Having been banned by the Roman Empire for over a thousand years, the Olympic Games, a long lost ancient sporting tradition, were reinvented in Athens the capital of Greece in April 1896 .
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The idea of reinventing the games is accredited to a French man, Barron Pierre de Coubertin. At the age of 29 this aristocrat, who had made educational and sporting reform his life’s work, unveiled his great idea in 1892. His dream came to fruition four years later and the first modern Olympic Games were staged in Greece (Randall 2011). It was Coubertin’s belief that the games would foster a sense of community and a sense of belonging among athletes. Not only would the games be a display of both physical prowess and moral excellence, but they would also serve as a sense of stimulation, in particular to young and upcoming athletes (Findling & Pelle 1996). The first modern Olympic Games held in Greece in 1896 were largely hailed as a success however, this was not to be the case for the games in Paris, France in 1900 and St. Louis, USA in 1904.
Coubertin himself was generally critical of the Paris games and called into question if the games were of Olympic standard due to the fact that they were poorly organised and held in venues that were inadequate (Guar 2014). Similarly, critics of the 1904 Games in the USA claimed that they were too ‘American’ and were ‘bathed in nationalism, ethnocentrism, controversial, confusion and bad taste’ (Findling & Pelle 2004, p.33).
Regardless of how successful or not the games were, however, Coubertin claimed that the guiding ideals, principles and beliefs about the games remained one of ‘participation’
as Coubertin believed that participation in the games was more important than winning.
In Sao Paulo in 1908, Coubertin explained what he meant by this at a state banquet by claiming ‘the important thing in our life is not the triumph, but the struggle, its essence is not to win but to make human beings become more courageous, more robust, more cautious and more graceful. This is the guiding ideology of the modern Olympic Games’
(Yanan 2011, p.585). However, even though the guiding principles and ideals of the modern Olympic Games were on the basis of ‘participation’, the Olympic motto of the day encapsulating the beliefs and ideals of the Olympic Games was ‘faster, higher, and stronger’ (Yanan 2011). In reality the games were geared towards elite athletes and competition between athlete and nation was fierce. In 1913, this motto became an official part of the Olympic logo. Athlete participation in the games continuously grew over the decades and from having 311 participants in 1896, over ten thousand were participating by 2010.
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The number of events also grew significantly during this time from 43 to over 300.
While no women athletes participated in the first modern Olympics, well over 4500 were participating in the games by the year 2000 (Sports United: USA Department of State 2008). From an international perspective, the Olympic Games are held in high esteem, with significant global media and public interest. However, there are some landmark events worth noting in the history of the modern Olympic Games. Since 1896 there have been twenty-five Olympic Games held in major cities across the world, with the exception of 1916, 1940 and 1944. This was due to the devastation and chaos caused by both World War I and World War II. In Munich, 1972, the games were marred by a disaster known as ‘the Munich massacre’ when terrorists abducted eleven Israeli athletes from the Olympic Games Village and subsequently killed them (Olympic Sporting 2015).
3.2.1 Development of the Winter Olympic Games
A significant milestone in the history of the Olympic Games was the establishment of the Winter Olympic Games in Chamonix, France in 1926. According to Judd (1996, p.23),
‘over 10, 000 people attended the International Sports week in 1924 in Chamonix in the French Alps to compete in ice hockey, bobsled, ski jumping, and skating. Two years later Olympic officials branded these games the first Winter Olympic Games’. Since the inauguration of the Winter Olympic Games, the modern Olympics are regularly referred to as the Summer Games. Similar to the Summer Games, the Winter Olympics are a huge international event which has earned significant public and media interest. The Winter Olympics have also grown substantially since 1924 from a limited number of events to a major international multi-sport event with approximately 2,600 athletes from 82 nations participating in 86 events in fifteen disciplines in 2010 (Harris 2010).
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3.2.2 Conflicting Philosophies of the Olympic Games – Participation versus Win at all Costs
According to Howell (2009), the Olympic Games have a long history and there is undoubtedly a human need for sport and competition. While such competitiveness may favour athletes who are physically fit and mentally sharp, they offer competitors and spectators alike a beneficial catharsis. ‘The games now and as in the past are a celebration, a renewal, an affirmation; a turning point and a demonstration of knowhow, prowess and teamwork’ (Howell 2009, p.8). Richman (2006, p.34) further stated that the Olympic Games ‘provide a superior opportunity to teach...sportsmanship, teamwork, perseverance, love of sport, spirit, caring for friends, physical training and so much more’. Today, the official International Olympic Committee website claims that the mission of the games is ‘a philosophy of life, exalting and combining in a balanced whole the qualities of body, will and mind. Blending sport with culture and education, Olympism seeks to create a way of life based on the joy found in effort, the educational value of good example and respect for universal fundamental ethical principles’
(International Olympic Committee 2015). While the philosophy of the Olympic Games may encompass notions of spirit, caring for friends and participation, the reality is they are one of, if not the most, political and competitive sporting phenomena at global level.
Coakley (1999) claimed the Olympics generate significant patriotism in athletes and winning at the games reflect on the apparent success of both the social and political arrangements of each nation that participates. Rogan and Rogan (2011, p.105) claimed that ‘by 1948 winning became important not just because the games themselves were becoming more competitive but because countries began to realise what sporting supremacy could do to levels of morale in their own country and in their standing in the world’. Hargreaves (2003, p.154) has also stated that ‘the Olympic Games have become an increasingly political phenomenon and one which incorporates excess and corruption’.
In a similar vein, Beamish (2011, p.70) claimed that the Olympic Games no longer reflect or reinforce Coubertin’s essential principles of ‘joy in effort’ and ‘participation’.
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The Olympic Games no longer centre on character development through chivalrous athletic competition where the joy of effort took precedence over victory. This religious experience was replaced by the secular pursuit of money and victory at almost any cost’.
The International Olympic Council (IOC) has adapted its Olympic Charter so the Olympic Games would feature athletes for whom the sport was a full-time, year-round vocation and winning was their solitary guiding principle. The culture to ‘win at all costs’ in the Olympic Games, according to Arnold (1998), is the ultimate degradation of competitive sport and promotes barriers to integration, inclusiveness and participation.
‘To win at all costs exemplifies an attitude of mind and conduct which is the very antithesis of the ethos of sport as a culturally valued practice. It signifies a call for victory, without a corresponding concern for demand for moral virtue’ (Arnold 1998, p.23). Thus, Oliver and Barnes (1998, p.102) have claimed that the overarching ideal would be ‘a world in which all human beings regardless of age, gender, social class, minority or ethnic status, can co-exist as equal members of the community and that their views will be recognised, respected and valued’. In turn, the ideals underpinning the principles of integration and inclusiveness in sport are to support and facilitate minority groups, who have been typically marginalised to participate in a meaningful way.
3.2.3 Elitism and Sport
However, DePauw (1997) claimed that within the context of high performance sport, such ideals are difficult to achieve. By its very nature, elite sport is selective and is based on how well individual bodies perform against one another. Elite and competitive sporting competitions therefore lead to a process of exclusion for many people, whether disabled or not (Bowen 2002). Thibault & Harvey (2013) suggested that according to Bowen’s theory on competitive sport, with the exception of the elite athlete, sport can actually isolate individuals. Those who are isolated will find themselves looking to minor, different or segregated local sporting events, such as the Special Olympics.
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Today the vast majority of athletes that participate in the Olympic Games are at the top of their game. They are mentally focused and continually strive to run at faster speeds, to jump higher and be physically fitter and stronger. This in turn results in barriers for the inclusion of people with both physical and intellectual disabilities in the Olympic Games.
Consequently, if the Olympic Games are based upon a culture of ‘survival of the fittest’
and ‘win at all costs’ as suggested by Rogan and Rogan (2011) then PWID may never be afforded the opportunity of participating in the mainstream Olympic Games. Apart from a handful of people with physical disabilities who have taken part in the mainstream Olympics, people with physical or intellectual disabilities are generally excluded, despite Coubertin’s essential principles and ideals of ‘participation’ and ‘joy in effort’ being more important than actually winning. However, both groups have Olympic style games specific to their disabilities. People with physical disabilities can seek to participate in the Paralympic Games while people with intellectual disabilities can seek to participate in the SO.