Athens Olympic Games Research Articles

The origins of public relations in Greece: Tracing the missing link and excavating landmark cases

The purpose of this paper is to provide an historical narrative tracing precedents of Greek Public Relations (PR) practice as far back as the organizing of mega events in mid-nineteenth century culminating in the first modern Olympic Games in Athens in 1896. The analysis documents that PR activities are interwoven with Greek governments’ initiatives aimed at tourism promotion. The paper is based on archival material and secondary sources. Access was granted to the special collections of the National Library of Greece and the Hellenic Literary and Historical Archive of the National Bank of Greece Cultural Foundation. Moreover, the study interrogates the three landmark events that ushered in the emergence of professional public relations in Greece in the early postwar period and supplements with important information the conventional accounts. The analysis established a PR-Tourism and National image promotion nexus that runs continuously throughout the period under examination, from the emergence of PR activities in mid-nineteenth century up until the early 1950s. The findings are based on the available written records. This historical review does not purport to be exhaustive and comprehensive. Future research could identify more PR-like activities worthy of mention. The study provides a springboard for investigating the precedents of PR practice in the pre-professionalization era. This investigation calls for an interdisciplinary perspective. This paper is the first one to trace precedents of professional PR practice to the second half the nineteenth century and the interwar period in Greece. It shows the interconnection of PR-like activities with tourism and underscores the prominent position of state agencies in those activities.

Chrześcijańska tożsamość olimpijskiego motta citius – altius – fortius

In this article, the author will attempt to show the Christian identity of the citius-altius-fortius motto, which is the basic motto of Olympism. It was introduced during the first modern Olympic Games in Athens in 1896 by its creator Pierre de Coubertin. Since then, it has been associated with the Olympic spirit and the idea of sports excellence, as well as commonly known as the principle of athletes striving to achieve the best possible results in the spirit of fair play, breaking records and exceeding their own limits.The author of the motto is the Dominican priest Henri Didon. The words come from Latin and mean faster-higher-stronger.

REVIEW OF COUNTER-TERRORISM SYSTEMS DURING SUMMER OLYMPIC GAMES IN THE 21ST CENTURY

The research results presented in the article pertain to the organization of security systems by the host countries during the Summer Olympic Games in Athens (2004), Beijing (2008), London (2012), and Rio de Janeiro (2016). The central part of the considerations focuses on the complex issue of searching for methods and tools to effectively protect participants of such large mass sports events, not only against terrorists. Taking into account the identified problem situation, it was agreed that the aim of the article will be to characterize the security methods and tools employed by the organizers of the Summer Olympic Games. The research was conducted with the use of selected theoretical scientific methods, including analysis, synthesis, comparison, analogy, generalization, and inference. These methods were applied in a structured way to a research process that focused on case studies of selected Summer Olympic Games that were considered representative samples. The results of the carried out research clearly indicate a high complexity of the security systems created for the needs of the Olympic Games. In every analyzed case, the need occurred to integrate state institutions and international organizations, including various agencies dealing with security issues, including terrorism. Additionally, based on the obtained results, it was also determined that properly forecasting threats is crucial in ensuring the safety of participants in the Olympic Games. It should be further emphasized that in each analyzed case study, the organizers of these large sports events fulfilled their role as hosts very well. They should, therefore, be recognized as a good example for other countries that will apply for organizing this type of mass sports events in the future. They must also be aware that each sporting event of this type requires a significant organizational and financial effort and that the threats are not limited to terrorism but can be posed by various external and internal factors. This article is one of the first attempts to assess the justification of implementing various methods and tools to the security systems of mass international sporting events through the prism of their effectiveness. In addition, the proposed solutions, including the threat forecasting methodology, may be useful to both practitioners and theoreticians in creating more effective solutions in the field of national and international security.

ECONOMIC CRISES AND SPORTS MEGA-EVENTS: LEARNING FROM PAST EXAMPLES FOR FUTURE ANALYSES

İntroduction. The Athens Olympic Games of 2004 contributed to the subsequent Greek economic crisis due to irresponsible spending. The aim of our study was to show how the policies and spending of the Greek government for infrastructural and other Olympic related projects links with a pattern of financial irresponsibility that led to the collapse of the Greek economy. Material and methods. Our methods were to examine governmental policies and financial indicators surrounding sport mega events (SMEs) and specifically the Greek case surrounding the 2004 Olympics. Results. Our results show that the current analysis of SMEs do not adequately examine financial indicators and realities and that both economic and financial analyses are necessary when determining both costs and return on investment.

Can post-Olympic Games urban regeneration be spontaneous and unplanned? The case of Athens Olympic Games (2004)

The urban regeneration linked to the Olympic Games is frequently planned with a master plan as in London or Barcelona. Atypically, the urban regeneration in the center of Athens seems different because it was carried out without overall planning after the Olympic Games had ended, although a master plan did exist since 1985. This research aims to understand how post-Olympic Games urban regeneration could be conducted in an informal manner over the long term, integrating all of the influences that have interacted to produce the current urban landscape (such as the deindustrialization, the development of recreative activities, and particularly the 2008 financial crisis and the effects of Airbnb activity). The results shows that urban regeneration has been conducted primarily by numerous family entrepreneurs, in an informal manner. The public authorities did not use strategic planning, iterative, contextualized, with objectives. The effects of this urban regeneration are also studied, such as in progress gentrification, evolution of jobs, increase in cultural and touristic activities, partial pedestrianization, partial buildings renovation, dilapidated buildings. The remain problem seems to be the lack of housing public planning and policy in the center.

Leveraging sport events for the promotion of human rights in host communities: diffusion of anti-trafficking campaigns at Super Bowl LIV

ABSTRACT Human trafficking is a complex human rights issue, and it has been associated with hosting large-scale sport events since the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens. Along with potential increases in demand for low-wage labour, the influx of tourists may lead to increased demand for sexual services which may be met, in part, by trafficked persons. Event rights holders and local organising committees have recognised human trafficking as a risk to be managed, leading to the implementation of anti-trafficking initiatives in host communities. In this study we employed a social event leverage framework and the theory of diffusion of innovations to examine how large-scale sport events can be harnessed by local communities to promote awareness of human trafficking. Using a social constructionist perspective, we utilised an instrumental case study design to understand the processes involved in planning, designing, and implementing event-related anti-trafficking campaigns. In this instance, the case – the 2020 Super Bowl hosted in Miami, Florida – facilitated the examination of the processes involved in leveraging events for the purpose of increasing awareness of human trafficking. Data included semi-structured interviews with key stakeholders and archival materials. Results of a thematic analysis highlighted the importance of peer networks, local and international partnerships, and campaign strategy in the execution of event-related anti-trafficking campaigns.

Investigating ambient air quality of a shooting range during official national competitions

Shooting is among nine sports branches that formed the first modern Olympic Games in Athens in 1896. A professional shooting athlete shoots millions of bullets throughout their sports life to commune with their gun dedicatedly. The number of simultaneous shots per unit time depends on the capacity of the range. It can enormously increase when a national match is a case. Shooting can cause gunshot residue exposure, including lead, other elements, and their by-products accumulate in ambient air and reveal significant health risks. This study aims to find the levels of PM10 and its chemical composition during official three-day 50 m 22-cal competitions in May 2016, Mersin, Turkey. To this end, PM10 samples were collected on quartz-fiber filters and analyzed for elements by ICP-MS and carbonaceous material by Thermal-Optical EC/OC analyzer. The total PM10 mass concentration average is 28.7±7.3 µg/m3 within the indoor threshold values of different countries. The ambient mass concentrations of PM10, OC, EC, TC, Cd, and Pb were higher during once pistol matches instead of rifle matches. Although Pb values did not exceed the indoor limits for shooting ranges, it has the highest concentration among the analyzed elements. Additionally, Cr poses cancer risk potential. Except for Zn, Sr, and Cu, all the measured parameters have higher calculated emission factor (EF) values during pistol shots. To our best knowledge, this study reports the airborne mass concentrations of EC, OC, and TC from indoor shooting ranges and investigates indoor air quality for shooting sport for the first time.

Profesor Stanisław Komornicki (1949-2016)

PROFESSOR STANISŁAW KOMORNICKI (1949-2016): A MEMOIR
 The aim of this article is to present the figure of Prof. Dr. hab. Stanisław Komornicki (1949-2016), who worked at the University of Science and Technology in Kraków and the University of Applied Sciences in Tarnów. The professor was born, raised, and educated in Krakow (in the years 1967-1968 and 1971-1972, he graduated from full-time master’s studies in physical chemistry at the Faculty of Mathematics, Physics and Chemistry of the Jagiellonian University). He started his scientific work and career in Kraków (first at the Environmental Laboratory of Physicochemical and Structural Research of the Jagiellonian University, then at the University of Science and Technology in Kraków). He attended many symposia and conferences as part of his studies, but also participated in competitive sports, and later served as a judge of rowing. He was associated with the city of Tarnów as an academic teacher, vice-rector, and then rector at the University of Applied Sciences in Tarnów, which was established in the late-1990s. S. Komornicki also participated in the works of the oldest sports federation in the world, Fédération Internationale des Sociétés d’Aviron – FISA (International Federation of Rowing Societies), as a member of the Arbitration Commission. He was on the jury of the World Rowing Championships in 1989, 1994, 1995, 1999, the 2000 World Rowing World Championships, the Olympic Games in Athens (2004), Beijing (2008) and in London (2012).

Factors that Influence Fan’s Attendance at Individual Sporting Events in Egypt through Coaches’ and Media Perspective

Egypt has been long reflected as one of the most attractive countries to visit because of its historical treasure. Egypt also has remarkable athletic performances in the world championship and the Olympics. Egypt's first recent Olympic gold medal was during the Athens Olympic Games. However, fans’ attendance at individual sporting events was not equivalent to fan presence at team sports. Related studies about fans' who participate in different sporting events focused on men’s sports, team sports, and professional sports ( Armstrong, 2007). The sports development pyramid model by Casey (1988), designed to analyze the stages of sports development, was used to understand more about the association of the significance ofspecific factorsthat Influence fans’, and fan attendance at different individual sporting events in Egypt. A survey initially designed by the researchers was used to collect insights from seven (7) sports journalists, and twenty-seven (27) national team head coaches from different countries, who attended the African and the Arab games held in Cairo, Egypt. The results showed a significant relationship between fan attendance and individual sporting events, public relations, social media, cultural, and the actions of the Egyptian National Governing Bodies (ENGB). The result of this study further suggests the importance of implementing marketing strategies to promote individual sport.

Evanghelie Zappa – un filantrop și un precursor al Jocurilor Olimpice moderne

Few know that the first to have the idea of i nitiating the Modern Olympic Games was a Romanian landowner, named Evangelos Zappa (Eυαγγέλης Ζάππα), although much is known about his life after. In 1856, Evangelos Zappa of Bucharest wrote to Otto I of Bavaria, the King of Greece and the Greek government proposing the revival of the Olympic Games in Athens, offering to provide the necessary funds for organizational expenses, as well as for the construction of sports buildings. His idea was accepted and the first modern Olympic Games, held according to Zappa’s plan, were inaugurated on November 15, 1859, in the presence of the royal family, the government and other personalities of the time.

Detecting - the 2004 Athens Olympic Games.

A summary of the preparations and the operation of the Athens Doping Control Laboratory for the 2004 Olympic Games is presented. The preparations involved an upgrade of the laboratory infrastructure: staff, equipment, space, new analytical methodologies. The operation of the laboratory during the Games created a major number of events in agreement with the International Olympic Committee's commitment to doping-free "clean" Games. This summary was created by the director of the Athens Doping Control Laboratory and reflected the author's outlook 15 years later.

Fluctuation of iron carrying capacity in an elite female triathlete while maintaining sporting performance

article: Fluctuation of iron carrying capacity in an elite female triathlete while maintaining sporting performance - Gazzetta Medica Italiana - Archivio per le Scienze Mediche 2019 July-August;178(7-8):563-8 - Minerva Medica - Journals

EL HITO OLÍMPICO DE NICOLÁS MASSÚ Y DEL TENIS CHILENO EN LOS JUEGOS OLÍMPICOS DE ATENAS 2004: SU IMPACTO EN LA IDENTIDAD NACIONAL DE CHILE

This article offers the result of the historical research work carried out around the participation of the Chilean men's tennis team at the Olympic Games in Athens 2004. It reconstructs as background, the many circumstances and sport evolution of Nicolas Massu carrying out a Sporting Life History until it reached the level that allowed him his Olympic participation. At the Games tennis days, the development and evolution of the matches played by the Chilean men's tennis team during the days that the matches were held, as well as the facts of the circumstances and the historical milestones that represented the gold medal obtained by Nicolas Massu in the individual tournament and the second medal he won along with his teammate Fernando Gonzalez. Likewise, the historical memory of the perception and influence that those events had on Chilean citizens is recovered through the testimony of contemporary Chilean oral sources of those sporting events. Their stories have been contrasted with the information offered by the Chilean press, in order to analyse the influence, meaning and orientation of the impact achieved by those sporting successes in aspects related to unity, identity and national self-esteem.Key words: Olympic Game, Tennis, Chilean Olympic team, Nicolas Massu, Fernando Gonzalez.

Alteration of Sport Performance of High Performance Heptathlon Athlete over Olympic Cycle

In Lithuania, over the recent years a highly-skilled heptathlon athlete has been developed. She made her internationaldebut in the Sidney Olympic Games in 2000 and took the 12 th place. Every year she kept improving her skills andexcellently prepared for the XXVIII Olympic Games in Athens where she won a silver medal.Track-and-field heptathlon requires excellent physical fitness, development of all specific features, as well as goodphysical fitness for each contest. While planning the process of a heptathlon athlete’s training, it is most important toelaborate an optimum structure of an annual cycle with regard to the competition schedule and the individual potentialof human adaptation. To be able to control the process, it is necessary to monitor the dynamics of the physical andfunctional abilities of the athlete in different periods of the annual cycle of training.The aim of the study was to analyse the dynamics of sports results of the Lithuanian heptathlon athlete A. S. in a four-year Olympic cycle and the dynamics of her physical and functional abilities over this period.We analyzed the dynamics of the sports results of A. S. over the last five years. Her body composition indices weremeasured in laboratory, with determining psychomotor response time and movement frequency per 10 s. To determineher physical abilities, we measured her single muscular contraction power (SMCP), anerobic alactic muscular power(AAMP). A running-track was used to establish the intensity of energetic processes at the anaerobic threshold level,with measuring heart rate (HR), running speed (km / h) and blood lactate concentration. The functional capacity ofthe circulatory and respiratory systems was assessed by the Roufier index (RI). Anaerobic capacity was measured witha gas analyzer at the critical intensity and anaerobic metabolism limits.The sports results of A. S. kept improving every year except 2003. In the 2004 Olympic Games she gathered 6435 pointsand won the second place. In previous years, in separate heptathlon contests the sum total of her points reached 12.7—15.6%, whereas in the 2004 Olympic Games the difference among scores got in separate contests was less. Most pointswere won in the100-m hurdling (15.1%) and the least in javelin throwing (13.3%).Data of laboratory tests showed that the quality of the SMCP and AAMP indices, which are decisive in even fivecontests of heptathlon, over the four-year Olympic cycle showed a waved dynamics, but attained a high level one monthbefore the Olympic start: her SMCP was 3.22 kgm / s / kg and AAMP 1.72 kgm / s / kg. Also, greatly improved herpsychomotor response time, which reached 160 mls, and central nervous system lability (78 movements per 10 s). Herhigh muscular power was confirmed by performing ten jumps on a running-jumping track, when the difference betweenthe highest and lowest jumps was insignificant and muscular fatigue in a series of jumps was low.In the final period of the preparation for the Olympic Games under a short-lasting load the muscular power of A. S.reached a high level and allowed her to realize physical and functional abilities.Keywords: heptathlon, four-year Olympic cycle, physical abilities, functional capacity, physical and functional abilities.

BRAZILIAN OLYMPIC GYMNASTS’ PERSPECTIVES ON THEIR PARTICIPATION IN THE OLYMPIC GAMES

This paper analyzes the perspectives of Brazilian gymnasts on the experience of participatingin the Olympic Games (OG) in the Women’s Artistic Gymnastics (WAG) competition (1980-2004), using oral history in a qualitative research approach, and cross-sectional thematic analysis. The author interviewed ten Brazilian WAG gymnasts (100% of the sample) who participated in OG until 2004. The gymnasts’ testimonials indicated that, as the Brazilian WAG team improved their performance in international competitions, gymnasts’ expectations have changed over time, although the dream to participate in the OG was shared by all of them. From the generation of the pioneering gymnasts (1984-1988-1992) to the transitional generation (1996-2000), it is possible to observe several differences related to the pressure to perform well in the competition. While the pioneering gymnasts were not concerned about their ranking in the OG, the transitional gymnasts were reminded of the responsibility to represent their country. For the new generation gymnasts (2004), the participation in the OG carried the burden of needing to accomplish something, to be among the best gymnasts in the world, with actual chances of going to the finals and getting medals in the apparatus finals. Testimonials show their confidence in the work developed by the experienced Ukrainian coaches who led the Brazilian team in the OG in Athens. Gymnasts describe their experience in the OG as having accomplished a mission, feeling at the same time relief, disappointment, desire to return to other editions and some even report the sensation of being lost after returning to Brazil.

Economic cooperation between public and private sectors – a comparative analysis of the Olympic Games in Athens 2004 and London 2012

The Olympic Games are considered to be the most important sports event in the world. In spite of the sports’ dimension of the Olympics, there are many other aspects which should be taken into consideration when thinking about the Olympics. These refer to economic, political, organisational and social fields. An appropriate budget, organisational structure, sports and non-sports infrastructure are just a few of the necessary issues. The major aim of this article is to present the spectrum of cooperation between the public and private sector during the Athens 2004 and London 2012 Olympic Games, the economic effectiveness of the Olympics in both cities and the realisation of the Olympic Legacy focused on post-game infrastructure and other facilities and areas of a socio-economic reality. The results of this study reveal that only a host city where an appropriate organisational structure, net of stakeholders, budget and strategy for Olympic infrastructure are established, is capable of drawing potential benefits from The Olympic Legacy.

Tangible and Intangible Legacy of the 19thCentury Zappas Olympics and their Implications for Contemporary Sport Tourism

AbstractAs has been shown in the article, the Zappas Olympics generously contributed to the revival of the Olympic Games in the nineteenth century. The course of these competitions has been described, and a brief summary of Zappas’s work, which does not often attract a lot of attention in, for example, Polish academics, has also been made. The fact that the Zappas Olympics mainly enhanced the national identity of the Greeks following Turkish captivity has also been highlighted. The Zappas Olympics allowed the Greeks to become more familiar with sports and fair play. The knowledge that the Greeks acquired from the organization of this event was useful for the organization of the first modern Olympic Games in Athens. These days, material remains of this event serve touristic and cultural functions. The significance of such facilities as the Zappeion and the Panathenaic Stadium have also been underlined. For example, the Zappeion and the Panathenaic Stadium host cultural events and welcome tourists interested in sports history or Greek culture. These are the authorities responsible for touristic policy in Greece and they may decide whether such historic sites and sporting facilities will be included in thematic routes for tourists. According to the authors of the present paper, these sites may effectively compete with mass and recreational attractions in Greece.

Pojava olimpijske misli u Srbiji u građanskim gimnastičkim i drugim sportskim društvima i klubovima

The idea of revival of the Olympic Games appeared much before its realization, but creation of the possibilities to reintroduce the Games was closely related to development of modern sport.The first mentioning and proposals originated from the works of the Humanists in 15thand 16thcentury, and in the thirties of the 19thcentury some practical attempts were made for their revival. The aim of the paper was to determine the time when the first ideas on Olympism appeared in Serbia in civil gymnastic and other sporting societies and clubs.Historical method was used in the paper. For a long period Serbia was cherishing and developing traditional forms of competitions and tournaments but organized forms of physical exercises of citizens appeared only in the mid-19th century when the first private schools for physical exercises were established in many towns of the Principality of Serbia. Therefore, these private schools and the civil gymnastic societies were places where modern sport and the Olympic ideal were gladly accepted and further developed.Thus, it is understandable why, at the time of realization of the idea on revival of Ancient Olympic Games, those societies and clubs used the expression: Olympic competitions for their sporting events, besides they already used names: popular festivals or chivalry competitive plays. In the mid-19th century the Olympic idea took roots also in the Principality and later in the Kingdom of Serbia. Namely, before the revival of the Olympic Games in Athens and before the term "Olympic" became more significant in reporting from sporting events, the competitions in Serbia had been announced as "Olympic festivities" although they were not directly linked to the aforementioned Games in Greece.

The Olympic Games of Athens: 10 years later

This paper presents the Olympic Games of Athens in 2004 and the legacy they have left to the city of Athens and generally to Greece. It relies mainly on research made after the Olympic Games 2004, as well as on a pan-Hellenic survey conducted through questionnaires to a country-wide sample of 600 respondents, men and women, from urban and non-urban regions. The survey focuses mainly on the sports venues, the impact of the Games on the infrastructures and the quality of life in Athens, the impact of the Games on urban interventions, the social legacy and the economic impact.

Exploring the Experiences of Elite Female Wrestlers From Developed and Developing Countries

ABSTRACT.The sport of wrestling lays claim to being the world's oldest sport, with artifacts from Sumeria depicting wrestling from over 5,000 years ago, and was widely practiced in many ancient cultures (Petrov, 1993). Widespread female involvement in the sport is relatively new compared to male formal amateur competition. For example, while male wrestling has been a part of the program of the modern Olympic Games since 1896, female wrestling debuted at the 2004 Athens Olympic Games. Consequently, the research on elite female wrestlers is limited. Research that has been published exploring issues related to female wrestling has typically been done so at the national level, and primarily examining gender issues (Khan & Ali, 2011; Macro, Viveiros & Cipriano, 2009; Miller, 2010; Stuart & Whaley, 2005).