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The 1906 Summer Olympics, also called the 1906 Intercalated Games, were held in Athens, Greece. These games are not awarded the title of Olympiad because they were held between the III and IV Olympiads. While medals were distributed to the participants during these games, the medals are not officially recognized by the IOC. This was also the first time that women were competitors.
Origin
First Intercalated Games The 1906 games were quite successful. Unlike the 1900, 1904 or 1908 games, they were neither stretched out over months nor overshadowed by an international exhibition. Their crisp format was most likely instrumental in the continued existence of the games. These Games also were the first games to have all athlete registration go through the NOCs. They were the first to have the Opening of the Games as a separate event; an event at which for the first time the athletes marched into the stadium in national teams, each following its national flag. They introduced the closing ceremony, and the raising of national flags for the victors, and several less-visible changes we now accept as tradition. Destiny The Greeks were unable to keep the schedule for 1910. On the one hand problems in the Balkans made things difficult, but on the other, the modern Greeks found out the ancient Greeks were right: A two year interval was too short. Where there had been a gap of six years before Athens 1906 (because of the almost All-American nature of the 1904 St Louis games), a gap of two years after London 1908 did not leave people enough time to prepare. With Athens 1910 a failure, the faith in Athens diminished, and as a result Athens 1914 got even less support. And then World War One started, and any further Intercalated Games had to wait until after the war. But after the war was over it had been more than a decade since Athens 1906, and the idea of Intercalated Games was given up entirely. Downgrading Since the 2nd International Olympic Games in Athens now had become an exception, the personal views of various IOC chairmen caused the IOC to retroactively downgrade the 1906 games, and the explanation for the games became that they had been a 10th anniversary celebration. As more stress was placed on the continuing sequence of four-year Olympiads, the games of 1906 did not fit in. Hence, today the IOC does not recognize Athens 1906 as Olympic Games, and does not regard any events occurring there, such as the setting of new records or the winning of medals, as official. The success of Athens 1906, however, may have been what kept the Olympics alive. And as the next games are always built on the successes of the last, the innovations of Athens were used again in London, and eventually became Olympic tradition. In fact, the influence of the First Intercalated Games pervades the Olympics, with the holding of the Games concentrated in a small time period, at a small area, and with good organization. To a large number of people these are good enough reasons to continue pressing the IOC to recognise the 1906 games. Winter Sports Since there were no winter sports at the First Intercalated games, the idea has risen that this was because the IOC had made such an explicit requirement. In reality, though the IOC had intended some winter sports to be Olympic, before London 1908 none of the games included any winter sports, and Athens 1906 was no exception. There is however a different connection between Intercalated Games and winter sports. For 1994 the idea of intermediate games was reintroduced when the cycle for the Winter Olympic Games was shifted two years, resulting in Olympics every two years, with alternating Summer and Winter Olympics. Games The Games were held from 22 April to 2 May 1906, in Athens, Greece. For the first time, the registration of athletes had been handled entirely through the NOCs. The games excluded several disciplines that had occurred during the past two games; it was unclear whether they ought to have been part of the Olympic Games or of the World Exhibitions. Added to the program were the javelin throw and the pentathlon. The games were a success, with large crowds following the events each day. They also saw, probably for the first time, opening ceremonies as a separate event, flags hoisted for the victors, and a closing ceremony. In these, as well as several other aspects, the 2nd Olympics in Athens set an example followed to this day. Opening The games included a real opening ceremony, watched by a large crowd. The athletes, for the first time, entered the stadium as national teams, marching behind their flags. The official opening of the games was done by King Georgios I. Highlights Closing ceremony Six thousand schoolchildren took part in possibly the first ever Olympic closing ceremony. Medals awarded Medal count Note that these medals were distributed but are no longer recognized by the IOC. (Host country is highlighted, greatest number of medals in each category is in bold.) The mixed team medal is for Belgian/Greek athletes in the Coxed Pairs 1 mile rowing event. The silver medal for the team from Smyrna and the bronze medal for the team from Thessalonika in the football event are counted for Turkey (Ottoman Empire); both cities were at the time indisputably Ottoman possessions. See also | ||||||||||
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