INTERNATIONAL OLYMPIC ACADEMY 7th JOINT - IOA

KNOWLEDGE OF AND IDEAS ABOUT OLYMPIA
AND THE OLYMPIC GAMES 393 TO 1896 A.D.
Introduction
Mr Thomas ZAWADZKI (POL)
This topic has not been presented yet by scholars as one single
work. The authors who have worked on it, dealt with one single part,
e.g. the “pre-olympic Games”. They omitted the other evidence for a
transition of the ancient “Olympic Idea” into the modern Olympic
Games. This work has as its main aim to bridge the gap between the
centuries by using both - the “pre-olympic Games” and other proofs
for knowledge about the Ancient site.
The title of this paper “Knowledge of and Ideas of Olympia and
the Olympic Games 393 to 1896”, needs some critical examination.
The year 393 might not mark the definite end of the ancient Olympic
era, but the edict by Theodosius I, the great, is a well-known date for
the end of the Games of antiquity. This date was used to mark the
beginning of the period which shall be illuminated within this paper.
The year 1896 as an end point should be reviewed with a critical eye,
too. It seems a logical decision to choose but one could have decided
for 1892 - here Pierre de Coubertin mentions his idea of modern
Olympic Games for the first time - or 1894 - the founding Congress of
the International Olympic Committee at the Sorbonne in Paris. The
choice of 1896 suggests itself for being the year of celebrating the first
Modern Olympic Games, while 393 represents the last “known”
Olympic Games of the past.
The decision to use “knowledge and ideas” instead of “facts” was
important, too. Travellers in the Peloponnesus knew from PAUSANIAS
that there was a sanctuary and a stadium in Olympia. They did not
know the exact position of the temples and buildings until the
excavations enabled a useful view on the Altis. But questions still
remained and are not answered until today, e.g. the location of the
hippodrome. This paper does not pursue any archaeological aims -
thus there shall not be any discussion of the exact positions of the
different buildings or even the disciplines of the games to be
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