1896 Summer Olympics

The 1896 Summer Olympics, formally called the Games of the I Olympiad, were the first modern Summer Olympic Games and the first Games since Roman emperor Theodosius I banned the Ancient Olympic Games in AD 393 as part of the Christian campaign against paganism. They were held between 6 April and 15 April 1896.

Notes

• This number is an indication. National teams hardly existed at the time, and most athletes represented themselves or their clubs. In addition, countries were not always as well-defined as they are today. The number of countries here reflects the number used by most modern sources.
• This number of competitors is an estimate, taken from Mallon & Widlund (see #References).
• Greece still used the Julian Calendar at the time. According to that calendar, the Games were opened on 25 March and closed on 3 April.
• These medals were won by a team with members from two different nations. This was allowed in 1896, but this is no longer the case today.