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Article: Olympic Games, American Participation in
- Article from:
- Dictionary of American History
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OLYMPIC GAMES, AMERICAN PARTICIPATION IN
OLYMPIC GAMES, AMERICAN PARTICIPATION IN.
The modern Olympic Games are a quadrennial sports event open to athletes of all nations. Except for the Moscow Games of 1980, American athletes have participated in all editions of the modern games.
Origins and Organization of the Games
The Olympic Games originated in ancient Greece, where the first recorded games were held in Olympia in 776 b.c. Similar games were held in Corinth, Delphi, and Nemea. The Roman emperor Theodosius outlawed the games as pagan (they were held in honor of Zeus) in a.d. 393. The French baron Pierre de Coubertin revived the games, starting in Athens, Greece, in 1896. Chamonix, ...