On 6 April 1896 (25 March in the Greek calendar), King George I of Greece declared open the first modern Olympic Games in the Panathenaic Stadium, rebuilt in white marble, before about 60,000 spectators. Some 241 male athletes from 14 nations competed in 43 events in nine sports. The American James Connolly won the triple jump, the first Olympic champion in 1,500 years. The marathon, devised to recall the legend of Pheidippides, was won by the Greek water-carrier Spyridon Louis, to the delight of the crowd. Women were not allowed to compete. The Games ended on 15 April.
Before and after
- 1896Svante Arrhenius calculates how carbon dioxide warms the planet
- from 11 February 1896 to 20 February 1897Gojong's internal exile to the Russian legation
- 1 March 1896Battle of Adwa
- from 6 April 1896 to 15 April 18961896 Summer Olympics
- from 6 April 1896 to 15 April 1896The first modern Olympic Games open in Athens
- 16 July 1896Birth of Trygve Lie
- 9 August 1896Birth of Jean Piaget
- 27 August 1896Anglo-Zanzibar War
- 24 September 1896Birth of F. Scott Fitzgerald
More in Society, economy & sport
- 12 May 1792Founding of New York Stock Exchange
- c. 1800sRise of nationalism
- 17 February 1863Founding of International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement
- 23 June 1894Founding of International Olympic Committee
- 1 January 1901Founding of Australia
- 21 May 1904Founding of FIFA
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.