Fourteen countries with 241 athletes competed in fortythree events. Although some people wanted to have the games in Athens every four years, the IOC decided to have them in different countries and cities.
In 1900, they were held in Paris and women were allowed to compete in the games for the first time. The first Winter Olympic Games were held in 1924 and athletes competed in events such as skating and ice hockey. Over 200 countries now compete in the Summer Olympic Games.
The number of events has increased to 300 events and instead of five days of competition, the games now last for seventeen days.
There are some problems, however. There were no Olympic games held in 1916,
1940 and 1944 because of war. Also, some athletes use drugs to help them win.
In
addition, the games are very expensive.
The 2014 Winter Games in Sochi, for
example, cost $US50 billion. Nevertheless, the Olympic Games continue to be
extremely popular all over the world.
