What Are The Olympic Games Ethical Or Unethical

The Olympic games were an athletic competition help in Greece around every four years from 776 B.C.E. In 776 B.C.E, the first olympics were held in Athens where many competitors clashed during the sporting events. The olympics then stopped in 393 C.E. due to Theodosius I’s orders on stopping the olympic events. Later during 1896, the modern olympics began to take place. The olympics were different from the ancient olympics in that the competition was shaped due to social, political, and economic reasons.

In the article “Organized Greek Games “, William J. Baker’s goal is to educate readers on the differences between the ancient Greek Olympic Games, and today’s modern Olympic Games. William Baker not only explains the physical aspects of the games , but the relationship between the Greek religion and the Olympic games as well. William Baker’s article follows his thesis well; which was, “Virtually everyone knows that the modern Olympics are patterned on the Olympic Games of ancient Greece, yet few people have more than a hazy understanding of the original Olympics”.(article,pp58) William Baker wrote the “Organized Greek Games” in chronological order. An example of Baker writing the article chronologically, is when William Baker describes the Greek game 's schedule, and the events that were planned for each day in order. “the duration of the festival was set at five days, with only two and a half days devoted to the games themselves. the first day was given to religious ceremonies.”(article,pp61) In the “Organized Greek Games” William Baker quotes Socrates,“the body must bear its part in whatever man; and in all the services required from the body, it is of the utmost importance to have it in the best possible condition.”(pp.65) Baker got the information from primary sources. Some other primary sources used in the article other than Socrates, are from Milo Crotan, Ancient Philosophers, and Plato. (article,pp.65,66)

In the image of a black figure vase, we can see a clear distinction between the different characters involved during the games. We can see the umpire on the right of the vase, naked and with a whip in his hand, ready to punish any athletes who cheated. The lower bodied athlete signals submission to the umpire, who then forwards the submission to the hellanodikai. The hellanodikai, on the left of the vase, wears a robe, which would have been purple, and a crown to signify his more honourable roll. The five days of the Olympics each had their own special event; the first included the athletes and hellanodikai swearing an oath of honesty and sportsmanship before the statue of Zeus, an unbreakable promise. The second day hosted the horse races and the pentathlon, consisting of discus, the long jump, javelin, running and wrestling, all went on in one afternoon. The third day saw a more religious side to the Olympics; rites for the hero Pelops were given, a procession of all participants, hellanodikai and ambassadors of the different cities took place, and a sacrifice of a hundred cows was given to Zeus. The fourth day was for the running and combat sports, including wrestling, boxing and pankration, which was a sport that combined both the rules of wrestling and boxing. In contrast to the Pythian Games at Delphi, musical events were never added to the Olympic Games. Victors in any of the contests received a crown of leaves as a symbolic prize for their achievements, and

The olympics have been around for ages and almost a thousand years in ancient times. According to many people the olympic of ancient times can be traced back to 776 b.c and goes all the way to 393 A.D. The records state that the games were played in the island of pelops. The Games were dominated by the cult followers of zeus. Religion and the games were also stated to be very close in relation.

The first accounts of the Ancient Olympic games trace back to the year 776 BC. Held at Olympia, the games were thought to have been dedicated to the ‘Olympian gods’, Hera, Athena, Apollo and most prodimately, Zeus, the god of the sky and the ruler of the Olympian gods. Ancient myths associated with the beginning games stated that Zeus, the father of humanity, have fought and defeated Cronus in a battle for the throne of the gods. Others predicted demigod Herakles staged the games in Zeus’s honour, as he had assisted him in conquering Elis. Olympia, the site in which the games were held, was located in the Western part of the Peloponnese. The sacred area held numerous temples and sporting facilities, as the site was used for both the Ancient Olympic games

At the end of the dark ages in ancient Greece, nothing was more important to Greek men, than reaching their divine potential. At a young age Greek males were taught many legends, such as the Odyssey, which gave them a desire to accomplish their own heroic journey. The importance to be recognized and remembered as a hero surprisingly led to the creation of a religious festival called, the Olympic Games. The Olympic Games created an opportunity for all free men to discover their divine role in society, by letting them present their skills in athletic competitions, which often led to the victors gaining a sense of immortality. The Olympics provided what was needed in the Greek society to continue the teachings of having a sound body and mind in order to fulfill ones divine purpose.

The Greeks set up athletic events in honor of Zeus for which the Olympics was made.

I believe that the Olympics are about more than just sports. In my opinion, they are also about excellence, respect, and friendship. Excellence is giving one’s best. Friendship is building a peaceful and better world through solidarity, team spirit, joy, and optimism. Respect is the ethical principle that should inspire all who participate in the Olympic programme. According to the Olympism video, in 1956, John Landy showed friendship and respect by helping Ron Clarke get up after he fell in the middle of an Olympic race. He then showed excellence by still winning the race. In 1992, Derek Redmond’s hamstring gave out, but he persevered, and continued to hobble as fast as he could past the finish line. The Olympic value that this this showed

There are many opportunities to celebrate the god, yet some that are more culturally tied to Greece are the Olympics. These are held every four years in honour of the god (301). There were other athletic contest that were held solely in honour of Zeus, they were held every two years at Nemea (301).

Stephen G. Miller, an expert Yale professor in the field of Ancient Greek athletics states that the Olympics were held “in honor of Zeus in the city of Olympia” (Miller). “The element of religion is evident in this historical event. Many people have heard of the concepts of the Greek Gods, but this level of religious involvement is interesting. These games were held “for four days every fourth summer”, a tradition that partially continues to this day (Miller). “Many festivals in ancient Greece were dedicated to the Gods” (Miller). In addition to the Olympic Games, there were also other athletic festivals which included the Pythian Games at Delphi, the Isthmian at Corinth, and the Nemean at Argos (Miller). However, the Olympics at Olympia were “the oldest and most prestigious of the four great ancient Greek athletic festivals.

Regarding leisure and sport during the Classical period, it is important to comment on the Olympic Games. Although this event has morphed since its inception in 776 B.C. it is still known throughout the world today. The first Olympic Games were held in the Greek city of Olympia, ninety miles west of Athens. The games were originally a religious ceremony to honor the Greek god, Zeus. Boxing, wrestling, and sprinting were just some of the events that were included in the early years of the Olympics. The games continued for over a thousand years before an empire turning towards Christianity abolished them. This new government rejected the ‘pagan origins’ of the games. It wasn’t until the end of the nineteenth century when Pierre de

"The Olympics are a wonderful metaphor for world cooperation, the kind of international competition that's wholesome and healthy, an interplay between countries that represents the best in all of us,” said John Williams, the composer for theme music for the Olympics (8). The Olympic Games are international sports festivals that began in ancient Greece. The first ancient Olympics can be traced back to 776 BC when people held this religious festival to honour Zeus, the father of all the Greek gods and goddesses. The participants were male citizens from Greece, and these athletes participated in only one event — foot race. Unfortunately, this ancient Olympics did not last forever. The first olympic in 776 BC in Olympia was an significant event

Despite many incidents of the athletes and the corporate sponsors infringing the core values of the Olympics, the IOC claims that they are working on their part to enforce more significance on the Olympics moral standards. The IOC is the main organizer of the Olympics Games, who is responsible for the total construction of the event, from the venue, athletes, to the judging system; thus, it should be safe to assume that once the IOC determines to put effort into reviving the true spirits of the Olympics, the moral codes of the Games should gradually restore. During the Sochi Olympics event, where five athletes were sent home after being tested positive from the use of performance-boosting drugs, Thomas Bach, an IOC president, commented that

Sports have been a source of entertainment since Ancient Egypt, with swimming and wrestling having endured the test of time and are still popular to this day. The Olympic games in Ancient Greece were the ultimate test of athleticism to honor the gods and were so widely respected that all wars were temporarily delayed. Thus the sports watchers could have a good time with each other, and discuss his or her’s bets placed on whatever athlete they chose for the event. The best runners and athletes were looked up to greatly as role models in ancient society, and to this day professional athletes are still looked upon in the same way. The delaying of wars was known as the “Olympic Truce”, which signified the immense passion for the games throughout

While there are clear contrasts between the ancient and the modern Olympics there is still the respect for the athlete striving to perform at the highest level. Today, the Olympic Games are the world's largest carnival of athletic skill and competitive spirit. They are displays of nationalism, commerce, and politics. These important elements of the Olympics are not a modern invention, as the first Olympics was in 776 BC in Ancient Greece. After 1503 years, in 1896 the Olympic Games were recreated as what we know today. The Ancient Games were once dedicated to the Olympian God, Zeus Olympios and were staged on the ancient plains of Olympia, which is also how the word ‘Olympics’ originated from. The modern Olympics is the largest international sporting event, which feature both summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of respectable athletes from over 200 different nations compete against one another. There are clear contrast between the modern and ancient forms of the Olympic Games regarding uniforms, participants, religion, events, politics and the concept of amateurism. However both the Ancient Greeks and the people in the modern world still respect and admire the athletics achievements of the participants making the Olympics the most highly regarded contest in sport.