1896 Summer Olympics

Multi-sport event in Athens, Greece April 2014 April 2016 1896 Summer Olympics Commemorative album of 1896 Olympic Games - cover by E. Gilliéron.jpg Cover of the official report for the 1896 Summer Olympics Athens, Greece 14countries note1 none 241 (all men)athletes note2 none 43 in 9 sports (10 disciplines) Gregorian Calendar: 6 April 1896Julian Calendar: 25 March 1896 Gregorian Calendar: 15 April 1896Julian Calendar: 3 April 1896 King George I Panathenaic Stadium Paris 1900 The 1896 Summer Olympics,(el Θερινοί Ολυμπιακοί Αγώνες 1896 Therinoí Olympiakoí Agónes 1896) officially known as the Games of the I Olympiad,(el Αγώνες της 1ης Ολυμπιάδας Agónes tis Protis Olympiádas) and commonly known as Athens 1896 (el Αθήνα 1896), were the first international Olympic Games held in modern history. Organised by the International Olympic Committee (IOC), which had been created by French aristocrat Pierre de Coubertin, the event was held in Athens, Greece, from 6 to 15 April 1896. Fourteen nations (according to the IOC, though the number is subject to interpretation) and 241 athletes (all males; this number is also disputed) took part in the games.https://olympics.com/en/olympic-games/athens-1896 Athens 1896 Summer Olympics International Olympic Committee 6 April 2021 22 May 2025 https://web.archive.org/web/20250522094443/https://olympics.com/en/olympic-games/athens-1896 live Participants were all European or living in Europe, with the exception of the United States team, and over 65% of the competing athletes were Greek. Winners were given a silver medal, while runners-up received a copper medal. Retroactively, the IOC has designated the top three finishers in each event as gold, silver, and bronze medalists. Ten of the 14 participating nations earned medals. On April 6, 1896, American James Connolly became the first Olympic medalist in more than 1,500 years, competing in the triple jump.Olympedia – James B. Connolly https://www.olympedia.org/athletes/78257 2026-05-27 www.olympedia.org The United States won the most gold medals, 11, while host nation Greece won the most medals overall, 47. The highlight for the Greeks was the marathon victory by their compatriot Spyridon Louis. The most successful competitor was German wrestler and gymnast Carl Schuhmann, who won four events. Athens had been chosen to stage the inaugural modern Games during a congress organised by Coubertin in Paris on 23 June 1894, during which the IOC was also created.Young 1996 100–105, 172 The main venue was the Panathenaic Stadium, where athletics and wrestling took place; other venues included the Neo Phaliron Velodrome for cycling and the Zappeion for fencing. The opening ceremony was held in the Panathenaic Stadium on 6 April, during which most of the competing athletes were aligned on the infield, grouped by nation. After a speech by the president of the organising committee, Crown Prince Constantine, his father officially opened the Games. Afterwards, nine bands and 150 choir singers performed an Olympic Hymn, composed by Spyridon Samaras and written by Kostis Palamas. The 1896 Olympics were regarded as a great success. The Games had the largest international participation of any sporting event to that date. The Panathenaic Stadium overflowed with the largest crowd ever to watch a sporting event.Young 1996 153 After the Games, Coubertin and the IOC were petitioned by several prominent figures, including Greece's King George and some of the American competitors in Athens, to hold all the following Games in Athens. However, the 1900 Summer Olympics were already planned for Paris, and, with the exception of the Intercalated Games of 1906, the Olympics did not return to Greece until the 2004 Summer Olympics, 108 years later. Reviving the Games During the 19th century, several small-scale sports festivals across Europe were named after the ancient Olympic Games. The 1870 Olympics at the Panathenaic stadium, which had been refurbished for the occasion, had an audience of 30,000 people.Young 1996 43–44 Pierre de Coubertin, a French pedagogue and historian, adopted William Penny Brookes's idea to establish a multi-national and multi-sport event (even though the ancient games only allowed male athletes of Greek origin to participate).Bijkerk 2004 457Toohey 2007 20 In 1890, Coubertin wrote an article in La Revue Athlétique, which espoused the importance of Much Wenlock, a rural market town in the English county of Shropshire. It was here that, in October 1850, the local physician William Penny Brookes founded the Wenlock Olympian Games, a festival of sports and recreations that included athletics and team sports like cricket, football and quoits.Mullins Samuel P. Pierre de Coubertin and the Wenlock Olympian Games http://www.ioa.leeds.ac.uk/1980s/84099.htm dead https://web.archive.org/web/20110218043658/http://www.ioa.leeds.ac.uk/1980s/84099.htm 18 February 2011 11 July 2008 Proceedings of the International Olympic Academy–Selected 1980s Proceedings University of Leeds Coubertin also took inspiration from earlier Greek games organised under the name of Olympics by businessman and philanthropist Evangelis Zappas in 1859, 1870 and 1875.Matthews 2005 66Young 1996 81 The 1896 Athens Games were funded by the legacies of Zappas and his cousin Konstantinos ZappasYoung 1996 117Memoire sure le conflit entre la Grece et la Roumanie concernant l'affaire Zappa – Athens 1893, by F. MartensL'affaire Zappa – Paris 1894, by G. Streit and by George AveroffYoung 1996 128 who had been requested by the Greek government to sponsor the second refurbishment of the Panathenaic Stadium. The Greek government did this despite the cost of refurbishing the stadium in marble already being funded in full by Evangelis Zappas forty years earlier.Young 1996 14 On 18 June 1894, Coubertin organised a congress at the Sorbonne, Paris, to present his plans to representatives of sports societies from 11 countries. Following his proposal's acceptance by the congress, a date for the first modern Olympic Games was discussed; Coubertin suggested that the Games be held concurrently with the 1900 Universal Exposition of Paris. Concerned that a six-year waiting period might lessen public interest, Congress members opted to hold the inaugural Games in 1896.Young 1996 100–105 With a date established, members of the congress discussed the selection of a host city. It is unknown how Athens was chosen: Coubertin and Demetrius Vikelas's descriptions of the selection process contradicted the congress's official minutes. Most accounts state that several congressmen first proposed London, but Coubertin dissented. After a brief discussion with Vikelas, who represented Greece, Coubertin suggested Athens. Vikelas made the Athens proposal official on 23 June; since Greece had been the original home of the Olympics, the congress unanimously approved the decision. Vikelas was then elected the first president of the newly established International Olympic Committee (IOC).Young 1996 100–105 Organization The return of the Olympic Games to Greece was well-received by the Greek public, media, and royal family. The Crown Prince conferred their patronage on the games.Young 1996 108 However, the country had financial troubles and was in political turmoil. The country's prime minister frequently alternated between Charilaos Trikoupis and Theodoros Deligiannis during the last years of the 19th century. This instability caused Trikoupis and Stephanos Dragoumis, the president of the Zappas Olympic Committee, which had attempted to organise a series of national Olympiads, to believe that Greece could not host the event.Young 1996 111–118 In late 1894, the organising committee under Stephanos Skouloudis presented a report that the cost of the Games would be three times higher than originally estimated by Coubertin. They concluded the Games could not be held and offered their resignation. The total cost of the Games was 3,740,000 gold drachmas (equivalent to in GR).Zarnowski C. Frank Frank Zarnowski Summer 1992 A Look at Olympic Costs http://www.la84foundation.org/SportsLibrary/JOH/JOHv1n1/JOHv1n1f.pdf dead Citius, Altius, Fortius 1 1 16–32 https://web.archive.org/web/20080528012143/http://www.la84foundation.org/SportsLibrary/JOH/JOHv1n1/JOHv1n1f.pdf 28 May 2008 24 March 2007 thumb|left|Demetrius Vikelas, the first president of the International Olympic Committee, was credited with the successful organisation of the 1896 Games With the prospect of reviving the Olympic Games in doubt, Coubertin and Vikelas commenced a campaign to increase the Olympic movement's popularity. On 7 January 1895, Vikelas announced that Crown Prince Constantine would assume the presidency of the organising committee. His first responsibility was to raise the funds necessary to host the Games. He relied on the patriotism of the Greek people to motivate them to provide the required finances.Young 1996 118Young 2004 153 Constantine's enthusiasm increased contributions from the Greek public, raising 330,000 drachmas (equivalent to in GR). A special set of postage stamps was commissioned; the sale of which raised 400,000 drachmas (equivalent to in GR). Ticket sales added 200,000 drachmas (equivalent to in GR). At the request of Constantine, businessman George Averoff agreed to pay for the restoration of the Panathenaic Stadium. Averoff would donate 920,000 drachmas (equivalent to in GR)Young 1996 128 to this project.Darling 2004 135 As a tribute to his generosity, a statue of Averoff was constructed and unveiled on 5 April 1896 outside the stadium.Young 1996 143 The IOC's first regulation, voted on in 1894, was to allow only amateur athletes to participate in the Olympic Games.Some scholars allege that during the Sorbonne congress Coubertin was led by tactical considerations and used the amateur requirement only as bait to realise his actual aim—namely, the reintroduction of the Olympic Games—more quickly. Lennartz & Wassong 2004, p. 23. The various contests were thus held under amateur regulations, except for fencing matches.Professionalism vs. amateurism was one of the dominant themes of the 19th century regarding athletics. In Greece the amateurism of athletes' debate was taken a step further to encompass the question of the participation of the lower classes in the Games. In 1870, during the Zappian Olympic Games, Philippos Ioannou, a classical scholar and professor, criticised the games and attacked the ideal of amateurism. His contention was that they were a parody because people from the working class had taken part in the games. Ioannou suggested that only young people from the upper class should be accepted in the following Olympiad – Professionals and Amateurs, Foundation of the Hellenic World http://www.fhw.gr/olympics/ancient/en/304b.html 2023-02-09 www.fhw.gr 25 December 2018 https://web.archive.org/web/20181225172944/http://www.fhw.gr/olympics/ancient/en/304b.html live The rules and regulations were not uniform, so the Organising Committee chose among the codes of the various national athletic associations. The jury, the referees and the game director bore the same names as in antiquity (Ephor, Helanodic and Alitarc). Prince George acted as final referee; according to Coubertin, "his presence gave weight and authority to the decisions of the ephors".Coubertin 1896 46–47 Women could not compete at the 1896 Summer Olympics because Coubertin felt that their inclusion would be "impractical, uninteresting, unaesthetic and incorrect".DeChano-Cook Shelley 2024 19 Venues thumb|Panorama of the Panathenaic Stadium Seven venues were used for the 1896 Summer Olympics. Panathenaic Stadium was the main venue, hosting four of the nine sports contested. The town of Marathon hosted the marathon event and the individual road race events. Fencing was held at the Zappeion, sport shooting at Kallithea, and tennis at the Athens Lawn Tennis Club.Olympedia – Homilos Antisfairiseos Athinon, Athina https://www.olympedia.org/venues/191 2026-05-25 www.olympedia.org Swimming was held in the Bay of Zea; it was selected because the organizers of the Games wanted to avoid spending money on constructing a special-purpose swimming venue.Lennartz Wassong 2004 23 Four of the 1896 venues were reused as competition venues for the 2004 Games. The velodrome would be renovated into a football stadium in the 1960s and was known as Karaiskakis Stadium. This venue was renovated in 2003 for use as a football venue for the 2004 Games.Official Report of the XVIII Olympiad, v.2 2005 324 During the 2004 Games, Panathinaiko Stadium hosted the archery competitions and was the finish line for the athletic marathon event.Official Report of the XVIII Olympiad, v.2 2005 237, 242 The city of Marathon itself served as the starting point for both marathon events during the 2004 Games.Official Report of the XVIII Olympiad, v.2 2005 242 The Zappeion served as the first home of the organizing committee (ATHOC) for the 2004 Games from 1998 to 1999, and served as the press center for non-accredited media during those Games.Official Report of the XVIII Olympiad, v.1 2005 https://digital.la84.org/digital/collection/p17103coll8/id/42734/rec/85 2023-02-09 LA84 Foundation Digital Library 116–117 8 August 2012 https://web.archive.org/web/20120808034305/http://www.la84foundation.org/6oic/OfficialReports/2004/or2004a.pdf live Official Report of the XVIII Olympiad, v.2 2005 20 VenueSportsCapacity Ref. Athens Lawn Tennis Club Tennis Not listed. Bay of Zea Swimming Not listed.Wallechinsky Loucky 2008 897–898 Kallithea Shooting Not listed.Coubertin Philemon Politis Anninos 1897 84 Marathon (city) Athletics (Marathon), Cycling (Individual road race).Not listed.Coubertin Philemon Politis Anninos 1897  86–90, 100–102 Neo Phaliron Velodrome Cycling (track) Not listed.Coubertin Philemon Politis Anninos 1897 31–49 Panathinaiko Stadium Athletics, Gymnastics, Weightlifting, and Wrestling 80,000Coubertin Philemon Politis Anninos 1897 1 Zappeion Fencing Not listed.Coubertin Philemon Politis Anninos 1897 65 Calendar  OC Opening ceremony  ● Event competitions 1 Event finals CC Closing ceremony April 18966thMon7thTue8thWed9thThu10thFri11thSat12thSun13thMon14thTue15thWedEventsCeremoniesOC CC 20px Athletics |style="background:silver;"|2 |style="background:silver;"|4 | |style="background:silver;"|1 |style="background:silver;"|5 | | | | |12Cycling20px Road cycling | | | | | | |style="background:silver;"|1 | | |6 20px Track cycling | | |style="background:silver;"|1 | | |style="background:silver;"|3 | |style="background:silver;"|1 | | 20px Fencing | |style="background:silver;"|2 | |style="background:silver;"|1 | | | | | |320px Gymnastics | | | |style="background:silver;"|6 |style="background:silver;"|2 | | | | |8 20px Shooting | | |style="background:#39f;"|●  |style="background:silver;"|1 |style="background:silver;"|1 |style="background:silver;"|2 |style="background:silver;"|1 | | |5 20px Swimming | | | | | |style="background:silver;"|4 | | | |4 20px Tennis | | |style="background:#39f;"|●  |style="background:#39f;"|●  |style="background:#39f;"|●  |style="background:silver;"|2 | | | |2 20px Weightlifting | |style="background:silver;"|2 | | | | | | | |2 20px Wrestling | | | | |style="background:#39f;"|●  |style="background:silver;"|1 | | | |1Daily final events 2 8 1 9 8 12 2 1 0 0 43Cumulative total 2 10 11 20 28 40 42 43 43 43April 18966thMon7thTue8thWed9thThu10thFri11thSat12thSun13thMon14thTue15thWedTotal events Note: Silver medals were awarded to the winners, with copper medals given to the runners-up, and no prizes were given to those who came in 3rd place in any events. Opening ceremony thumb|The opening ceremony in the Panathenaic Stadium On Easter Monday 6 April (25 March according to the Julian calendar used in Greece until 1923) the games of the First Olympiad were officially opened.Coubertin 1896 42 The Panathenaic Stadium was filled with between 16,000 and 80,000 spectators, including King George I of Greece, his wife Olga, and other members of the royal family.Malanski 2025 3 Most of the competing athletes were aligned on the infield, grouped by nation.Athens 1896 – Games of the I Olympiad https://web.archive.org/web/20080506102745/http://www.olympic.org/uk/games/past/index_uk.asp?OLGT=1&OLGY=1896 6 May 2008 , International Olympic Committee After a speech by the president of the organising committee, Crown Prince Constantine, his father officially opened the Games with the words:Young 1996 144–145 "I declare the opening of the first international Olympic Games in Athens. Long live the Nation. Long live the Greek people." Afterwards, nine bands and 150 choir singers performed an Olympic Hymn, composed by Spyridon Samaras, with words by poet Kostis Palamas.Mallon Widlund 1998 13 Events The first announcements regarding the sporting events to be held featured sports like equestrian and cricket, but these plans were not finalised, and these sports did not make the final program for the Games. Football is sometimes listed as having been an exhibition or demonstration sport, although whether a football match actually occurred is disputed.Mallon Widlund 1998 117–118 Rowing and sailing events were cancelled on the planned days of competition: sailing due to a lack of special boats in Greece and no foreign entries, and rowing due to poor weather.Coubertin Philemon Politis Anninos 1897 99–100, 109 The 1896 Summer Olympics programme featured 9 sports encompassing 10 disciplines and 43 events. The number of events in each discipline is noted in parentheses.Mallon Widlund 1998 23 30em Athletics 12 dMallon Widlund 1998 23 Cycling d Road (1)Olympedia – Cycling Road at the 1896 Summer Olympics https://www.olympedia.org/editions/1/sports/CRD 2026-04-11 www.olympedia.org 28 April 2026 https://web.archive.org/web/20260428141515/https://www.olympedia.org/editions/1/sports/CRD live Track (5)Olympedia – Cycling Track at the 1896 Summer Olympics https://www.olympedia.org/editions/1/sports/CTR 2026-04-11 www.olympedia.org 5 December 2020 https://web.archive.org/web/20201205011033/https://www.olympedia.org/editions/1/sports/CTR live Fencing 3 dMallon Widlund 1998 23 Gymnastics 8 dMallon Widlund 1998 23 Shooting 5 dMallon Widlund 1998 23 Swimming 4 dMallon Widlund 1998 23 Tennis 2 dMallon Widlund 1998 23 Weightlifting 2 dMallon Widlund 1998 23 Wrestling 1 dMallon Widlund 1998 23 Athletics Athletics at the 1896 Summer Olympics The athletics events had the most international field of any of the sports. The major highlight was the marathon, held for the first time in international competition. Spyridon Louis, a previously unrecognised water carrier, won the event to become the only Greek athletics champion and a national hero. Although Greece had been favoured to win the discus and the shot put, the best Greek athletes finished second to American Robert Garrett in both events.Young 1996 153 No world records were set, as few top international competitors had elected to compete and the curves of the track were very tight, making fast times in the running events virtually impossible. Thomas Burke of the United States won the 100-meter race in 12.0 seconds and the 400-meter race in 54.2 seconds. Burke was the only one who used the "crouch start" (putting his knee on soil), confusing the jury.Sears 2001 159 thumb|right|Frenchmen Léon Flameng (left) and Paul Masson won four cycling events thumb|Fencer Leonidas Pyrgos became the first Greek modern Olympic champion by winning the masters foil competition thumb|right|The German individual gymnastics champions: Schuhmann, Flatow, and Weingärtner Chile claims one athlete, Luis Subercaseaux, who competed for the nation at the 1896 Summer Olympics. Subercaseaux's results are not listed in the official report, though that report typically includes only winners and Subercaseaux won no medals.Coubertin Philemon Politis Anninos 1897 He was entered to compete in the 100m, 400m and 800m events but is usually listed as a no show.http://www.olympedia.org/athletes/922400 Luis Subercaseaux Olympedia 31 January 2022 27 October 2023 https://web.archive.org/web/20231027161711/https://www.olympedia.org/athletes/922400 live An appraisal of a photo of series 2 of the 100 meters sprint, performed by facial recognition experts of the Chilean forensic police, concluded that Subercaseaux was one of the participants.Mario Cavalla Esta es la foto que descubrió al primer chileno olímpico Las Últimas Noticias Santiago, Chile http://www.lun.com/Pages/NewsDetail.aspx?dt=2014-05-17&PaginaId=29&bodyid=0 https://web.archive.org/web/20181005051459/http://www.lun.com/Pages/NewsDetail.aspx?dt=2014-05-17&PaginaId=29&bodyid=0 5 October 2018 dead 17 May 2014 29 2021-08-08 The day after the official marathon, Stamata Revithi ran the 40-kilometer course in 5 hours 30 minutes, finishing outside Panathinaiko Stadium.Martin Gynn 2000 22Tarasouleas Athanasios October–November 1997 Stamata Revithi, "Alias Melpomeni" http://www.la84foundation.org/OlympicInformationCenter/OlympicReview/1997/oreXXVI17/oreXXVI17zg.pdf Olympic Review 26 17 55 https://web.archive.org/web/20100809160645/http://www.la84foundation.org/OlympicInformationCenter/OlympicReview/1997/oreXXVI17/oreXXVI17zg.pdf August 9, 2010 2008-07-25Tarasouleas Athanasios Summer 1993 The Female Spiridon Loues http://www.la84foundation.org/SportsLibrary/JOH/JOHv1n3/JOHv1n3e.pdf Citius, Altius, Fortius 1 3 12 https://web.archive.org/web/20080910034132/http://www.la84foundation.org/SportsLibrary/JOH/JOHv1n3/JOHv1n3e.pdf September 10, 2008 2008-07-25 Some authors, who believe that "Melpomene" and Revithi are the same person, attribute to the latter the more favorable time of 4 1 2 hours.Miragaya Ana http://www.la84foundation.org/SportsLibrary/Books/OlympicStudies.pdf Olympic Studies – Current Intellectual Crossroads Editora Gama Filho 2002 85-7444-034-5 Da Costa, Lamartine P. Rio de Janeiro 314 The Female Olympian 2008-09-15 https://web.archive.org/web/20090108113627/http://www.la84foundation.org/SportsLibrary/Books/OlympicStudies.pdf 2009-01-08 dead She was denied entry into the official race as the 1896 Olympics excluded women from competition.Officially, she was rejected because the deadline for participation had expired; however, as Olympic historians David Martin and Roger Gynn point out, the real problem was her gender. Greek participants had been chosen through two trial national races, which had taken place on 10 [O.S. 27 February and 24 March [O.S. 12 March. Another athlete, Carlo Airoldi, was also not allowed to run because he was a professional. Martin & Gynn 2000, pp. 12, 21. Cycling Cycling at the 1896 Summer Olympics The cycling competitions used the rules of the International Cycling Association.Coubertin 1896 46–47 The newly built Neo Phaliron Velodrome hosted the track cycling events.Coubertin Philemon Politis Anninos 1897 74 Only one road event was held, a race from Athens to Marathon and back (87 kilometres).Olympedia – Cycling Road at the 1896 Summer Olympics https://www.olympedia.org/editions/1/sports/CRD 2026-04-11 www.olympedia.org 28 April 2026 https://web.archive.org/web/20260428141515/https://www.olympedia.org/editions/1/sports/CRD live In the track events, the best cyclist was Frenchman Paul Masson, who won the one lap time trial, the sprint event, and the 10,000 meters. In the 100 kilometres event, Masson entered as a pacemaker for his compatriot Léon Flameng. Flameng won the event, after a fall and after stopping to wait for his Greek opponent Georgios Kolettis to fix a mechanical problem. The Austrian fencer Adolf Schmal won the 12-hour race, which was completed by only two cyclists, while the road race event was won by Aristidis Konstantinidis.Lennartz Wassong 2004 23 Fencing Fencing at the 1896 Summer Olympics The fencing events were held in the Zappeion, which, built with money Evangelis Zappas had given to revive the ancient Olympic Games, had never seen any athletic contests before.Young 1996 148 Unlike other sports (in which only amateurs were allowed to take part at the Olympics), professionals were authorised to compete in fencing, though in a separate event. These masters professionals were considered gentlemen athletes, just like the amateurs.Coubertin 1896 46–47 Four events were scheduled, but the épée event was cancelled for unknown reasons. The foil event was won by a Frenchman, Eugène-Henri Gravelotte, who beat his countryman, Henri Callot, in the final.Young 1996 148 The other two events were won by Greek fencers: Ioannis Georgiadis won the sabre event, and Leonidas Pyrgos won the masters foil, becoming the first Greek Olympic champion in the modern era.Young 1996 150Olympedia – Fencing at the 1896 Summer Olympics https://www.olympedia.org/editions/1/sports/FEN 2026-05-27 www.olympedia.org 1 May 2021 https://web.archive.org/web/20210501152549/https://www.olympedia.org/editions/1/sports/FEN/ live Gymnastics Gymnastics at the 1896 Summer Olympics The gymnastics competition was carried out on the infield of the Panathinaiko Stadium. Germany sent an 11-man team, which won five of the eight events, including both team events: in the team event on the horizontal bar, the German team was the only entry.Young 1996 150–151 Three Germans added individual titles: Hermann Weingärtner won the horizontal bar event, Alfred Flatow won the parallel bars, and Carl Schuhmann, who also won the wrestling event, won the vault. Louis Zutter, a Swiss gymnast, won the pommel horse, while Greeks Ioannis Mitropoulos and Nikolaos Andriakopoulos were victorious in the rings and rope climbing events, respectively.Young 1996 151 Sailing and rowing thumb|German team at the 1896 Summer Olympics A regatta of sailing boats was on the program of the Games of the First Olympiad for 31 March 1896 (Julian calendar). The event was cancelled: the official English report blamed a lack of specialty boats had not been providedCoubertin Philemon Politis Anninos 1897 99–100 while the German version also cited a lack of foreign competitors.Coubertin Philemon Politis Anninos 1897 100–101 Rowing races were scheduled for the next day, 1 April 1896 (Julian). Poor weather caused the event to be postponed to 3 pmCoubertin Philemon Politis Anninos 1897 109 and German Berthold Küttner stated that he and Adolf Jäger had lined up for the start of the double sculls, the first event to take place. The event was further postponed to the next day, but the German team still completed the event in the bad weather: they were presented with the winners medal upon the completion of their row. The next day, the event was formally cancelled when the weather worsened. The International Olympic Committee does not recognize Küttner's recollection of the events.Küttner Berthold 2012 1936 Where there still Olympic Champions in Rowing in 1896? Journal of Olympic History 20 1 Shooting Shooting at the 1896 Summer Olympics Held at a range at Kallithea, the shooting competition consisted of five events—two using a rifle and three with a pistol. The first event, the military rifle, was won by Pantelis Karasevdas, the only competitor to hit the target with all of his shots. The second event, for military pistols, was dominated by two American brothers: John and Sumner Paine. They became the first siblings to finish first and second in the same event. To avoid embarrassing their hosts, the brothers decided that John would withdraw from the free pistol event. Sumner Paine won that event, becoming the first relative of an Olympic champion to become Olympic champion himself.Coubertin Philemon Politis Anninos 1897 76, 83–84 The Paine brothers did not compete in the 25-meter pistol event, as the event judges determined that their weapons were not of the required calibre; Ioannis Phrangoudis won the event. The final event, the free rifle, could not be completed due to darkness and was finalised the next morning, with Georgios Orphanidis winning the competition.Coubertin Philemon Politis Anninos 1897 76, 83–84 Swimming Swimming at the 1896 Summer Olympics thumb|left|Alfréd Hajós, the first Olympic champion in swimming, is one of only two Olympians to have won medals in both sport and art competitions The swimming competition was held in the open sea because the organizers had refused to spend the money necessary for a specially constructed stadium. Nearly 20,000 spectators lined the Bay of Zea off the Piraeus coast to watch the events. The water in the bay was cold, and the competitors suffered during their races. There were three open events (men's 100-metre freestyle, men's 500-metre freestyle, and men's 1200 metre freestyle), in addition to a special event open only to Greek sailors, all of which were held on the same day (11 April).Lennartz Wassong 2004 23 For Alfréd Hajós of Hungary, this meant he could only compete in two of the events, as they were held too close together, which made it impossible for him to adequately recuperate.Mallon Widlund 1998 105 Nevertheless, he won the two events in which he swam, the 100 and 1200 meter freestyle. Hajós later became one of only two Olympians to win a medal in both the athletic and artistic competitions, when he won a silver medal for architecture in 1924.Olympedia – Alfréd Hajós https://www.olympedia.org/athletes/48186 2026-05-26 www.olympedia.org 16 September 2025 https://web.archive.org/web/20250916155326/http://www.olympedia.org/athletes/48186 live The 500-meter freestyle was won by Austrian swimmer Paul Neumann, who defeated his opponents by more than a minute and a half.Olympedia – 500 metres Freestyle, Men https://www.olympedia.org/results/4401 2026-04-12 www.olympedia.org 10 October 2023 https://web.archive.org/web/20231010003417/https://www.olympedia.org/results/4401 live Tennis Tennis at the 1896 Summer Olympics Although tennis was already a major sport by the end of the 19th century, none of the top players turned up for the tournament in Athens. The competition was held at the courts of the Athens Lawn Tennis Club, and the infield of the velodrome used for the cycling events. John Pius Boland, who won the event, had been entered in the competition by a fellow-student of his at Oxford; the Greek, Konstantinos Manos. As a member of the Athens Lawn Tennis sub-committee, Manos had been trying, with the assistance of Boland, to recruit competitors for the Athens Games from among the sporting circles of Oxford University. In the first round, Boland defeated Friedrich Traun, a promising tennis player from Hamburg, who had been eliminated in the 100-meter sprint competition. Boland and Traun decided to team up for the doubles event, in which they reached the final and defeated their Greek opponents after losing the first set.Gillmeister 1995 23–24 Weightlifting Weightlifting at the 1896 Summer Olympics thumb|Launceston Elliot, winner of the one-armed weightlifting event, was popular with the Greek audience, who found him very handsome The sport of weightlifting was still young in 1896, and the rules differed from those in use today. Competitions were held outdoors, in the infield of the main stadium, and there were no weight limits. The first event was similar in style to what is now known as the "clean and jerk". Two competitors stood out: Briton Launceston Elliot and Viggo Jensen of Denmark. Both of them lifted the same weight, but the jury, with Prince George as the chairman, ruled that Jensen had done so in a better style. The British delegation, unfamiliar with this tie-breaking rule, lodged a protest. The lifters were eventually allowed to make further attempts, but neither lifter improved, and Jensen was declared the champion.Coubertin Philemon Politis Anninos 1897 70–71 Elliot got his revenge in the one hand lift event, which was held immediately after the two-handed one. Jensen had been slightly injured during his last two-handed attempt and was no match for Elliot, who won the competition easily. The Greek audience was charmed by the British victor, whom they considered very attractive. A curious incident occurred during the weightlifting event: a servant was ordered to remove the weights, which appeared to be a difficult task for him. Prince George came to his assistance; he picked up the weight and threw it a considerable distance with ease, to the delight of the crowd.Coubertin Philemon Politis Anninos 1897 70–71 Wrestling Wrestling at the 1896 Summer Olympics thumb|left|Carl Schuhmann (left) and Georgios Tsitas shake hands before the final match of the wrestling competition No weight classes existed for the wrestling competition, held in the Panathenaic Stadium, which meant that there would only be one winner among competitors of all sizes.Nag Utathya October 26, 2024 What is freestyle wrestling? Rules, scoring, techniques and Olympic history https://www.olympics.com/en/news/what-how-freestyle-wrestling-style-rules-scoring-techniques-olympics April 10, 2026 Olympics 15 August 2025 https://web.archive.org/web/20250815111403/https://www.olympics.com/en/news/what-how-freestyle-wrestling-style-rules-scoring-techniques-olympics live The rules used were similar to modern Greco-Roman wrestling, although there was no time limit, and not all leg holds were forbidden (in contrast to current rules).Olympedia – Wrestling at the 1896 Summer Olympics https://www.olympedia.org/editions/1/sports/WRE 2026-04-10 www.olympedia.org 4 May 2021 https://web.archive.org/web/20210504001632/https://www.olympedia.org/editions/1/sports/WRE live Apart from the two Greek contestants, all the competitors had previously been active in other sports. Weightlifting champion Launceston Elliot faced gymnastics champion Carl Schuhmann. The latter won and advanced into the final, where he met Georgios Tsitas, who had previously defeated Stephanos Christopoulos. Darkness forced the final match to be suspended after 40 minutes; it was continued the following day, when Schuhmann needed only fifteen minutes to finish the bout.Coubertin Philemon Politis Anninos 1897 93–94 Closing ceremony thumb|275px|A silver medal was awarded to the winner of each event. The current system of gold, silver, and bronze medals was not implemented until the 1906 Olympic Games. thumb|Commemorative medal awarded to participants. On the morning of Sunday 12 April (or 31 March, according to the Julian calendar then used in Greece), King George organised a banquet for officials and athletes (even though some competitions had not yet been held). During his speech, he made clear that, as far as he was concerned, the Olympics should be held in Athens permanently. The official closing ceremony was held the following Wednesday after being postponed from Tuesday due to rain. Again, the royal family attended the ceremony, which was opened by the national anthem of Greece and an ode composed in ancient Greek by George S. Robertson, a British athlete and scholar.Coubertin 1896 50 Afterwards, the king awarded prizes to the winners. Unlike today, the first-place winners received a silver medal, an olive branch and a diploma, while runners-up received a copper medal, a laurel branch and a diploma.Coubertin Philemon Politis Anninos 1897 232–234IOC Olympic Museum exhibition panel, 2010 Third place winners did not receive a prize.Ekert Kelley 2024-06-27 The history of Olympic medals, explained: What to know for Paris https://www.nbcboston.com/paris-2024-summer-olympics/olympic-medal-history/3377929/ 2026-04-02 NBC Boston en-US Some winners also received additional prizes. Spyridon Louis received a cup from Michel Bréal, a friend of Coubertin, who had conceived the marathon event. Louis then led the medalists on a lap of honour around the stadium, while the Olympic Hymn was played again. The King then formally announced that the first Olympiad was at an end and left the Stadium, while the band played the Greek national hymn and the crowd cheered.Browse Cornell University Library Making of America Collection https://collections.library.cornell.edu/moa_new/browse.html?frames=1&cite=&coll=moa&view=50&root=/moa/cent/cent0053/&tif=00059.TIF&pagenum=50 2023-02-09 collections.library.cornell.edu 19 August 2025 https://web.archive.org/web/20250819105944/https://collections.library.cornell.edu/moa_new/browse.html?frames=1&cite=&coll=moa&view=50&root=/moa/cent/cent0053/&tif=00059.TIF&pagenum=50 live Like the Greek king, many others supported the idea of holding the next Games in Athens; most of the American competitors signed a letter to the Crown Prince expressing this wish. Coubertin, however, was heavily opposed to this idea, as he envisioned international rotation as one of the cornerstones of the modern Olympics. According to his wish, the next Games were held in Paris, although they would be somewhat overshadowed by the concurrent Universal Exposition.Young 1996 156 Participating nations thumb|Participating countries thumb|Number of athletes from each country The concept of national teams was not a major part of the Olympic movement until the Intercalated Games 10 years later, though many sources list the nationality of competitors in 1896 and give medal counts. There are significant conflicts with regard to which nations competed. The International Olympic Committee gives a figure of 14, but does not list them.IOC1896 Different sources provide differing lists of nations; some exclude countries like Chile and Bulgaria,Olympedia – NOCs at 1896 Summer Olympics https://www.olympedia.org/editions/1/countries 2026-04-12 www.olympedia.org 18 February 2022 https://web.archive.org/web/20220218104028/http://www.olympedia.org/editions/1/countries live Mallon Widlund 1998 23 but the IOC lists competitors from both countries.Athens 1896: Gymnastics Artistic Parallel Bars Men Results https://www.olympics.com/en/olympic-games/athens-1896/results/gymnastics-artistic/parallel-bars-men April 13, 2026 Olympics.com 24 December 2024 https://web.archive.org/web/20241224184639/https://olympics.com/en/olympic-games/athens-1896/results/gymnastics-artistic/parallel-bars-men live Athens 1896: Athletics 800m Men Results https://www.olympics.com/en/olympic-games/athens-1896/results/athletics/800m-men April 13, 2026 Olympics.com 21 February 2025 https://web.archive.org/web/20250221074928/https://www.olympics.com/en/olympic-games/athens-1896/results/athletics/800m-men live Egypt is also sometimes included due to the participation of Dimitrios Kasdaglis;Mallon Widlund 1998 108 however, the IOC classifies him as a Greek athlete.Athens 1896 Tennis Results https://www.olympics.com/en/olympic-games/athens-1896/results/tennis April 12, 2026 Olympics.com 15 August 2024 https://web.archive.org/web/20240815143924/https://olympics.com/en/olympic-games/athens-1896/results/tennis live Belgium and Russia had entered the names of competitors, but no athletes from these countries competed.Mallon Widlund 1998 24 Participating Nations AUS 1896 Summer 1 – Prior to 1901 Australia was not a unified nation but six separately administered British colonies,Federation research guide National Library of Australia (NLA) https://www.library.gov.au/research/research-guides-0/federation-research-guide 2026-04-11 www.library.gov.au en 20 April 2026 https://web.archive.org/web/20260420205938/https://www.library.gov.au/research/research-guides-0/federation-research-guide live but the results of Edwin Flack are typically given with him listed as Australian.Edwin Flack https://www.olympics.com/en/athletes/edwin-flack Olympics.com 12 April 2026 25 January 2025 https://web.archive.org/web/20250125132932/https://www.olympics.com/en/athletes/edwin-flack live This is a modern convention, as he was contemporaneously considered a British athlete.Gordon 1994 8–9 The concept of "national teams" chosen by National Olympic Committees did not exist at this point in time.Voigt Robin The Evolution of the Early Olympics https://isoh.org/cause-view/the-evolution-of-the-early-olympics/ 2026-04-12 International Society of Olympic Historians en-US 17 August 2021 https://web.archive.org/web/20210817171702/https://isoh.org/cause-view/the-evolution-of-the-early-olympics/ live AUT 1896 Summer 3Mallon Widlund 1998 23 BUL 1896 Summer 1 – The Bulgarian Olympic Committee claims that gymnast Charles Champaud was competing as a Bulgarian.http://www.bgolympic.org/fce/index.shtml?s=001&p=0039&n=000001 Athens 1896 Bulgarian Olympic Committee 7 July 2008 https://web.archive.org/web/20070312003309/http://www.bgolympic.org/fce/index.shtml?s=001&p=0039&n=000001 2007-03-12 Champaud was a Swiss national living in Bulgaria. Mallon lists Champaud as Swiss.Mallon Widlund 1998 93 Olympedia listed him as a member of the Bulgarian team of Swiss nationality.http://www.olympedia.org/athletes/31002 Charles Champaud Olympedia.org 31 January 2022 CHI 1896 Summer 1 – The Chilean Olympic Committee claims to have had one athlete, Luis Subercaseaux, compete in the 100, 400, and 800-meter races in the athletics programme.Guttmann 1994 128McGehee 2000 107http://www.coch.cl/museo.htm La Presencia de Chile en los Juegos Olimpicos 2006-12-28 dead https://web.archive.org/web/20080702073204/http://www.coch.cl/museo.htm 2 July 2008 Chilean Olympic Committee SpanishMallon Widlund 1998 39 If so, he was 13 years old at the Olympics. No further details are given, and no mention is made of Subercaseaux in de Wael, or the Official Report. Olympedia claims that he was entered to compete in the 100m, 400m and 800m events but did not start.Subercaseaux DEN 1896 Summer 3Mallon Widlund 1998 23 FRA 1896 Summer 12Olympedia – Athlete count for 1896 Summer Olympics https://www.olympedia.org/counts/edition/1 2026-04-12 www.olympedia.org 15 April 2026 https://web.archive.org/web/20260415112610/https://www.olympedia.org/counts/edition/1 live GER 1896 Summer 19Mallon Widlund 1998 23 GBR 1896 Summer 10 Tennis champion John Boland became a prominent Irish nationalist; his daughter Bridget later claimed that he had objected when the Union Jack was raised to mark his doubles triumph, pointing out that Ireland had its own green harp flag, following which the organisers apologised and agreed to prepare an Irish flag.MacCarthy 2010 30–37 While historian Kevin MacCarthy is sceptical of this story, by 1906, Boland was crediting his medals to Ireland.MacCarthy 2010 30–37 On the IOC website, his singles gold is credited to Great Britain.Athens 1896; Tennis Singles Men Results https://olympics.com/en/olympic-games/athens-1896/results/tennis/singles-men olympics.com 26 July 2024 International Olympic Committee 30 November 2022 https://web.archive.org/web/20221130095417/https://olympics.com/en/olympic-games/athens-1896/results/tennis/singles-men live GRE 1896 Summer 169 – Greek results typically include the results of competitors from Cyprus, Smyrna and Egypt.Gillmeister 1998 364 Some sources give Cypriot results separately, though most count Anastasios Andreou, a Greek-Cypriot and the only athlete from Cyprus, as Greek (Cyprus was a protectorate of the United Kingdom at the time). Kasdaglis, an athlete of Greek origins living in Alexandria, Egypt, is listed by the IOC as Greek during both his competition in the singles tennis competition and the doubles tennis competition along with his teammate, the Greek athlete Demetrios Petrokokkinos.Athens 1896 Tennis Doubles Men Results https://olympics.com/en/olympic-games/athens-1896/results/tennis/doubles-men 2021-09-02 Olympics.com en 3 September 2024 https://web.archive.org/web/20240903184515/https://olympics.com/en/olympic-games/athens-1896/results/tennis/doubles-men live HUN 1896 Summer 7Mallon Widlund 1998 23 ITA 1896 Summer 1 – The most prominent Italian involved with the games, Carlo Airoldi, was deemed a professional and excluded from competition. However, the shooter Giuseppe Rivabella was also Italian and did compete.Martin Gynn 2000 21https://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/ri/giuseppe-rivabella-1.html https://web.archive.org/web/20200418014440/https://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/ri/giuseppe-rivabella-1.html dead 18 April 2020 Giuseppe Rivabella 24 February 2009 Sports-Reference SWE 1896 Summer 1Mallon Widlund 1998 23 SUI 1896 Summer 3Mallon Widlund 1998 23 USA 1896 Summer 14Mallon Widlund 1998 23 ZZX 1896 Summer 4 – Tennis doubles teams could consist of players from different countries; the IOC labels these Mixed Teams.IOCTennisDoubles Number of athletes by National Olympic Committees National Olympic Committees did not yet exist. Over 65% of all athletes were Greek. Country Athletes GRE 1896 Summer 169 GER 1896 Summer 19 USA 1896 Summer 14 FRA 1896 Summer 12 GBR 1896 Summer 10 HUN 1896 Summer 7 AUT 1896 Summer 3 DEN 1896 Summer 3 SUI 1896 Summer 2/3Charles Champaud can be considered an athlete for either Switzerland or Bulgaria. AUS 1896 Summer 1 ITA 1896 Summer 1 CHI 1896 Summer 1 SWE 1896 Summer 1 BUL 1896 Summer 0/1 Total 243 Medal count 1896 Summer Olympics medal table Ten of the fourteen participating nations earned medals, in addition to two medals won by mixed teams (teams made up of athletes from multiple nations). The IOC has retroactively assigned gold, silver and bronze medals to the three best placed athletes in each event to comport with more recent traditions. In this regard, five of the bronze medalists at the Games are unknown: two in swimming and three in gymnastics. The United States won the most gold medals (11), while host nation Greece won the most medals overall (47), as well as the most silver (18) and bronze (19) medals, finishing with one fewer gold medal than the United States.Olympedia – 1896 Summer Olympics Overview https://www.olympedia.org/editions/1 2026-05-27 www.olympedia.org 1 May 2021 https://web.archive.org/web/20210501003600/https://www.olympedia.org/editions/1 live Podium sweeps +DateSportEventNOCGoldSilverBronze7 AprilAthletics Men's long jumpUSA 1896 SummerEllery ClarkRobert GarrettJames Connolly9 AprilShootingMen's 200-metre military rifleGRE 1896 SummerPantelis KarasevdasPavlos PavlidisNicolaos Trikupis10 AprilAthletics Men's high jumpUSA 1896 SummerEllery ClarkRobert GarrettJames ConnollyNot awarded11 AprilSwimmingMen's sailors 100-metre freestyleGRE 1896 SummerIoannis MalokinisSpyridon ChazapisDimitrios Drivas Notes countries A none The number of countries, given by the International Olympic Committee, is open to interpretation and could be between 10 and 15. There are numerous reasons for the disparity: national teams hardly existed at the time, with most athletes representing themselves or their clubs, and countries were not always as well-defined as they are today. The number of countries here reflects the number used by most modern sources, including the International Olympic Committee website. See the relevant section for further details. athletes B none The number of competitors given according to the International Olympic Committee. Mallon & Widlund give a total of 245 athletes, while De Wael gives 246. The identities of 179 athletes at the Games are known. References Bibliography Encyclopedia of the Modern Olympic Movement John E. Findling, Kimberly D. Pelle Bijkerk Anthony T. 2004 Greenwood Publishing Group Pierre de Coubertin 0-313-32278-3 52418065 Pierre De Coubertin Pierre De Coubertin The Olympic Games of 1896 https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=coo.31924083647069&view=1up&seq=49 The Century Magazine LIII 1 28 June 2008 November 1896 Coubertin Pierre De Pierre De Coubertin Philemon Timoleon J. Timoleon Filimon Politis N.G. Anninos Charalambos The Olympic Games: BC 776 – AD 1896 The Olympic Games in 1896 – Second Part Charles Beck Athens 1897 http://www.la84foundation.org/6oic/OfficialReports/1896/1896.pdf 25 July 2008 27 May 2008 https://web.archive.org/web/20080527211831/http://www.la84foundation.org/6oic/OfficialReports/1896/1896.pdf dead Architecture of Greece Darling Janina K. 2004 Greenwood Publishing Group 0-313-32152-3 Panathenaic Stadium, Athens https://books.google.com/books?id=4F-v35--l_gC&q=Panathenaic+Stadium,+Averoff,+Constantine 54500822 2016-04-09 DeChano-Cook Lisa M. Geography of Time, Place, Movement and Networks, Volume 5: Mapping Women and Family Journeys Shelley Fred M. Springer Publishing 2024 978-3031580406 Brunn Stanley D. Tennis: a Cultural History PDF Gillmeister Heiner 1998 Continuum International Publishing Group 0-7185-0195-0 https://books.google.com/books?id=hftxBcXOQxsC&q=1896,+Egypt,++Kasdaglis 67496016 2016-04-09 Gillmeister Heiner Winter 1995 Olympic Tennis: Some Afterthoughts Citius, Altius, Fortius 3 1 23–25 http://www.la84foundation.org/SportsLibrary/JOH/JOHv3n1/JOHv3n1g.pdf 25 July 2008 24 January 2012 https://web.archive.org/web/20120124043053/http://www.la84foundation.org/SportsLibrary/JOH/JOHv3n1/JOHv3n1g.pdf dead Gordon Harry Harry Gordon (journalist) Australia and the Olympic Games University of Queensland Press 1994 978-0702226274 Games and Empires: Modern Sports and Cultural Imperialism Guttmann Allen 1994 Columbia University Press 0-231-10042-6 https://books.google.com/books?id=eJn8paCwgJYC&q=Subercaseaux,+1896,+games 231638134 2016-04-09 Encyclopedia of the Modern Olympic Movement John E. Findling, Kimberly D. Pelle Lennartz Karl Wassong Stephen 2004 Greenwood Publishing Group Athens 1896 0-313-32278-3 https://books.google.com/books?id=QmXi_-Jujj0C&q=1896+games,+cycling 52418065 2016-04-09 MacCarthy Kevin https://archive.org/details/goldsilvergreeni0000mcca/page/30 Gold, Silver and Green: The Irish Olympic Journey 1896-1924 Cork University Press 2010 9781859184585 Malanski Daniel Olympic Opening Ceremonies: Memory and Modernity Routledge 2025 9781032940618 Mallon Bill https://archive.org/details/resultsofearlymo00mall The 1896 Olympic Games: Results for All Competitors in All Events, With Commentary Widlund Ture McFarland & Company 1998 978-0-7864-4065-8 Jefferson, North Carolina Running through the Ages Martin David E. Gynn Roger W. H. 2000 Human Kinetics 0-88011-969-1 The Olympic Marathon https://books.google.com/books?id=Qb125O62NVQC&q=Stamata+Revithi 42823784 2016-04-09 America's First Olympics: The St. Louis Games Of 1904 Matthews George R. 2005 University of Missouri Press 0-8262-1588-2 The Ghost of Plato https://books.google.com/books?id=WKRUmep515oC&q=Wenlock,+Brookes,+Coubertin 58468164 2016-04-09 McGehee Richard V. Strange Pilgrimages: Exile, Travel, and National Identity in Latin America Rowman & Littlefield 2000 http://www.la84foundation.org/6oic/OfficialReports/1896/1896.pdf The Impact of Imported Sports on the Popular Culture of Nineteenth- and Early Twentieth-Century Mexico and Central America Ingrid Elizabeth Fey, Karen Racine 0-8420-2694-0 25 July 2008 237382448 27 May 2008 https://web.archive.org/web/20080527211831/http://www.la84foundation.org/6oic/OfficialReports/1896/1896.pdf dead ((Official Report of the XVIII Olympiad, v.2)) 2005 Volume 2 https://digital.la84.org/digital/collection/p17103coll8/id/43496/rec/84 2023-02-09 LA84 Foundation Digital Library http://www.fhw.gr/olympics/ancient/en/304b.html Professionals and Amateurs 18 July 2008 From Ancient Olympia to Athens of 1896 Foundation of the Hellenic World Running through the Ages Sears Edward S. 2001 McFarland 0-7864-0971-1 The Revival of the Olympic Games https://books.google.com/books?id=vxxOw3FvOgwC&q=Burke,++crouch+start 46650949 2016-04-09 The Olympic Games: A Social Sciences Perspective Toohey Kristine 2007 CABI 978-1-84593-355-5 Wallechinsky David https://archive.org/details/completebookofol0000wall_x4i1 The Complete Book of the Olympics: 2008 Edition Loucky Jaime Aurum Press Limited 2008 978-0140066326 London A Brief History of the Olympic Games Young David C. 2004 Oxford Blackwell 1-4051-1130-5 https://books.google.com/books?id=hCNtwn24iK8C&q=Zappas+Olympic+Committee The Modern Olympic Games 54111254 2016-04-09 Young David C. The Modern Olympics: A Struggle for Revival Johns Hopkins University Press 1996 0-8018-7207-3 Baltimore, Maryland Further reading "Athens 1896 - A remembrance" (1995). The Olympic Movement Archive. Gold John Gold Margaret M Olympic Cities: City Agendas, Planning, and the World’s Games, 1896 – 2020 2016 Routledge 1317565312 https://books.google.ca/books?id=opqkDAAAQBAJ&dq=1896+olympics&lr=lang_en&source=gbs_navlinks_s Greenberg, Stan The Guinness Book of Olympic Facts and Feats Guinness Enfield 1996 0-85112-639-1 35921786 Kitroeff Alexander Wrestling with the Ancients: Modern Greek Identity and the Olympics 0974766003 Kluge, Volker Olympische Sommerspiele: die Chronik I Sportverlag Berlin 1997 3-328-00715-6 38258227 Lennartz, Karl Die olympischen Spiele 1896 in Athen: Erläuterungen zum Neudruck des Offiziellen Berichtes Agon Kassel 1996 MacAloon, John J This Great Symbol: Pierre de Coubertin and the Origins of the Modern Olympic Games The University of Chicago Press Chicago 1982 Randall, David 1896: The First Modern Olympics http://www.1896olympics.com/ ebook Blacktoad Publishing London 2011 978-0-9570591-0-8 2016-04-09 https://web.archive.org/web/20111209003424/http://www.1896olympics.com/ 9 December 2011 dead dmy-all Smith, Michael Llewellyn Olympics in Athens 1896. The Invention of the Modern Olympic Games Profile Books London 2004 1-86197-342-X 186174794 Wallechinsky, David The Complete Book of the Summer Olympics Overlook Press Woodstock 2000 1-58567-033-2 43561597 Wenn Stephen Schaus Gerald P. Onward to the Olympics 2007 Wilfrid Laurier University Press 978-1-55458-042-2 External links 1896 Summer Olympics 1896 Olympic Games Programme – UK Parliament Living Heritage soly Zappas Olympics I OlympiadAthens 1896 Paris Olympics Greece Sports Category:19th century in Athens Category:1896 in Greek sport Category:History of Greece (1863–1909) Category:Olympic Games in Greece Category:Sports competitions in Athens Category:Summer Olympics by year O Summer Olympics Summer Olympics Category:April 1896 in Europe Category:George I of Greece