

Greece was a warring nation of city states.  If they keep going to war, who will defend them from the neighboring Pursians or Turks?  The Games were only open to Greek men or boys.  You separated them with a crow-bar.  just kidding.

Peaceful settlements are philisophically the best way to keep a country strong.  Games and atheletic competitions keep the nations men ready for war.

Answer 3

The Olympics we know today is a replica of what was once held in ancient Greece thousands of years ago. Our modern Olympics were started to foster diplomacy and cooperation among all the participating nations. Wars are supposed to cease during the Olympics as a sign of peace. The rings are supposed to represent many nations coming together as one.

Answer 4

im pretty sure it was to honor a greek god or godess

Answer 5

It was just a good excuse to get nekked.

Answer 6

It was a men-only competition which was to let them "show off" their skills to the public. Women were not allowed because in some events, the men wore nothing. The 1896 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the I Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event which was celebrated in Athens, Greece, from April 6 to April 15, 1896. It was the first Olympic Games held in the Modern era. Ancient Greece was the birthplace of the Olympic Games, consequently Athens was perceived to be an appropriate choice to stage the inaugural modern Games. It was unanimously chosen as the host city during a congress organized by Pierre de Coubertin, a French pedagogue and historian, in Paris, on June 23, 1894. The International Olympic Committee (IOC) was also established during this congress. Despite many obstacles and set backs, the 1896 Olympics were regarded as a great success. The Games had the largest international participation of any sporting event to that date. Panathinaiko Stadium, the first big stadium in the modern world, overflowed with the largest crowd ever to watch a sporting event.[3] The highlight for the Greeks was the marathon victory by their compatriot Spiridon Louis. The most successful competitor was German wrestler and gymnast Carl Schuhmann, who won four gold medals. After the Games, Coubertin and the IOC were petitioned by several prominent figures including Greece's King George and some of the American competitors in Athens, to hold all the following Games in Athens. However, the 1900 Summer Olympics were already planned for Paris and, except for the Intercalated Games of 1906, the Olympics did not return to Greece until the 2004 Summer Olympics.

Answer 7

a fight for bragging rights between cities like athens and sparta

Answer 8

One myth says that the guardians of the infant god Zeus held the first footrace, or that Zeus himself started the Games to celebrate his victory over his father Cronus for control of the world. Another tradition states that after the Greek hero Pelops won a chariot race against King Oenomaus to marry Oenomaus's daughter Hippodamia, he established the Games.

Answer 9

I think when the olympics first started in ancient times, it was a test of strength and ability just like it is now.

I found a pretty good history on the olympics if this helps

http://history1900s.about.com/library/we...

Answer 10

yes it was in greece and they started the games for activities to do and to copete for land!

Answer 11

2008

Answer 12

http://www.halls.md/chart/height-weight....

Answer 13

they were started in greece i beleive just as entertainment but im not sure

Answer 14

There are many myths surrounding the origin of the ancient Olympic Games, the most popular of which identifies Heracles as the creator of the Olympic Games. According to the legend, Heracles built the Olympic stadium and surrounding buildings as an honor to his father Zeus, after completing his 12 labors. After he built the stadium he walked in a straight line for 400 strides and called this distance a "stadion" (Greek: στάδιον, Latin: stadium, "stage") that later also became a unit of distance. This is also why a modern stadium track is 400 meters in circumference — the distance a runner travels in one lap (1 stadium = 400 m). Another myth associates the first Games with the ancient Greek concept of ἐκεχειρία (ekecheiria), Olympic truce. The date of the Games' creation was based on a four year cycle. The most widely held estimate for the inception of the Ancient Olympics is 776 BC, although scholars' opinions diverge between dates as early as 884 BC[citation needed] and as late as 704 BC.

Answer 15

The Emperor was bored.

Answer 16

it was a form of entertainment