HISTORY OF THE OLYMPIC GAMES: 776 BC- 2020 AD

The date of foundation of Olympia is unknown, it is assumed that the city was the result of a long evolution, because for many centuries, the valley between the rivers Alpheus and Clades, whose fertile plain is dominated by the small mountain Chronus, was a place of worship and ritual practices honoring a succession of gods, and the first of them, according to tradition, back in the second millennium BC, was Chronus, to whom together with his wife Rhea the high priests offered sacrifices on top of the mountain.
This oral tradition, narrated by Pausanias (around 170 AD) and Philostratus (around 200 AD), was later confirmed by archaeological research. In the course of time, Zeus, son of Chronus, replaced his father as the main deity of the Sanctuary, and his cult increased over the years. The cult of Zeus attracts to the valley of Olympia pilgrims from the most diverse places of the Hellas, who come to worship him and offer him sacrifices. And it is here that, according to the dominant opinion among historians and archaeologists, the idea was born that in its historical evolution would give rise to the sporting Games, basing its spirit on the purest ritual essence. According to Umminger, the pilgrims who came to Olympia offered a great sacrifice to Zeus, on whose pyre the gifts that the devotees offered to the god were immolated. To light the flame of the great bonfire was a privilege and a particularly coveted distinction, so a method was established for the election of the lucky one. The pilgrims who wished to dispute that honor, lined up at a certain prudential distance and at a signal they undertook a swift race to the place where, standing with a torch in his hand, a priest awaited. The first to reach him had the honor of lighting the flame of the great pyre. This was the origin of the Olympian Games, as Umminger says, imbued in their essence with an atmosphere of touching simplicity.
This ritual competition would give rise to the so-called stadium race (192.27 meters), which was the first of the events that would integrate the calendar of the ancient games and that would retain the privilege of primogeniture throughout the historical evolution of the first Olympics, which used to be identified with the name of the winner of that event, which would be inscribed and respected by future generations.