London 2012 Olympics
Photo Credit: Courtesy london2012.com
London 2012 Olympics
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February 13, 2012 • Lauren Boulger, Staff Reporter
Filed under Features, Top Stories
The 2012 Summer Olympics are planned to take place in London between July 27, 2012 and August 12, 2012. As of today, 146 nations have qualified at least one athlete to compete in the Olympic Games this summer.
The London 2012 Olympic bid was announced as the winner of the bidding process on July 6, 2005. London has hosted the Olympic Games twice before, in 1908 and 1948. “The planned 2012 Olympics will make London the first city ever to have hosted the modern Games of three Olympiads.” London is the only city in the United Kingdom to have ever hosted the Olympics. The planning for the Games is still ongoing, with many announcements and developments taking place.
Originally, the ancient Olympic Games were held in Olympia, Greece, from the 8th century BC to the 4th century AD. The Ancient Games were a series of competitions held between representatives of several city-states and kingdoms from Ancient Greece. The games featured mainly athletic but also combat and chariot racing events. During the Olympic Games all struggles against the participating city-states were postponed until the games were finished.
The Olympic Games have drastically evolved during the 20th and 21st centuries. This evolution has resulted in several changes to the Olympic Games. Some of these changes include the creation of the Winter Games for ice and winter sports, the Paralympic Games for athletes with physical disabilities, and the Youth Olympic Games for teenage athletes wanting to compete. As the Olympics have progressed they have shifted away from pure amateurism, to allow professional athletes to participate. Also over the years the Games have grown into a worldwide sports phenomenon. The growing importance of the mass media created the issue of corporate sponsorship and commercialization of the Games.
According to the Wikipedia entry, “The Games are currently held every two years, with Summer and Winter Olympic Games alternating, although they occur every four years within their respective seasonal games.” The Olympic Games program consists of 35 sports, 30 disciplines and nearly 400 events. The Summer Olympics program includes 26 sports, while the Winter Olympics program features 15 sports. Athletics, swimming, fencing, and artistic gymnastics are the only summer sports that have never been absent from the Olympic Games. Ice Hockey, cross-country skiing, figure skating, Nordic combined, ski jumping, and speed skating have been featured at every Winter Olympics program. Current Olympic sports, like basketball and volleyball, first appeared on the program as demonstration sports, and were later promoted to full Olympic sports.
The opening ceremonies for the 2012 London summer Olympics are to be held July 27th, 2012. We know we’re going to watch the Games this summer; maybe one of you will be there to see the games in person.
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