Olympic Movement

The roots of the modern Olympic Movement are found in the ancient Olympic Games held in Olympia in the Peloponnese, in the sanctuary dedicated to the god Zeus. There is no certain evidence regarding the beginning of the Olympic Games, yet the oldest written record takes us back to 776 BC. However, the first known Olympic Champion, Koroibos, was Socrates’ contemporary (c. 400 BC); but closer to the truth is the estimate that the first ancient Games were held around 1500 BC. An inscription found on a disc excavated in Olympia corroborates this:“…Asclepiades, a pentathlete dedicates this disc to Zeus at the 225th Olympiad”…