[originaltext] In ancient Greece athletic festivals were very important and

In ancient Greece athletic festivals were very important and had strong religious associations. The Olympic athletic festival, held every four years in honor of Zeus, eventually lost its local character, be came first a national event, and then, after the rules against foreign competitors had been abolished, international. No one knows exactly how far back the Olympic Games go, but some official records date from 776 B. C.
    The Games took place in August on the plain by Mount Olympus. Many thousands of spectators gathered from all parts of Greece, but no married woman was admitted even as a spectator. Slaves, women and dishonored people were not allowed to compete. Records show that the evening of the third day was devoted to sacrificial offerings to the heroes of the day, and the fourth day, that of the full moon, was set aside as a holy day. On the sixth and last day, all the victors were crowned with holy garlands of wild olive from a sacred wood. So great was the honor that the winner of the foot race gave his name to the year of his victory. How their results compared with modern standards, we unfortunately have no means of telling.
    After an uninterrupted history of almost 1,200 years, the Games were abolished in A.D. 394 be cause of their pagan origin. It was a great many years before there was another such international athletic gathering. The Greek institution was brought back into existence in 1896 and the first small meeting took place in Athens. After the 1908 London Olympics, success was re-established and nations sent their best representatives.
    Today, the Games are held in different countries in turn. The Olympics start with the arrival in the stadium of a torch, lighted on Mount Olympus by the sun’s rays. It is carried by a succession of runners to the stadium. The torch symbolizes the continuation of the ancient Greek athletic ideals, and it burns throughout the Games until the closing ceremony.