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67-487: Zappas' contribution in this process was vital: not only were the games hosted at his own initiative, he also provided the funds for the staging of the games, as well as for the construction of much-needed infrastructure, including the refurbishment of the ancient Panathenaic Stadium , which hosted the Games of 1870 and 1875. The same stadium would also host the first IOC Games of 1896, the 1906 Intercalated Games , and archery and

134-477: A fair manner. At the same time, the Games included a competition in the arts. As in 1859 winners received a cash prize; in addition, the first three winners received olive wreaths and small branches of olive and laurel. There was a band playing an Olympic Hymn, specially composed for the occasion. The judges were professors of the University of Athens , and there was a herald for announcing the winners. King George I

201-504: A large blue stripe, which was, until 1896, the official uniform for gymnastics. These contests were timed to coincide with an exposition of 1,200 Greek and 72 foreign exhibitors, the largest Greece had ever seen. The Greek royal family did not attend. There was not enough space for huge crowds that attended, who finally filled up the arena of the Stadium. Dissatisfaction ensued, and Fokianos was considered responsible despite his great efforts and

268-607: A massive capacity of 50,000, which is roughly the same as that of the Stadium of Domitian in Rome. Stadia of the Classical and Hellenistic periods were smaller. According to Welch there is a possibility that criminals were executed in the stadium, however, no evidence exists. A marble throne from the prohedria (front row seating) of the stadium is kept in the British Museum . One side of

335-571: A prize for the best runner in the longest race at the Olympic Games. The Wenlock Prize was the largest prize on offer and was won by Petros Velissarios of Smyrna from the Ottoman Empire who was ethnically Greek. Evangelis Zappas planned to sponsor future Olympic Games and restore the Olympiad, but he died in 1865; however, he left a vast fortune, both for the construction of permanent facilities in

402-561: A royal decree, signed by Crown Prince Constantine and the foreign minister Stephanos Dragoumis , announced that the Olympiad would be reinstated, at four-year intervals, from 1888. The next Olympics were officially scheduled for 1892, but ended postponed due to the Greek government's claim of lack of funding. In the event, the Panathenaic stadium would be used to stage the Olympic Games in 1896 ,

469-500: A successful businessman and member of the Greek diaspora in Romania , was inspired by Soutsos and resolved to revive this ancient tradition through his own efforts and resources. In early 1856, Zappas sent a letter through diplomatic channels to King Otto of Greece , offering to fund the entire project of the Olympic revival, providing also cash prizes for the victors. However, this initiative

536-420: Is Roman in scale, but it self-consciously rejects the distinguishingly Roman features of monumental facade and extensive vaulting." The seats of the cavea were decorated with owls in relief, which symbolize Athena . Katherine Welch wrote in a 1998 article "Greek stadia and Roman spectacles": After Hellenistic festivals and bloody spectacles were banned by Roman Emperor Theodosius I in the late 4th century,

603-594: Is depicted. It is shown on the obverse of all Olympic medals awarded in the 2004 Olympics, and it was also used for the succeeding Summer Olympics in Beijing in 2008 , in London in 2012 , in Rio de Janeiro in 2016 , and in Tokyo in 2021 . Wenlock Olympian Society The Wenlock Olympian Games , dating from 1850, are a forerunner of the modern Olympic Games . They are organised by

670-451: Is possible that Lykourgos did not build but "renovated or embellished a pre-existing facility to give it monumental stature." According to Richard Ernest Wycherley the stadium probably had stone seating "only for a privileged few." Herodes Atticus , an Athenian who rose to the highest echelons of power in Rome, was responsible for numerous structures in Greece. In Athens he is best known for

737-511: Is the only stadium in the world built entirely of marble . A stadium was built on the site of a simple racecourse by the Athenian statesman Lykourgos (Lycurgus) c.  400 BC, primarily for the Panathenaic Games . It was rebuilt in marble by Herodes Atticus , an Athenian Roman senator, by 144 AD it had a capacity of 50,000 seats. After the rise of Christianity in the 4th century it

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804-638: The 1967–68 FIBA European Cup Winners' Cup final was hosted in the stadium where AEK defeated Slavia VŠ Praha in front of around 70,000 seated spectators inside the arena and another 10,000 standing spectators near the entrance. During the Regime of the Colonels (1967–74), large annual events were held at the stadium, particularly the "Festival of the Military Virtues of the Greeks" (in late August-early September) and

871-470: The 2004 Athens Olympic Games . — Panathenaic Stadium The Panathenaic Stadium ( Greek : Παναθηναϊκό Στάδιο , romanized :  Panathinaïkó Stádio , [panaθinai̯ˈko ˈstaðio] ) or Kallimarmaro ( Καλλιμάρμαρο [kaliˈmarmaro] , lit.   ' beautiful marble ' ) is a multi-purpose stadium in Athens , Greece. One of the main historic attractions of Athens, it

938-543: The 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens. During the games the stadium hosted the archery competition (15–21 August) and was the finish of the Marathon for both women (22 August) and men (29 August). The opening ceremony of the 2011 Special Olympics World Summer Games were held here which featured special appearances such as Stevie Wonder , Vanessa Williams and Zhang Ziyi . The games ran from 25 June to 5 July. On occasion,

1005-610: The Julian calendar then in use in Greece), the games of the First Olympiad were officially opened; it was Easter Monday for both the Western and Eastern Christian Churches and the anniversary of Greece's independence . The stadium was filled with an estimated 60,000 spectators, including King George I of Greece , his wife Olga , and their sons. Most of the competing athletes were aligned on

1072-634: The National Olympian Association (NOA) which had been co-founded by Brookes in 1865. The NOA ceased its operations in 1883. Baron Pierre de Coubertin visited the Wenlock Olympian Society in 1890, which held a special festival in his honour. He was inspired by Dr Brookes and went on to establish the International Olympic Committee . Brookes was named as an honorary delegate at the 1894 Sorbonne Congress at which

1139-665: The Zappeion Exhibition Hall, to the west of the Pangrati residential district, and between the twin pine-covered hills of Ardettos and Agra. Until the 1950s, the Ilissos River (which is now covered by (and flowing underneath) Vasileos Konstantinou Avenue ) ran in front of the stadium's entrance, with the spring of Kallirrhoe, the sanctuary of Pankrates (a local hero), and the Cynosarges public gymnasium nearby. Originally, since

1206-433: The "Revolution of 21 April 1967", the date of the coup that brought the right-wing regime to power. In these festivals, the stadium, "with its aura of antiquity stood as a monument to Greek rebirth, national pride, and international interest." The dictators exploited its setting to showcase their supposed popularity and propagate their new, "revolutionary" political culture. The stadium "needed no major refurbishing" prior to

1273-568: The 6th century BC, a racecourse stood at the site. It hosted the Panathenaic Games (also known as the Great Panathenaea), a religious and athletic festival celebrated every four years in honour of the goddess Athena . The racecourse had no formal seating and the spectators sat on the natural slopes on the side of the ravine. In the 4th century BC the Athenian statesman Lykourgos (Lycurgus) built an 850-foot (260 m) long stadium of poros stone . Tiers of stone benches were arranged around

1340-467: The Acropolis. The show was attended by many A-listers, such as Anya Taylor-Joy , Cara Delevingne , Jisoo and many other global and Greek stars. Katherine Welch described the stadium as a "great marble flight of steps terraced into the contours of a U-shaped ravine — splendid in materials but ostentatiously simple in construction technique." The Panathenaic Stadium influenced the stadium architecture in

1407-524: The Egypt-based Greek businessman George Averoff , to sponsor the second refurbishment of the stadium prior to the 1896 Olympics . Based on the findings of Ziller, a reconstruction plan was prepared by the architect Anastasios Metaxas in the mid-1890s. Darling writes that "He duplicated the dimensions and design of the second-century structure, arranging the tiers of seats around the U-shaped track." It

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1474-522: The Greek capital, as well as for the continuation of the Olympic Games in four-year intervals. In July 1869, the dates of the 1870 Olympics were announced, followed by organizational plans and proposals about which events to include. The committee paid for participating athletes to undergo three months of training prior to the Games. This training took place in the Panathenaic Stadium , which had been cleaned and leveled. The Games of 1870 took place in

1541-542: The Greek government and a group of Zappas' relatives over Zappas' bequests, Konstantinos Zappas secured the execution of Zappas' will. The Greek government used Zappas' money to complete the Gymnasterion, a central gym, in 1878, and to continue the work on the Zappeion exhibition center, which had begun in 1873 and was frequently interrupted. The Zappeion officially opened on October 20, 1888. As in 1875, Fokianos took charge of

1608-671: The Greek influence of the name 'Olympian' by publicly suggesting the games be called "'The Shropshire Class of British Work and Play', or anything else you will; but let it tell of English men and women, English boys and girls." Despite this the Olympian name stuck. Following a dispute with WARS, in November 1860, the Wenlock Olympian Class separated from WARS and changed its name to Wenlock Olympian Society. The first National Olympian Games were held in London in 1866 and were organised by

1675-566: The IOC in 1994. The mascot for the London 2012 Summer Olympics was named Wenlock after Much Wenlock where the Wenlock Olympian Society and its Games began. The 2012 Summer Paralympics mascot was named Mandeville in honour of Stoke Mandeville Hospital , where the Paralympian Games originated. The medals awarded featured Nike , the Greek goddess of victory, as do Olympic medals . Following

1742-614: The IOC was established, although he was unable to attend due to ill health. The Wenlock Olympian Games continued intermittently after his death in 1895, with significant revivals in 1950 and 1977. The current series has been running since 1977, and has received official recognition from the IOC and the British Olympic Association (BOA), exemplified by visits from the Princess Royal for the BOA in 1990 and Juan Antonio Samaranch for

1809-424: The Panathenaic stadium, which was excavated, restored and provided with wooden benches in order to accommodate 30,000 people, a huge number for the time. In general the contest was much better organized and athletes were uniformly dressed, with sport costumes and sandals in skin color. On November 1, the Games were officially opened, but athletic events were postponed to November 15 due to bad weather, which also forced

1876-557: The Wenlock Olympian Society (WOS), and are held each year at venues across Shropshire , England, centred on the market town of Much Wenlock . One of the two mascots for the 2012 Summer Olympics was named Wenlock in honour of the Wenlock Olympian Games. On 25 February 1850 the Wenlock Agricultural Reading Society (WARS) resolved to establish a class called The Olympian Class – "for the promotion of

1943-684: The West in the 20th century. Harvard Stadium in Boston, built in 1903, was modeled after the Panathenaic Stadium. Designated as a National Historic Landmark , it is the first collegiate athletic stadium in the United States. Deutsches Stadion in Nuremberg, designed by Albert Speer , was also modeled on the Panathenaic Stadium. Speer was inspired by the stadium when he visited Athens in 1935. The stadium

2010-559: The annual Athens Classic Marathon . It is also the last venue in Greece from where the Olympic flame handover ceremony to the host nation takes place. The stadium is built in what was originally a natural ravine between the two hills of Agra and Ardettos, south of the Ilissos river. It is now located in the central Athens district of Pangrati , to the east of the National Gardens and

2077-450: The cancellation of all nautical events, horse races and shooting events. Athletes included Greek nationals, as well as ethnic Greeks from the Ottoman Empire and Crete (then a semi-independent state under Ottoman suzerainty). Some 20,000 to 25,000 spectators watched the 31 athletes who had previously qualified compete in a variety of events. Before the competition started, the athletes were ordered to take an oath that they would compete in

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2144-486: The conservative anti-athletic lobby in Athens, Alexandros Rangavis , suggested an industrial and agricultural exposition instead of an athletic event: I thanked Zappas for his [...] splendid idea; but told him also that times have changed since antiquity. Today, nations do not become distinguished, as then, by having the best athletes and runners, but the champions in industry, handwork and agriculture. I suggested that he found [...] Industrial Olympic Games. For months there

2211-560: The construction of the stadium and theater. According to Romano the "reference to the large number of oxen, indicating a vast undertaking, and the use of the word charadra have suggested the kind of building activity that would have been needed to prepare the natural valley between the two hills near the Ilissos." The stadium of Lykourgos is believed to have been completed for the Panathenaic Games of 330/329 BC. Donald Kyle suggests that it

2278-527: The early Games included "fun events" such as the blindfolded wheelbarrow race and, one year (1851) an 'Old Women's Race' with the prize of a pound of tea. In 1859 Wenlock Olympian Class sent £10 to Athens as a prize for the best runner in the Long Foot Race at the Zappas Olympics which was held in November that year – open only to Greek-speaking athletes. The Wenlock Prize, the largest prize on offer

2345-559: The first to be held under the auspices of the International Olympic Committee . The English physician William Penny Brookes had initiated a sports movement in the United Kingdom, founding the Wenlock Olympian Games in 1850. These were organised by the Wenlock Olympian Class which changed its name to the Wenlock Olympian Society in 1860. Brookes adopted an event from the programme of the 1859 Zappas Games and included 'throwing

2412-555: The ideal of gymnastics would expand from above, i.e. the upper classes, through the educated and cultured classes. For that reason, he excluded all participants except for university students. All these students were trained in the Public Gymnasium in Athens in a series of gymnastic exercises introduced by Fokianos and inspired from the German system of gymnastics. The athletes were impressively dressed: white trousers and white shirts with

2479-431: The infield, grouped by nation. After a speech by the president of the organizing committee, Crown Prince Constantine, his father officially opened the games. The stadium also served as the venue for Athletics , Gymnastics , Weightlifting and Wrestling . The stadium hosted the 1906 Intercalated Games from 22 April to 2 May. From the mid- to late 1960s, the stadium was used by AEK Basketball Club . On 4 April 1968,

2546-509: The javelin at a target' into the much-expanded 1861 Wenlock Olympian Games. The first man to be placed on the honor roll of the Wenlock Olympian Society was the Smyrniot Petros Velissariou, who competed at the 1859 Athens Olympic Games in distance running and who won a prize donated by the Wenlock Olympian Society's Committee. Brookes was the first to propose holding open international Olympics to be held in Athens, as distinct from

2613-452: The king, officers and other dignitaries in rows of seats, as well as half of the inhabitants of Athens in the stands. Since it was one of the first mass gatherings in the city's modern history, neither the people nor the police had any previous experience with maintaining the order at such an event. The press of that time lauded the Games as being positive , but they were a disappointment for thousands of Athenians who could not see anything from

2680-578: The marathon finish at the 2004 Athens Olympic Games . Sporadic references to the revival of the ancient Olympic Games were made by various personalities during the 19th century, inspired by a certain degree of romanticism . In his 1833 poem Dialogue of the Dead , the Constantinople-born Panagiotis Soutsos , editor of a Greek newspaper, used the Olympic Games as the symbol of the ancient Greek traditions. Soon after, he explicitly proposed

2747-561: The monetary prizes of the Games. According to the press of the time, many comical incidents took place during the games: for instance, a policeman, who was assigned to watch over the crowds, left his post and participated in the races. Even a beggar, who pretended to be blind, participated in the races. The Committee of the Wenlock Olympian Class , brainchild of the English doctor and surgeon William Penny Brookes , sent £10 to Athens for

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2814-466: The moral, physical and intellectual improvement of the inhabitants of the town and neighbourhood of Wenlock and especially of the working classes, by the encouragement of outdoor recreation, and by the award of prizes annually at public meetings for skill in athletic exercise and proficiency in intellectual and industrial attainments". The secretary of the class and driving force behind the Olympian Games

2881-467: The necessary funds to the Greek government in order to establish an Olympic Trust Fund. On November 15, 1859, the first modern revival of the athletic Olympic Games took place in Athens . As the renovation of the ancient Panathenaic stadium was not yet complete, the contests were held in Loudovikou square in Athens (modern Koumoundourou square). Although they could be termed as the first Olympic Games of

2948-473: The present tradition, it was far from being an international festival. They had a distinctly national character, since the participants were exclusively of Greek ethnicity, coming both from inside the independent Greek state and the Greek diaspora of the Ottoman Empire . Athletes competed in a variety of disciplines, similar to those of the ancient Olympic games: running , discus , javelin throwing , wrestling , jumping and pole climbing . Attendees included

3015-462: The rear stands and who did not understand this kind of event. The site was also unsuited for the sports and the weather was too cold. Moreover, the athletic competition had a more game-like than sportive character: as the competitors were not individuals who were seriously dedicated to athletics, the Organising Committee accepted the participation of workers, porters, etc., who were attracted by

3082-506: The reconstruction of the Panathenaic Stadium. Tobin suggests that "Herodes built the stadium soon after [his father] Atticus's death, which occurred around A.D. 138. The first Greater Panathenaia following his father's demise was 139/40, and it is probable that at that time Herodes promised the refurbishment of the stadium. According to Philostratus , it was completed four years later, which would have been in 143/4." These dates (139/140-143-144 AD) are now widely cited as construction dates of

3149-529: The revival of the Olympic Games, alongside Soutsos, Brookes, and later Coubertin, was significant. In addition, the Panathenaic stadium, which was refurbished with his funding, went on to host events in the 1896, 1906, and 2004 IOC Olympics, while the Zappeion hosted fencing events in 1896, was a site of the first Olympic Village in 1906 (hosting the Hungarian Olympic team), and was used as the media center during

3216-447: The revival of the games by the newly formed Greek state , even sending a memorandum to that effect to the Greek government in 1835. His proposal was welcomed by King Otto of Greece , but in the event, nothing was done, despite Soutsos' persistent campaigning over the next twenty-six years. In 1852, the German archaeologist Ernst Curtius , during a romantic lecture, also stated that the Olympic events would be revived. Evangelis Zappas ,

3283-539: The revived Greek national Olympics of 1859, 1870, and 1875 which mirrored the Ancient Olympics as they were closed to all but Greek-speaking competitors. Despite his persistent pleas to the Greek government for action on this issue, his proposals fell on deaf ears. However, many of the ideas that Brookes used within the Wenlock Olympian Games were subsequently adopted by Baron Pierre de Coubertin , who learned about them when visiting Wenlock in 1890. Zappas' influence on

3350-402: The south entrance." The derelict stadium's marbles were incorporated into other buildings. European travelers wrote of "magical rites enacted by young Athenian maidens in the ruined vaulted passage, aimed at finding a good husband." Following Greece's independence , archaeological excavation as early as 1836 uncovered traces of the stadium of Herodes Atticus. Further, more thorough, excavation

3417-530: The sporting events (but did so independently of the earlier Olympic Committee), which were postponed up till April 30, 1889. These Games were not co-ordinated by the Olympic Committee that organised the 1859, 1870, and 1875 Zappas Games, but by Fokianos alone. Thirty athletes competed in a variety of disciplines including discus, pole long leap (over a ditch), weightlifting, mast climbing, and rope climbing among others. All participants were clad alike. In 1890,

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3484-501: The stadium has also been used as a venue for selected musical and dance performances. Other concerts include those of Spanish tenor Plácido Domingo (27 June 2007) and a dance performance by Joaquín Cortés (14 September 2009). The stadium hosted the opening ceremony of the 1997 World Championships in Athletics on a concept by composer Vangelis and along with the performance of soprano Montserrat Caballé . In more recent years,

3551-599: The stadium has been often used to honour the homecoming of victorious Greek athletes, most notably the Greece national football team after its victory at the UEFA Euro 2004 on 5 July 2004 as well as Greek medalists in recent Olympic Games . The stadium was the venue for the Dior Cruise 2022 show. The collection drew inspiration from Ancient Greek art and Greek folk culture as well as Christian Dior's Fall 1951 campaign photoshoot on

3618-469: The stadium of Herodes Atticus. Welch writes that the stadium was completed by 143, in time for Panathenaic festival. The new stadium was built completely of ashlar masonry in Pentelic marble, using minimal concrete. The stadium was built at a time of resurgence of Greek culture in the mid-2nd century. Although the stadium was a "quintessentially Greek architectural type", it was "Roman in scale" with

3685-471: The stadium was abandoned and fell into ruin. Gradually, its significance was forgotten and a field of wheat covered the site. During the Latin rule of Athens , Crusader knights held feats of arms at the stadium. A 15th century traveler saw "not only several rows of white marble benches, but also the portico at the entrance of the stadion, which he calls the north entrance, and the stoa round the koilon, which he calls

3752-435: The throne includes a relief showing an olive tree and a table on which rests set of wreaths and a Panathenaic amphora . The front leg is in the form of an owl. Ten similar thrones have been found around Athens. Herodes Atticus built it as "an architectural means of self-representation, and it did something analogous. The architecture of the building makes allusions to the Classical past while remaining unmistakably modern. It

3819-565: The track. The track was 669 feet (204 m) long and 110 feet (34 m) wide. In the Lives of the Ten Orators Pseudo-Plutarch writes that a certain Deinas, the owner of the property where the stadium was built was persuaded by Lykourgos to donate the land to the city and Lykourgos leveled a ravine. IG II² 351 (dated 329 BC), records that Eudemus of Plataea gave 1000 yoke of oxen for

3886-535: The very good training of the athletes. The press heavily criticized the Games not only for the lack of organization, but also because the organizers had disqualified the working classes from competing. Fokianos became so embittered that he resigned as overall leader of the Olympics. However, the artistic competition of the Olympics proved a great success: 25 composers won awards in music and 25 sculptors and painters were honored. After an extended period of litigation between

3953-502: Was Dr William Penny Brookes who was inspired to create these events through his work as a doctor and surgeon in the sprawling borough of Wenlock which consisted mainly of Madeley , Broseley and Much Wenlock. The first meeting was held at Much Wenlock racecourse on 22–23 October 1850. These first Games were a mixture of athletics and traditional country sports such as quoits , football and cricket . Events also included running, hurdles and cycling on penny farthings . Some of

4020-508: Was awarding the prizes to the winners at the sound of the music. The 1870 Games were an enormous success and the press dedicated triumphant articles both to the excellent organization and to the accomplishments of the Games. Planning for the 1875 competition began in 1871, and in 1873, the foundation for the Zappeion was laid. The 3rd Olympiad was organized by the Director of the Public Gymnasium, Ioannis Fokianos. Fokianos strongly believed that

4087-483: Was conducted by the German-born architect Ernst Ziller in 1869–70. Some marbles of the stadium and four Hermai were found. The Zappas Olympics , an early attempt to revive the ancient Olympic Games, were held at the stadium in 1870 and 1875. They were sponsored by the Greek benefactor Evangelis Zappas . The games had an audience of 30,000 people. The Greek government, through crown prince Constantine , requested

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4154-454: Was designed for some 400,000 spectators and was one of the monumental structures of the Nazi regime. Its construction began in 1937, but was never completed. The Panathenaic Stadium was selected as the main motif for a high value euro collectors' coin; the €100 Greek The Panathenaic Stadium commemorative coin , minted in 2003 to commemorate the 2004 Olympics . In the obverse of the coin, the stadium

4221-405: Was largely abandoned. The stadium was excavated in 1869 and hosted the Zappas Olympics in 1870 and 1875. After being refurbished, it hosted the opening and closing ceremonies of the first modern Olympics in 1896 and was the venue for 4 of the 9 contested sports. It was used for various purposes in the 20th century and was once again used as an Olympic venue in 2004 . It is the finishing point for

4288-431: Was no official answer from the Greek government. In July 1856, an article in the Greek press by Panagiotis Soutsos, which made Zappas' efforts widely known to the public, triggered a series of events. Finally, Otto agreed upon competitions at four-year intervals, on the occasion of industrial and agricultural expositions, and allowed the realization of athletic events with Zappas' full sponsorship. Consequently, Zappas offered

4355-413: Was not without opposition. There was a wide belief among part of the Greek politicians (notably Charilaos Trikoupis and Stephanos Dragoumis ) that athletic games were just a throwback to archaic times. They feared that Greece would seem primitive among the leading nations of Europe if it revived, as they claimed, an old-fashioned and pagan festival.Characteristically, the Greek foreign minister and head of

4422-487: Was rebuilt in Pentelic marble and is "distinguished by its high degree of fidelity to the ancient monument of Herodes." Averoff donated 920,000 drachmas to this project. As a tribute to his generosity, a statue of Averoff was constructed and unveiled on 5 April 1896 outside the stadium. It stands there to this day. The stadium held the opening and closing ceremonies of the 1896 Olympics . On 6 April (25 March according to

4489-400: Was won by Petros Velissarios of Smyrna (now İzmir ) in the Ottoman Empire , one of the first international Olympians. In 1860, Brookes introduced the Shropshire Olympian Games, with their first games held at Much Wenlock, despite 'vile weather'. Lieutenant Colonel Herbert Edwardes , who Brookes had invited to speak at the games, praised their founder and the WARS's work but disagreed with

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