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branches. A crown of wild olive leaves was placed on the head of each victor. Heralds announced the victors' names and their home city. Then a great feast was held in honor of the victorious athletes.

Because of the general dedication to physical fitness, many famous Greek citizens attended or even participated in the early Olympics: Socrates, Pythagoras, Plato, Aristotle, and Hippocrates were known to have been attendants.

The Olympic Truce ( in Greek, ekecheiria, literally the "holding of hands"), was in effect during each festival. It was an important aspect of the Olympics. It allowed travelers to attend the events in safety. It also cut down in the rivalry and disputes which regularly appeared between the city-states. When the warring parties gathered for the competitions, they often realized they had more in common with their adversaries than they had remembered, and breaches were healed.

While the truce was in force, legal disputes and the carrying out of death penalties were suspended. It also had a beneficial political function. Alliances were often formed and inter-state disagreements resolved. The Olympic Games helped maintain the peace between the city-states of Ancient Greece.

After Rome invaded Greece in 146 B.C., the Games began to decline. In 393 A.D., the Roman emperor Theodosius I, a Christian who considered the Olympics a pagan festival, abolished them.

The Olympic Games were revived and made international in 1896. The Winter Games were added in 1924. World Wars I and II forced cancellation of the Games in 1916, 1940 and 1944. They resumed in 1948 and have been held on a regular basis ever since.

The Olympics will be held this year, 2008, from August 8th. to 24th. in Beijing, People's Republic of China. And so, a great and ancient tradition continues and develops. May it also continue to solve disputes, heal breeches, and promote brotherhood as it did during its origins in Ancient Greece.

Learn more about this author, Carolyn Tytler.
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