2004 Summer Olympics

The 2004 Summer Olympics were held in Athens, Greece, from August 13 to August 29, 2004. Athletes from all over the world came together to compete in many sports. Over ten thousand athletes from 201 countries took part, making it a very big and important event.

Athens was a special place to host the Olympics because it is where the Olympic Games began in ancient times. This was the second time Athens had hosted the Summer Olympics, the first being in 1896. During these games, many amazing records were broken, and athletes from many countries won their first-ever Olympic gold medals, including Chile, Chinese Taipei, Dominican Republic, Georgia, and Israel.

The United States won the most medals, followed by China and Russia. The games were considered a big success and helped improve Athens with new buildings, roads, and transportation. Many people remember the 2004 Olympics as wonderful and unforgettable.

Host city selection

Main article: Bids for the 2004 Summer Olympics

Athens was chosen to host the 2004 Summer Olympics in Lausanne, Switzerland, on September 5, 1997. Athens had tried to host the 1996 Summer Olympics before but lost to Atlanta. This time, led by Gianna Angelopoulos-Daskalaki, Athens made a new bid. The bid focused on the history of the Olympics and Greece's role in supporting the Olympic Movement. The 2004 bid was praised for being humble and honest.

Before being chosen, there were worries about Athens being ready for such a big event. But Athens organized several other international sports events, which helped show they could handle the Olympics. Athens won the final vote against Rome, with other cities like Cape Town, Stockholm, and Buenos Aires being eliminated earlier. Six other cities had also submitted bids but were not chosen.

Development and preparation

The 2004 Summer Olympic Games cost the Government of Greece about €9 billion to organize. The group in charge finished its work in 2005 with some money left over. The Greek government paid for 8% of the costs, which was less than they first planned.

The Games brought money to Greece. Taxes went up by about €3.5 billion from 2000 to 2004 because of all the activity around the Olympics. The Games helped the Greek economy grow.

Many buildings and roads were built for the Olympics. Some were finished just in time. The main stadium got a special glass roof made by an architect from Spain. Trains and trams were added to help people get around the city easily.

Sadly, some people died while working on the buildings for the Olympics. Most of these people were not from Greece.

Before the Olympics started, some workers in hotels went on strike asking for better pay. Also, paramedics and ambulance drivers protested because they wanted the same extra pay as security workers.

Torch relay

The lighting ceremony of the Olympic flame happened on 25 March 2004 in Ancient Olympia. For the first time, the flame traveled around the world in a relay to many cities, before coming back to Greece.

Broadcasting

Athens Olympic Broadcasting was the main provider for the Games. They shared more than 35,000 hours of events with over 300 TV channels around the world. Local broadcasts were handled by ERT. They used three channels (ET1, NET, and ET3) to show Olympic events for more than 24 hours each day.

Online coverage

For the first time, big TV companies could share video of the Olympics on the Internet, but only in certain places. The International Olympic Committee did not allow athletes, coaches, or team staff to create special weblogs or websites to share their own views of the Games. They could not post audio, video, or photos unless they had a personal website that was not made just for the Olympics. NBC created its own website, NBCOlympics.com. It gave video clips, medal counts, and live results. Its main job was to show when and where Olympic sports would be on NBC Universal’s many networks. The Games were shown on TV all day and night.

Technology

The people organizing the 2004 Summer Olympics used lots of technology to make sure everything worked well. They had two special networks—one for getting ready for the Games and one for the Games themselves. They used many computers, servers, printers, phones, and other devices all connected by cables.

This technology helped staff, volunteers, and guests. It also kept everyone informed, including people watching on TV and online. A special team worked to watch everything and fix any problems.

The Games

Opening ceremony

The opening ceremony of the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens, Greece, happened on August 13, 2004. It started with a countdown and fireworks. The ceremony had music, dance, and performances showing Greek culture and history. Athletes from 201 nations marched into the stadium, with Greece entering last as the host country. The ceremony ended with lighting the Olympic cauldron and more fireworks.

Participating National Olympic Committees

All National Olympic Committees except Djibouti joined the Athens Games. Two new committees, Kiribati and East Timor, joined for the first time. Afghanistan returned to the Games after being banned in 2000. The number of participating nations grew from 199 to 201.

Sports

The 2004 Summer Olympics had 301 events in 28 sports. For the first time, women competed in wrestling and a fencing event called sabre. Wheelchair racing was shown as a demonstration sport. Athletes also competed in the ancient site of Olympia for the first time in modern history.

Highlights

Some memorable moments include Greece getting more medals than it had in over 100 years, Australia winning the most gold medals after hosting the Olympics, and Kelly Holmes from Britain winning gold in both the 800m and 1500m races. Liu Xiang from China set a world record in the 110m hurdles, and Michael Phelps from the United States won eight medals. Carly Patterson from the United States became the second American woman to win the all-around gold medal in gymnastics.

Closing ceremony

The closing ceremony on August 29, 2004, celebrated Greek culture and officially ended the Games. It included performances by Greek artists and a handover to Beijing, the host of the next Olympics. The Olympic flag was passed from Athens to Beijing, and a young Greek girl symbolically put out the Olympic Flame.

Medal table

These are the top ten nations that won medals in the 2004 Games.

Key

 ‡  Changes in medal standings (see here)

  *   Host nation (Greece)

Venues

Main article: Venues of the 2004 Summer Olympics

The 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens, Greece, were held at many different places. Some of the main spots were the Athens Olympic Aquatic Centre for diving and swimming, the Athens Olympic Tennis Centre for tennis, and the Olympic Stadium for the opening and closing ceremonies.

Other important places were the Helliniko Indoor Arena for basketball and handball, the Faliro Olympic Beach Volleyball Centre for beach volleyball, and the Markopoulo Olympic Shooting Centre for shooting. Venues were also in other parts of Greece, like Kaftanzoglio Stadium in Thessaloniki and Karaiskakis Stadium in Piraeus, used for football matches.

• Athens Olympic Aquatic Centre – diving, swimming, synchronized swimming, water polo

• Athens Olympic Tennis Centre – tennis

• Athens Olympic Velodrome – cycling (track)

• Olympic Indoor Hall – basketball (final), gymnastics (artistic, trampolining)

• Olympic Stadium – ceremonies (opening/ closing), athletics, football (final)

• Faliro Olympic Beach Volleyball Centre – volleyball (beach)

• Faliro Sports Pavilion Arena – handball, taekwondo

• Peace and Friendship Stadium – volleyball (indoor)

• Agios Kosmas Olympic Sailing Centre – sailing

• Ano Liosia Olympic Hall – judo, wrestling

• Galatsi Olympic Hall – gymnastics (rhythmic), table tennis

• Kotzia Square – cycling (individual road race)

• Marathon (city) – athletics (marathon start)

• Nikaia Olympic Weightlifting Hall – weightlifting

• Panathenaic Stadium – archery, athletics (marathons finish)

• Peristeri Olympic Boxing Hall – boxing

• Schinias Olympic Rowing and Canoeing Centre – canoeing (sprint), rowing

• Stadium at Olympia – athletics (shot put)

• Vouliagmeni Olympic Centre – cycling (individual time trial), triathlon

OAKA

HOC

• Fencing Hall – fencing
• Helliniko Indoor Arena – basketball, handball (final)
• Olympic Baseball Centre – baseball
• Olympic Canoe/Kayak Slalom Centre – canoeing (slalom)
• Olympic Hockey Centre – field hockey
• Olympic Softball Stadium – softball

Faliro

GOC

• Goudi Olympic Hall – badminton
• Olympic Modern Pentathlon Centre – modern pentathlon

MOC

• Markopoulo Olympic Equestrian Centre – equestrian
• Markopoulo Olympic Shooting Centre – shooting

Football venues

• Kaftanzoglio Stadium (Thessaloniki)
• Karaiskakis Stadium (Piraeus)
• Pampeloponnisiako Stadium (Patras)
• Pankritio Stadium (Heraklion)
• Panthessaliko Stadium (Volos)

Other venues

Marketing

Mascots

Main article: Athena, Phevos and Proteas

Mascots have been part of the Olympic Games since the 1968 Winter Olympics in Grenoble, France. For the 2004 Olympics, there were two official mascots: Athena and Phevos. They were named after Athena, the goddess of wisdom, and Phoebus, the god of light and music. The designs were inspired by ancient daidala, special toy dolls.

Sponsors

Legacy

To remember the 2004 Olympics, special coins were made in Greece. The coins show famous places in Greece and pictures of old and new sports.

Getting ready for the Olympics helped improve Athens. New things were built, like a big airport named after Eleftherios Venizelos, trains, trams, and roads. These improvements are still used today. Some buildings were turned into parks or shops.

There were discussions about whether the money spent on the Olympics helped or hurt Greece. Some people thought it cost too much, but others said the benefits were important too.