Olympic Games
The Olympic Games are held every four years in a different city in the world. Athletes from different countries compete in a variety of sports which are divided into winter and sum mer games.
The Olympics began in Greece more than 2 700 years ago. The first recorded Olympic competition was held in 776 B. C. It was held in an outdoor stadium and about forty thousand people watched the event. The first thirteen Olympics consisted of only one race running. The games had been held regularly for about 1 200 years. Then in the year 397 the Olympics were prohibited by the Roman Emporor.
It was not until 1896 that the first Olympics of modern times were held in Athens. From then on the games are held every four years rugularly. The Olympics have become the world's most important athletic events and a symbol of sporting friendship of all the people of the world.
奥运会每隔四年在世界上一个不同的城市举办一次。来自不同国家的运动员各类运动项目中角逐。这些运动项目又分为冬季项目和夏季项目。
奥运会起源于2 700多年前的希腊。第一次有记载的奥运会竞赛举办于公元前776年。比赛是在露天体育场进行的，大约有4万人观看了比赛。前天十三届的奥运会只有一个项目：赛跑。奥运会一直定期举办了约1 200年，然后，公元397年，被罗马皇帝禁止举办。
直到1896年，第一届现代奥运会在雅典举行。从那时起，奥运会定期每四年举行一次。奥运会已成为世界上最重要的运动赛事，也是全世界人民在运动中体现友谊的象征。