Olympic Games (by Macarena Urbina)

During 2012 everyone had the “Olympic Games Fever”. The games were celebrated in London and we were all very excited supporting Argentina.

But do we you know what the Olympic Games are?

The Olympic Games are an international event featuring summer and winter sports, in which thousands of athletes from all around the globe participate in different competitions.

Ancient Olympic Games

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They were first held in Olympia, Greece in 776 BC. They were celebrated along with rituals, ceremonies and sacrifices honouring Zeus (the most important god of Greek mythology). The competitors were from all over Greece. And the winners of the events were admired and immortalized in poems and statues. They were thought to be gods.

The ancient games featured running events, pentathlon (jumping, discus and javelin throws, foot race and wrestling), boxing, wrestling, pankration and equestrian events.

The games were held every 4 years, and this period was known as an Olympiad.

Nearly the 5th and 6^th century the Romans started gaining power against the Greeks, and in 393 A.D. the Roman emperor Theodosius I eliminated pagan cults, so the games finished.

Modern Games

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Baron Pierre de Coubertin was the first man who tried to emulate the ancient Olympic Games in France. The competition included not only disciplines from the ancient games but also modern disciplines. Since then different sports competition were held trying to be like the Olympic Games. And in 1894 the first International Olympic Committee (IOC) was founded by Coubertin. And the modern games started being celebrated every four years. The disciplines that are part of the event are:

 Archery

 Athletics

 Badminton

 Baseball

 Basketball

 Beach Volleyball

 Boxing

 Canoe /Kayak Flat water

 Canoe /Kayak Slalom

 Cycling BMX

 Cycling Mountain Bike

 Cycling Road

 Cycling Track

 Diving

 Equestrian

 Fencing

 Football

 Gymnastics Artistic

 Gymnastics Rhythmic

 Trampoline

 Handball

 Hockey

 Judo

 Modern Pentathlon

 Rowing

 Sailing

 Shooting

 Softball

 Swimming

 Synchronized Swimming

 Table Tennis

 Taekwondo

 Tennis

 Triathlon

 Volleyball

 Water Polo

 Weightlifting

 Wrestling

The Paralympic Games

This is a sport competition held internationally for disables people. The athletes participate in these events have physical disabilities.

Its origins are in 1948 when Sir Ludwing Guttmann organized a multi-sport event with soldiers from World War II that needed rehabilitation.

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