On Men and Governments

Olympics DBQ The original intent of the Olympics was to bring peace to the warring regions of Greece through national unity and awareness. The modern Olympic Games, which began in 1892, changed the goals of the athletic competition because of the international movements surrounding women’s rights, the tensions that wars and social issues put on nationalism and political identities, and the economic gains that came with the Olympics. The women’s rights movement saw a dramatic increase in the 20th century as the role and portrayal of women changed with the times. The modern Olympic Games allowed for women to compete, beginning in the 1908 Olympics held in Great Britain. Sybil Newall competed in the archery competition (Doc. 2). In a time when only 2% of the competitors were women and the women’s suffrage movement was gaining speed, Sybil’s actions would have inspired women all over the world to take more charge and to fight for more rights. In 1995, Hassiba Boulmerka was quoted in an interview concerning her Olympic experience in 1992. She said that her wins gave not only her confidence, but gave confidence to all of the women in her country who “[were] capable of becoming athletes, but psychologically, they didn’t think so” (Doc 8). In a predominantly Muslim country, a woman competing in shorts would challenge the social norm and the way that women were seen tremendously. Boulmerka made this statement because she saw the women’s rights movement and wanted to keep inspiring women so that more of the Olympics could be shaped by women. Wars during this period rocked the world and everyone in it. In the first modern Olympics, Pierre de Coubertin, the founder of the movement, made a statement saying that with the addition of the modern Olympics, the world would become a utopian place where every country was an ally of every country because the games would provide international and diplomatic peace rather that instigating war (Doc 1). The idea that the Olympics