The 2016 Summer Olympics is currently taking place in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Many people have been excited about this Olympics for a while, and the excitement around the Olympic games has been strong for many years now. Here are 10 interesting facts about the Olympics that you might appreciate.
1. The Olympic Games were banned for being a pagan festival.
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The Olympics initially celebrated Zeus and other Greek gods. When Christian emperor Theodosius rose to power, he banned the Olympics, stating that they were unworthy of Christian culture. The Olympics did not get reinstated for another 1,400 years.
2. Two continents have still never hosted an Olympics.
Despite the fact that the Olympics has been around for many years and many participants come from all around the world, no country in Africa has ever hosted an Olympics. The Olympics have never been held in Antarctica either.
3. Rio 2016 is the first time that a South American country has hosted an Olympics.
There were initially many concerns about the Olympics being held in Rio, but the 2016 Summer Olympics has turned out to be great. Maybe other South American countries will host the Olympics in the future.
4. Some athletes have won medals at both the Summer and Winter Olympics.
Most athletes compete at either the Summer or Winter Olympics. Eddie Eagan (United States), Jacob Tullin Thams (Norway), Christa Luding-Rothenburger (East Germany), and Clara Hughes (Canada) not only competed in both, but have all won medals at both Olympics.
5. Only three countries do not pay for their athletes to attend the Olympics.
The United States government, along with the governments of two other countries, do not pay for their athletes to go to the Olympics. Instead, athletes must rely on corporate sponsorship or local sponsors to pay for their Olympic attendance.
6. Golf returned to the Olympics this year after a 112-year absence.
The Rio Olympics has both women's and men's golf for the first time in more than 100 years. The Olympic committee is very proud of the amount of effort that went towards making an environmentally friendly golf course in Rio.
7. At the Rio Olympics, for the first time in Olympics history, refugees will be competing under the Olympic flag.
10 refugees are competing in the 2016 Rio Olympics and were greeted by the crowd warmly as they walked through the opening ceremony together.
8. Women were allowed to compete in the Olympics for the first time in 1900.
Before the 1900 Paris Olympics, women were banned from competing. Even in 1896, not a single woman was able to compete in the Olympics. Fortunately today, women are competing in every Olympic event.
9. This year Bhutan's Olympic team consists of only women.
The world has clearly come far since 1900. For the 2016 Rio Summer Olympics, both of Bhutan's competing athletes are female.
10. The Beijing Olympics began at exactly 8:08:08 PM.
The number 8 is considered to be lucky in China, therefore the Beijing Olympics, which took place in 2008, started at the unusual time of 8:08:08 PM.
