<P> The ancient Olympic Games were originally a festival , or celebration of and for Zeus ; later , events such as a footrace , a javelin contest , and wrestling matches were added . The Olympic Games ( Ancient Greek : Ὀλύμπια Olympia `` the Olympics '' ; also Ὀλυμπιάς Olympias `` the Olympiad '' ) were a series of athletic competitions among representatives of city - states and one of the Panhellenic Games of ancient Greece . They were held in honor of Zeus , and the Greeks gave them a mythological origin . The first Olympics is traditionally dated to 776 BC . They continued to be celebrated when Greece came under Roman rule , until the emperor Theodosius I suppressed them in AD 393 as part of the campaign to impose Christianity as the State religion of Rome . The games were held every four years , or olympiad , which became a unit of time in historical chronologies . </P>
<P> The ancient Olympic Games were originally a festival , or celebration of and for Zeus ; later , events such as a footrace , a javelin contest , and wrestling matches were added . The Olympic Games ( Ancient Greek : Ὀλύμπια Olympia `` the Olympics '' ; also Ὀλυμπιάς Olympias `` the Olympiad '' ) were a series of athletic competitions among representatives of city - states and one of the Panhellenic Games of ancient Greece . They were held in honor of Zeus , and the Greeks gave them a mythological origin . The first Olympics is traditionally dated to 776 BC . They continued to be celebrated when Greece came under Roman rule , until the emperor Theodosius I suppressed them in AD 393 as part of the campaign to impose Christianity as the State religion of Rome . The games were held every four years , or olympiad , which became a unit of time in historical chronologies . </P>
who participated in the olympic games in ancient greece
who participated in the olympic games in ancient greece
representatives of city - states
representatives of city - states