Lately, it was the return of cultural conferences to the courtyard room, after a long hiatus linked to the health crisis. Alain Gelès, former Director General of the Olympic Committee, responded to the invitation of Bulles Culturelles. A small but attentive audience followed for an hour and a half a very documented presentation, with photos and video, on the history of the Olympic Games, from ancient Greece to the last games in Tokyo.
The speaker started by delving into the story: “The first games were held in Athens in 776 BC, although sporting practices were older. The ancient games were interrupted in 393 AD by an edict from Emperor Theodosius, for impiety”.
In the 19th century, Baron Pierre de Coubertin breathed new life into these games. In 1894, this scholar created the first Olympic Committee. The first modern games take place two years later, in Athens. The speaker then explained the origin of the symbols that are the flag, the fire and the currency. Faster Higher Stronger (faster, higher, stronger), imagined by the Dominican Henri Didon.
Alain Gelès continues: “In 490 BC, the Greeks faced the Persians at the Battle of Marathon and legend has it that a soldier was sent running to Athens to announce the victory. He thus traveled 40 km. Bréal, Coubertin’s friend, suggested to him to ‘integrate a similar running event into the games. The distance traveled by Philippides thus became that of the new “marathon”, until 1908, during the London Games, when the royal family demanded that the race pass in front of the estate from Windsor. The distance was then increased to 42.195 km “.
The speaker then spoke of the 1936 games in Berlin, which moved away from the founding spirit and turned it into an instrument of political propaganda. This practice has undoubtedly inspired the contemporary history of games, especially in Moscow and Beijing.
He concluded by referring to Sir Guttman’s initiative in 1948 with the creation of the Paralympic Games and by referring to the 2024 games in Paris, the centenary of the organization of the games in the French capital.
The audience warmly applauded the speaker before asking him a few questions.
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