April 6, 1896

1896 Summer Olympics

King George I opens the first International Olympic Games in Athens

Paper parasols were banned because they would block the view, so women in the stadium shielded themselves with large paper fans instead.

Easter Monday at the Panathenaic Stadium

On Easter Monday, 6 April 1896 in the Gregorian calendar — 25 March under the Julian calendar then used in Greece — the Games of the First Olympiad opened at Athens's Panathenaic Stadium.

After Crown Prince Constantine addressed his father, King George I formally declared the first international Olympic Games open. Organisers estimated the opening-day crowd at more than 80,000.

An encore before the first race

Nine bands and a 150-voice chorus performed the Olympic Hymn, composed by Spyridon Samaras to words by Kostis Palamas, and the crowd demanded an encore. The piece was not adopted as the official Olympic Hymn until the IOC's session of 1958.

Competition began at about half past three. Francis Lane won the opening 100-metre heat, and James Connolly won the triple jump, the first championship decided at the modern Games.

Nothing like a modern opening

There was no parade of nations, no torch lighting and no Olympic oath; that protocol came later. There were no gold medals either — winners received silver medals, olive crowns and diplomas at a prize ceremony held afterwards.

Participation totals are retrospective reconstructions, since no modern national-entry system existed. The IOC uses 241 male athletes from 14 national Olympic committees, while Mallon and Widlund estimate about 245 competitors associated with 15 polities.

Sources

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What the sources leave uncertain

The date is secure but dual-dated: 6 April 1896 Gregorian was 25 March 1896 in Greece’s Julian calendar.
Attendance figures are estimates. Contemporary and later sources give different stadium capacities and crowd totals.
Competitor and country totals are reconstructed retrospectively because there were no modern national-entry systems. The IOC uses 241 athletes and 14 NOCs; Mallon and Widlund estimate about 245 competitors associated with 15 polities.