填空题 How did the Olympic Games start? In ancient Greece, athletic festivals were very important and have strong 1 . Originally, the festival was held in honor of Zeus, the supreme God in Greek mythology. Eventually, the Olympian athletic festival had lost its 2 and became an international event. No one knows exactly 3 the Olympic Games go, but some scholars recorded date from 776 B.C.
According to some scholars, at first, the only Olympic event was 4 , called a stadium and that was the only event until 724 B.C. After that, other 5 were added and 16 years later in 6 , the pentathlon was added and wrestling became part of the Games. This pentathlon was a five-event match, which 7 running, wrestling, leaping, throwing the discus and hurling the javelin.
The Games were held 8 and after an uninterrupted history of 1,170 years, the Games were 9 in A.D. 394, the Christen era, because of the pagan origin.
It was over 10 before there was another such international athletic gathering. In 1896, the first of the modern 11 opened in Athens, Greece.
Nowadays the Games are held in different countries 12 . The host country provides vast facilities, such as stadiums and 13 . Many more sports are represented, including the very celebrated event: 14
The Olympics start with the arrival in the stadium of a torch, 15 on Mount Olympus by the sun"s rays. The torch is carried by 16 to the stadium. The Olympic flam symbolizes the 17 of the ancient Greek athletic ideals and it burns throughout the Games until 18 . The well-known Olympic flag, however, is 19 : the five interlocking rings symbolize the uniting of all five continents 20 .