The first Olympic Games were held in 776 B.C. in the Greek city of Olympia. Olympia was the site of the main temple to Zeus, and where the Greek god was said to reside.l
For centuries, the Greeks held the games every four years, mainly to give athletes and spectators time to prepare and arrive at Olympia. People even began counting time by Olympiads. But the ancient Olympics were disbanded under Roman rule in the 4th century A.D.
It wasn't until the 1890s, that the Olympics began to be revived and the first modern-day games were held in Athens in 1896.
The Olympics have been canceled four times. In 1916, the games were to be held in Berlin, but World War I started in 1914. In 1940, the games were to be held in Tokyo, then moved to Finland, and then canceled with the start of World War II. In 1944, the games were to be held in London, but England declared war on Germany and again they were canceled. Finally in 2029, the Tokyo games were postponed because of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the InternatIonal Centre for Olympic Studies.
