The first Olympic Games were celebrated in the 776 b.C and during two later centuries they were growing in importance (from being a local celebration to a great event) that, every four years, reunited the diverse states of the Greek world.

Although initially the competitions were athletic with time were celebrated competitions of music or poetry. The event acquired as much importance that became meeting point where noble and ambassadors signed treaties, retailers made businesses and poets and sculptors went looking for patrons.

More than thousand years after the first celebration, in the 393 a.C., the games succumbed to the Christian emperor Teodosio who, pawned on suppressing the pagan celebrations, destroyed the temples. Later the effects of the Roman invasion, the earthquakes and finally the change of the canal of the river Alfiós came.

Olympia was buried under 7 meters of sediments, hides to the passage of the centuries, until it returned to see the light when it was excavated in 1870.

Nowadays the ancient site is one of the most visited of the country.

The entrance runs next to the wall of the sacred enclosure and passes in front of several public and officials buildings. Among them, it is remarkable the study of Phidias, famous sculptor of the V b.C. century V who designed the temple of Zeus and the Parthenon of Athens.

The temple of Zeus, constructed between 456 and 470 b.C., is the greater temple of all the enclosure and it lodged in its interior a solemn gold and marble statue of Zeus (done by Phidias) that guarded the sacred flame during the celebration of the Olympic Games.

Their columns, today fallen down in the ground, allow us to have an idea of its size and the Archaeological Museum of Olympia (to the other side of the parking) keeps a good part of the sculptures that adorned the temple. Next to it, there is the temple of Hera, something smaller with a good conservation state. The temple of Hera was the first building that was raised in the enclosure (VII b.C.) and conserves, nowadays, some of its columns still raised.

But the most important and attractive place than it is possible to be visited in Olympia is the simple and small zone where the races were carried out. It conserves the start and arrival lines as well as a small sample of the launching slips that, in the antiquity, could lodge up to 30.000 spectators.

Next to the ruins, to the other side of the parking, there is the excellent Archaeological Museum of Olympia. It lodges the sculptures of the temple of Zeus, helmets, bronze heads, objects related to the games and diverse statues and statuettes that, anciently, decorated the city of the athletes and which many have a special sexual character. And, obviously, the excellent statue of Hermes maintaining to Dionysius and taking it to the nymphs, work of Praxiteles. The best piece of the museum for many people.

ADVICES

Olympia is quite separated from the main tourist routes, so if you want to visit it, you must to go several kilometres away (from Athens) or to prepare a route by which Olympia is a step (Interrail travellers).

In this second case, normally one enters or leaves Greece by Peloponnese towards or from Italy, so, it is not difficult to adapt the route to visit the ancient ruins.

In order to arrive to Olympia you must to take a train to Pirgos, and from there a bus (or a train) to Olympia.

Perhaps and as Olimpia is a little separated needs to spend the night there. There are many hotels of all the prices, but the cheapest place where to lodge it is the Youth Hostel, in the main highway, closely together of the bus-stop. He is a little miserly but to duer itself to me and it is possible to be had breakfast.