Early Attempts

Attempts to revive the Olympic Games began at least hundred years before the modern Olympics actually began. The first notable attempt was “L'Olympiade de la République”, which was a national festival, annually held in France during the French Revolution between the years 1796 and 1798.

The disciplines of this event were very similar to that of the ancient Olympics. It was in this event when the metric system was used for the first time in the history of sport.

In the year 1850, Dr. William Penny Brookes started a fitness course, which he called “Olympian Class”, in order to develop the physical health of the locals based in Much Wenlock, Shropshire, England. He renamed his fitness course to Wenlock Olympian Games in the year 1859. These games continue to take place even today. In the year 1860, Dr. Brookes founded the Wenlock Olympian Society.

From 1862 to 1867, the annual Grand Olympic Festival was held in the city of Liverpool. These games happened to be the first of their kind; i.e. they were held on an international level and were completely amateur. In fact, the earliest Modern Olympics held in Athens in the year 1896 comprised of a program very similar to that of the Grand Olympic Festival in Liverpool.

Restoration of the Olympics

During the year 1821, when the Greeks fought their war of independence against the Ottomans, an interest to revive the Olympic Games sprouted up. Evangelis Zappas, the famous Roman-Greek philanthropist wrote a letter to the Greek ruler, King Otto. He offered to fund the entire restoration of the Olympic Games. He funded the first Olympic Games to be held in the city of Athens in the year 1859. They were held in a city square in Athens and comprised of participating athletes from the Ottoman Empire and Greece. Zappas also sponsored a complete renovation of the Panathenaic stadium, where the Panathenaic games were held in ancient times, so that all Olympic Games to be held in the future could be hosted there.

The Panathinaiko stadium played host to the Olympics in the years 1870 and 1875. In 1870, the games managed to attract a respectable crowd of approximately 30000 spectators. However, no official figures are available. After paying a visit to the Wenlock Olympian Games in the year 1890, Baron Pierre de Coubertin, considered by many as the father of the Modern Olympics, was encouraged to create the International Olympic Committee (IOC). He took hold of the ideas laid down by Zappas and Dr. Brookes and worked hard to commence an Olympic Games which will occur every 4 years, just like the ancient games. The first meeting of the International Olympic Committee, which was held between the 16th and 23rd of June, 1894, witnessed the Baron presenting his ideas in front of the Olympic Congress. It was at the conclusion of this meeting that the decision of hosting the Olympic Games in the year 1896 in Athens came up.

Famous Greek author and poet, Demetrius Vikelas, was elected as the first president of the International Olympic Committee.