The Modern Olympics – Yesterday and Today

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The modern Olympics brought all of the glory of the ancient Games back to life when they were established in 1896. Since then, the idea of maintaining tradition while growing and changing with the times has been strong within the International Olympic Committee. The bronze and copper medals that went to the first winning athletes have been updated and now include large financial awards as well.

The Games have been adapted and changed in many other ways as well, and this year the most interesting development is actually running at the same time and in the same place as the Olympics although it is not strictly part of the official line-up.

Changing Olympic Events

Over the years grand prix equestrian jumping, introduced in 1901, has been replaced by show-jumping events; field handball has been excluded from the programme and indoor handball has been introduced; and badminton was played as a demonstration game from 1972 to the 1992 Games in Barcelona.

The modern pentathlon, differentiated by the pentathlon of the Ancient Greek games but still an innovative tribute to it, was introduced in 1912. This involves 5 disciplines; show jumping, fencing, swimming, and a combined event of cross-country running and pistol-shooting.

The Impact of World Opinions and Events

It’s also interesting to see the effect that different current events or the policies of countries have on the Olympics. A good example of this was seen in 1912 in Stockholm, when boxing events were removed from the line-up. This is the only time that boxing has not been contested at the Games since it was introduced in 1904, and is down to the fact that boxing was illegal in Sweden at the time.

Now what seems to be capturing the world’s attention is the inaugural eGames that is about to take place. With the popularity of online casino games and other similar entertainments, it’s not surprising that the Olympics has turned its attention to attracting a new, digitally savvy audience. In positioning an eSport event alongside the 2016 Olympiad and structuring it in the same way, the International eGames Committee reflects the changing regard for eSport all around the globe. As with everything else, our modern lives combine technology and real-life events more and more.

The Rio de Janeiro eGames Showcase 2016 will take place at British House, Parque Lage in Rio de Janeiro on the 15th and 16th of August.The showcase will feature some of the leading eSports personalities in the world taking part in a showcase of SMITE and a full international Super Smash Bros. tournament.