The first Olympic Games consisted of a singular event — a footrace, or stade in ancient Greek.
Runners from the Grecian mainland and colonies sprinted 192 meters (or 210 yards) along a track, likely in the nude, to win a garland and acclaim at home.
So how did the Olympics develop from a single footrace into a showcase of 310 events in which more than 10,000 athletes from around the world compete?
The Olympics began in Greece in 776 BCE, just one of many major sporting festivals across the region.
The name Olympics derives from Mount Olympus, home of the Greek gods.
The Games were held in the sacred city of Olympia to honor the god Zeus.
The festival took place every four years, a length of time known as an Olympiad.
In the early centuries, all contests took place on one day with the longer races being added in subsequent decades.
While the Games grew to include such events as boxing and chariot racing, ultimately becoming the most popular sporting event in Greece, support for the Games diminished when Greece lost its independence to Rome in the 2nd century BCE.
The Games were eventually abolished about 394 CE because of the festival's pagan associations.
