Stamata Revithi
The 1896 Olympic Games were the first held in the Modern era and the most important international multi-sport event Greece had ever hosted. The rules of the Games generally excluded women from competition. Influenced by both his times—in the Victorian era women were considered to be inferior to men—and his admiration for the ancient Olympic Games, when only men were allowed to participate in the events, Baron Pierre de Coubertin, the visionary of the modern Olympic Games, was not in favour of women's participation in the Olympic Games or in sports generally. He believed that a woman's greatest achievement would be to encourage her sons to be distinguished in sports and to applaud a man's effort.
Paralympic symbols
The first Paralympic Oath was taken at the first Paralympic Games, in Rome in 1960. The Paralympic Oath is identical to the Olympic Oath, with the exception of the word 'Olympic' being substituted by 'Paralympic'. The Oath was originally written by Pierre de Coubertin. The first oath (an Athlete's Oath) was taken at the Olympic Games in Antwerp in 1920. The original text by Coubertin, has since been modified several times. The first Judge's/Official's Oath was taken at the Olympic Games in Sapporo in 1972. The first Coach's Oath was taken at the Paralympic Games in London in 2012.