Fascinating Olympic Facts
The ancient Olympic Games began in Greece in 776 B.C.E. and were held every four years until 393 C.E. lt wasn’t until about 1500 years later, in the mid-1800s, that the games were revived in Greece. But the Olympics didn’t become the event we know today until 1894, when a French historian named Pierre de Coubertin had the idea of making the games international, and founded the international Olympic Committee.
- Medals weren’t always a part of the Olympics. Giving medals to winners is a practice that began in 1896. And between 1896 and 1904, the top prize was a silver medal.
- The youngest person that has ever competed in the Olympics was Dimities Loundras, a the-year-old gymnast on the 1896 Greek gymnastics team.
- Lighting the Olympic torch does not involve a match. Lt is lit using only the light of the sun and a special mirror.
- At various times, the Olympics have included such unusual events as a swimming obstacle race, a tug of war, and live pigeon shooting.
- The gold medal is not made of gold! Lt’s actually 92.5 percent silver with a covering of six grams of gold.