On April 6th, 1896, the Olympic Games, a long-lost tradition of ancient Greece, was reborn in Athens. At the opening of the Athens games a crowd of 60,000 spectators welcomed athletes from 13 nations to the international competition.

The track-and-field events were held at the Panathenaic Stadium, which was originally built in 330 B.C. and restored for the 1896 Games. Americans won nine out of 12 of these events.

The ancient Olympics, held every four years, occurred during a religious festival honoring the Greek god Zeus. Olympic competition was limited to foot races, but later a number of other events were added.