Beijing 2008 Olympic Games
Unit 2 – Page 1
UNIT 2 - THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE MODERN
OLYMPIC GAMES
The Olympic Games revived in 1896, after it had stopped for about 1500 years. Since then
the Games had a lot of changes. In this unit, you’ll learn what changes have happened to the
Games in last hundred years, and why these changes have happened. To have a brief
impression of the changes, you may visit either one of the web sites below. There are photos
of the different editions of the Olympic Games. Can you point out some differences
between the early (e.g. 1896 and 1900) and the latest (2000 and 2004) Games?
The Official Website of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games
http://en.beijing2008.cn/spirit/pastgames/summerolympics/
International Olympic Committee
http://www.olympic.org/uk/games/index_uk.asp
 Different athletes(No or few women participated in early Games)
 Different number of spectators (Few spectators in early Games)
 Different in equipment and sportswear (Simple equipment & sportswear in
early Games)
 Different prize (e.g. cup was awarded to marathon winner in 1896 Olympic
Games)
 Different events (Tug-of-war, Basque pelota, polo and golf were competed in
either one of these two editions of Olympic Games)
(Any other reasonable difference that can be derived by comparing the
photos)
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Personal, Social and Humanities Education Section,Education Bureau
Beijing 2008 Olympic Games
2.1
Unit 2 – Page 2
THE CHANGING POPULARITY OF THE GAMES
In the article below,
(i)
find the changes in the popularity of the Olympic Games.
Highlight them in red.
(ii) find causes of the changes. Highlight them in blue.
1.
In 1896, 241 athletes competed in the Athens Olympic Games. A century later, more
than 10,000 athletes competed in the Olympic Games of 2000. The 2000 Olympics had
about 300 events of 28 sports. These changes happened because sport had become
more and more popular. The standards of living have risen in many places. People have
more and more income and leisure to spend on sports and sport-related entertainment.
2.
In the 1896 Olympic Games, competitors came from 14 countries. In the 2000
Olympic Games, they come from 200 countries. To attend an Olympic Games, athletes
must travel greater or lesser distances. It depends on where
the host cities are. For the 1904 Olympic Games in St Louis
and the 1932 Games in Los Angeles, in the USA, few athletes
joined because many athletes were unable to make such a long
journey from Europe to the USA. Before the World War II,
most host cities were in Europe, therefore the athletes who
took part were mostly Westerners. In 1956, the Games took
place in Australia. For the first time, most of the 3178
competitors, from different corners of the world, travelled by
plane to Australia. This development was possible because of the growth of air
transport. It allows athletes to travel to host cities in other continents quickly, cheaply,
and perhaps most important, safely.
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Personal, Social and Humanities Education Section,Education Bureau
Beijing 2008 Olympic Games
3.
Unit 2 – Page 3
There has been international television coverage of the Olympic
Games since the 1960s. In the Olympic Games of 1984, 140
countries joined competition. The Games were broadcasted in
156 countries and were watched by 2.5 billion TV viewers. In
the 2000 Sydney Olympics, the Games were broadcasted in 220
countries and watched by 3.7 billion viewers. Because of the
great number of viewers in front of the TV, the Olympic Games
have become an important chance for different countries to
promote themselves. It is particularly true for some countries
which are not rich enough to promote themselves in other fields. For example, many
people knew the first time Ethiopia when its "barefoot" marathon runner Abebe Bikila
won in 1960 and 1964 Olympics. Therefore, many countries are willing to send more
athletes to join the Games (thought the Olympic Charter says that the Games are not
competition among countries).
Source:
Foundation of the Hellenic World - http://olympics.fhw.gr/
International Olympic Committee - http://www.olympic.org/uk/
2.2
THE CHANGING PARTICIPATION OF WOMEN
In the article below,
(i) find the changes of women’s participation into the Olympic Games.
Highlight them in red.
(ii) find the causes of the changes. Highlight them in blue.
1.
No woman competed in the 1896 Athens Olympic Games.
In the 1900 and 1904 Olympics, women still participated
very little. To fight for more participation, women even set
up their own “Olympic Games” during the early 1920s.
Some women athletes boycotted the Olympics because they
believed women should have been allowed to compete in
more events. Their struggle paved the way for women to
participate more in the later Olympic Games.
_________
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Personal, Social and Humanities Education Section,Education Bureau
Beijing 2008 Olympic Games
2.
Unit 2 – Page 4
Women's participation in the Olympic Games has been increasing over the years. In the
2004 Sydney Olympics, about 40% of the competitors were women - much different
from the 0% in the 1896 Olympics. Today, most Olympic events have been opened to
women. These changes have taken place because of the following favourable social,
political and cultural factors. First, most people have already changed their mind. In
past, many people called sportive women “tomboys”. Now, we call them sportswomen.
Besides, more people have become concerned about women’s issues. It calls upon
major actions to meet women’s needs and protect their rights. There are women’s
rights groups to fight for the advancement of women in sport. The United Nations and
other bodies promote women sports to improve health and to fight sex discrimination.
This is especially true for the Olympic Games which have billions of viewers now. The
pictures of women doing a wide variety of sports on TV are effective in changing
people’s mind.
3.
Science has cleared many myths that sport was harmful to women’s health and
reproductive health in particular. Studies have pointed out the benefit of sports for girls
and women to fight diseases and raise their self-esteem. Girls and women practise
sport can reach out of their old role in society. Now, if a sport is to be included in the
Olympic Games, it must have women’s events. This decision has reinforced women’s
participation in the Olympic Games.
Source:
Foundation of the Hellenic World - http://olympics.fhw.gr/
International Olympic Committee http://www.olympic.org/uk/
_________
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Personal, Social and Humanities Education Section,Education Bureau
Beijing 2008 Olympic Games
2.3
Unit 2 – Page 5
HOST CITIES HAVE BEEN CHANGED
Table 1 - Host cities of the Summer Olympic Games (1896 - 2008)
Edition
Year Host city
Latitude of
host city
1.
1896 Athens, Greece
2.
1900 Paris, France
3.
1904 St-Louis, USA
4.
1908 London, United Kingdom
5.
1912 Stockholm, Sweden
6.
1916 ***
7.
1920 Antwerp, Belgium
8.
1924 Paris, France
9.
1928 Amsterdam, The Netherlands
10.
1932 Los Angeles, USA
11.
1936 Berlin, Germany
12.
1940 ***
13.
1944 ***
14.
1948 London, United Kingdom
15.
1952 Helsinki, Finland
16.
1956 Melbourne, Australia
17.
1960 Rome, Italy
18.
1964 Tokyo, Japan
19.
1968 Mexico City, Mexico
20.
1972 Munich, Germany
21.
1976 Montreal, Canada
22.
1980 Moscow, USSR
23.
1984 Los Angeles, USA
24.
1988 Seoul, Korea
25.
1992 Barcelona, Spain
26.
1996 Atlanta, USA
27.
2000 Sydney, Australia
28.
2004 Athens, Greece
29.
2008 Beijing, China
Longitude of
host city
(*** Because of war, the Games were not held)
Source: International Olympic Committee - http://www.olympic.org/uk/
_________
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Personal, Social and Humanities Education Section,Education Bureau
Beijing 2008 Olympic Games
1.
2.
3.
Unit 2 – Page 6
Read the latitude and the longitude of the host cities
from the index in an Atlas.
With the latitudes and longitudes, locate the host cities
in Figure 1. Show the host cities of the 1st - 15th
Games with a blue dot, and the 16th - 29th Games with
a red dot. The 1st Games(1896, Athens) has been done for you as an example.
Compare the position of the blue dots with that of the red dots in Figure 1. Can you
tell the changes in the location of the host cities?
Before the 16th edition, all host cities were in either Europe or North America. But
since the 16th edition, host cities were in Europe, North America, Oceania and Asia.
Before the 16th edition, all host cities were in the North hemisphere. But since the
16th edition, host cities were in the Northern hemisphere as well as in the Southern
Hemisphere.
(Answers for reference only)
_________
_________________________
Personal, Social and Humanities Education Section,Education Bureau
Beijing 2008 Olympic Games
Unit 2 – Page 7
Figure 1 - Host cities of the Summer Olympic Games (1896 - 2008)
Europe
North
America

Asia
Africa
South
America
Oceania
Source: Houghton Mifflin, Education Place (http://www.eduplace.com/ss/maps/)
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Personal, Social and Humanities Education Section,Education Bureau
Beijing 2008 Olympic Games
2.4
1.
2.
3.
4.
Unit 2 – Page 8
MIND-MAPPING THE ABOVE CHANGES
Summarize the changes and causes you find in 2.1 - 2.3 as short sentences or key words.
Use the short sentences and key words to complete the mind map below.
Expand the mind map by attaching a piece of A4 paper to the right of this page.
Show and explain your mind map to your classmates.
Figure 2 - A mind map of some important changes of the Olympic Games in last hundred years and
their causes (to be completed)
Changing
Extended from the Northern
popularity
to the Southern Hemisphere
Changes
Extended from Europe and
America to Asia and Oceania
Changing
Changing
host cities
Economic development of
Olympics in
last 100 years
some countries in Asia
Causes
Development of air transport
Changing
women’s
participation
Personal, Social and Humanities Education Section,Education Bureau