世界竞技和娱乐活动.docVIP

Chapter 4 World’s Athletic and Recreational Activities Section 1 World’s Main Athletic Activities 1. Olympic Games Every four years, athletes from around the world come together to compete in the Olympic Games. Do you know why this event is called the Olympics? The games were first held at Olympia in ancient Greece. The ancient Olympic Games honored the Greek god Zeus. Today, the Olympic Games are held in different cities around the world. THE ANCIENT GAMES We know that the ancient Olympics began as far back as 776 BC. That’s when the Greeks began keeping records of the winners. The ancient Games continued until about AD 392, more than 1,000 years! Athletes came from cities throughout Greece to compete in races, boxing and wrestling matches, gymnastics, and weightlifting. They also threw spears, hurled a discus (bronze disk), and jumped for distance. Wealthy Greeks raced their horses. Winners were crowned with wreaths of olive or palm leaves. The ancient Olympic Games were not just a sporting event, however. There were competitions in poetry, music, speechmaking, and other arts as well. At the beginning and end of the Games, animals were sacrificed (killed and offered) to Zeus. A splendid temple was built at Olympia in Zeus’s honor. When people stopped worshiping the Greek gods, the Olympic Games were canceled. THE MODERN GAMES The Olympic Games were brought back in 1896. The first modern Olympic Games were held in Athens, the capital of Greece. Only nine countries participated in the first Games, and all the athletes were male. Today, some 10,000 athletes compete in the Olympic Games, and nearly half of them are female. They represent about 200 nations. At first, the modern Olympics included only summer sports, such as swimming, rowing, and track and field. Figure skating was added in 1908, and ice hockey in 1920. The first winter Olympic Games were held in 1924. More winter sports were later added to the Winter Games, including downhill skiing, bobsledding, and s