Just a few days remain until the start of the most important event in the summer of 2024, which has seen many sporting events, the 33rd Summer Olympics hosted by Paris, the capital of France, from July 26 to August 11. This will be the third time Paris hosts the Summer Olympics, having previously held the events in 1900 and 1924. Paris will become the second city to host the Summer Olympics three times after London, which hosted in 1908, 1948, and 2012. The Paris 2024 project relies on 95% of existing or temporary sites, with a budget announced at 6.6 billion euros, in addition to a water center built next to the Stade de France, and an indoor arena seating 7,500, designated for basketball and wrestling competitions in the La Chapelle area. Throughout its history, the Olympics has seen many exciting events, and here are the top 10 moments in Olympic history:
1. **First Olympic Games Before Christ**
The first-ever Olympic Games were held in Greece in 776 BC on the plains of Olympia, giving rise to the name "Olympic Games," and women were not allowed to compete in these games.
2. **First Modern Olympic Games**
The first modern Olympic Games were held in 1896, consisting of only 9 sports. Winners did not receive the three levels of medals as they do today but were awarded an olive branch, a silver medal, and a certificate, while second-place winners received a bronze medal, a laurel branch, and a certificate.
3. **Longest Olympic Games in 1908**
Originally set to take place in Rome, the 1908 Olympic Games were relocated due to the eruption of Mount Vesuvius. The Games lasted for 6 months and 4 days, making them the longest Olympic Games ever, and figure skating was included as a sport because the event extended into October, with the closing ceremony held on Halloween.
4. **First Television Broadcast of the Olympics**
The 1936 Games held in Berlin were the first to be broadcast on television, but only locally. A major highlight was American athlete Jesse Owens winning four gold medals, and it was also the first Olympic Games to feature the torch relay, with the lit torch carried from Olympia, Greece to the site of the games.
5. **Women from All Countries Compete**
For the first time in history, women from all countries competed in the 2012 Olympics in London, with Saudi Arabia participating in judo for the first time, including a 16-year-old girl named Wojdan Shaherkani.
6. **Refugees Have Their Own Team**
For the first time in Olympic history, a team of refugee athletes competed under the Olympic flag during the 2016 Games in Rio de Janeiro, with ten athletes coming from South Sudan, Ethiopia, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Syria.
7. **Zátopek Wins Gold in First Marathon**
Czechoslovakian runner Emil Zátopek became the first person to win a marathon at the Helsinki Olympics in 1952, winning his first two medals in the 5000m and 10,000m races, while securing his third medal in the marathon, his first-ever race of that distance.
8. **First Appearance of Muhammad Ali**
At the 1960 Olympics in Rome, Muhammad Ali made his first global appearance as a young boxer, still fighting under his real name, Cassius Clay, and won a gold medal in his match against Zbigniew Pietrzykowski. Just a month after the Olympics, he turned professional and became a world-renowned heavyweight champion.
9. **Protest Against Racism**
When American runners Tommie Smith and John Carlos won the gold and bronze medals at the 1968 Olympics in Mexico City, they saw an opportunity to make a statement. Each athlete raised their fists in the air and performed the Black Power salute from the podium in protest of racial injustice in the United States.
10. **Winning the Most Medals**
Mark Spitz etched his name in history at the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich as one of the greatest swimmers of all time, winning a total of 7 gold medals and breaking numerous world records in the process.
