On this day in ..... 1896 (115 years ago today), the 1st Olympics in modern times opened in Athens, Greece. The 9-day, multisport meet would enjoy both the largest-ever participation in a sporting event and the largest-ever audience at same. (image credit) Greeks celebrated the marathon victory by one of their own, while a German wrestler/gymnast won the most events, 4. Despite the fact that the event was named after the goddess Olympia, "[w]omen were not allowed to compete at the 1896 Summer Olympics"; however, one woman ran the marathon the next day in an effort to persuade officials to admit women in subsequent Games.
(Prior April 6 posts are here, here, here, and here.)
