The International Olympic Committee was founded at a congress held at the Sorbonne in Paris, organised by the French educator Baron Pierre de Coubertin, who wanted to revive the ancient Olympic Games as a way to promote international understanding through sport. The Greek writer Demetrios Vikelas became its first president, and the first modern Olympic Games took place in Athens in 1896. The IOC moved to Lausanne, Switzerland, in 1915, where it is still based. It chooses the host cities of the Summer and Winter Games and sets the rules of the Olympic Charter. It has been shaken by controversies, including bribery scandals around the choice of Salt Lake City for the 2002 Winter Games, doping and political boycotts.
Before and after
- 10 February 1894Birth of Harold Macmillan
- 3 April 1894Birth of Nikita Khrushchev
- 16 April 1894Founding of Manchester City F.C.
- 27 May 1894Birth of Louis-Ferdinand Céline
- 23 June 1894Founding of International Olympic Committee
- 23 June 1894Birth of Edward VIII
- 30 June 1894Construction of Tower Bridge
- 13 July 1894Birth of Gavrilo Princip
- 26 July 1894Birth of Aldous Huxley
More in Society, economy & sport
- from 10 June 1815 to 24 August 1866Founding of German Confederation
- 17 February 1863Founding of International Committee of the Red Cross
- 26 October 1863The Football Association is founded in London
- 17 May 1865Founding of International Telecommunication Union
- 19 September 1893New Zealand becomes the first country where women vote
- 30 June 1908Tunguska event
The era
This moment belongs to the Industrial era (1760 CE to 1914 CE), steam, factories and revolutions. You can also browse everything in the 19th century.