The ledwords through the history of the Olympic Games are :
"Citius, Altius, Fortius" = Faster, Higher, Stronger

The origin of the Olympic Games is Olympia. It started when Hercules, the strongest of all men, challenged his four brothers to a race before the Gods in the fields of Olypia (a place west on Peleponnes in Greece), according to the greek mythology. So the Olympic Games took character of a festival of sport. This wasin 776 B.C. a point at which the Greeks marked their calendars in four-years periods called Olypiads.

In the ancient Greece the Olympic Games became one of the world's most enduring and hallowed institutions. The branches in the Olympic Games during the ancient Greece were racing, wrestling, boxing, pankration (a mix of wrestling and boxing), pentathlon, racing with horses and drivning with two- and four horses. Racing were measured in stadionlenght, one stadionlenght was 192 meters and the branches were 1, 2, 24 and weaponrace in 2 stadionlenght.

The atletes who won were lauded as heroes for life and often elevated to the status of royalty in their hometowns. Statues were erected in their honor around the extraordinary Temple of Zeus.

The Olympic Games were celebrated continuosly for almost 1 200 years. But in 393 A.D. the Olympic Games where forbidden by the Roman Emperor Theodosius. He declared that the Olympic Games were corrupt and put an end to them.

A Frechman, Baron Pierre de Coubertin was the man that revived the Olympic Games in modern history. Coubertin was inspired by the sacred ground of the Olympia particalarly. He succesfully proposed it to gathering of the world's leading sports authorities on 23 June 1894 in Sorbonne, Paris. There he succeded to revived the Olympic Games.

1896 the first modern Olympic Games were held in Aten. In the first Games about 245 men participat, 165 men came from Greece and the rest from 13 different countries. Only men participat, in Paris 1900 were the first time ladies participat, 7 ladies in 2 games. The actives in Aten 1896 compited in 9 different games and in 43 branches. The Games in Aten was a succes.

Coubertin's dream of creating the world's greatest sporting event, a truly international spectacle that would travel among the capitals of the world every four years. Coubertin and his colleagues believed that global sport could become a global platform for peace.

During the last century, the Olympic Movement has suceeded in many ways beyond Courbertin's dream. It has survived the traumas of two World Wars, endured the horrors of modern terrorism, suffered political boycotts and overcome economic hardship that threatened its very existence. Today, the Olympic Movement is stronger and healthier than ever.