Editing 1906 Intercalated Games (section)

==Intercalated Games==
The Intercalated Olympic Games were to be a series of ''International Olympic Games'' halfway between what is now known as the Games of the [[Olympiad]]. This proposed series of Games, [[wikt:intercalate|intercalated]] in the Olympic Games cycle, was always to be held in [[Athens]] and was to have equal status with the international Games. However, the only such Games were held in 1906.

One reason for the games in 1906 was to celebrate the tenth anniversary of the 1896 games.<ref name=":1" />

The first Intercalated Games had been scheduled by the [[International Olympic Committee]] in 1901<ref>{{cite book |editor1-last=Walsh |editor1-first=Philip |title=Brill's Companion to the Reception of Aristophanes |date= 2016 |page=245 |url=https://brill.com/view/title/25319 |access-date=20 March 2020 |publisher=Brill |isbn=978-9004324657 |language=en}}</ref> as part of a new schedule, where every four years, in between the internationally organised Games, there would be Intermediate Games held in Athens.

This was a compromise; after the successful Games of [[1896 Summer Olympics|Athens 1896]], the Greeks suggested they could organise the games every four years. Since they had the accommodation and had proven they could hold well-organised games, they received substantial public support. However, [[Pierre de Coubertin]], the founder of the [[International Olympic Committee]], opposed this, as he had intended for the first Games to be in Paris in 1900. After Paris had lost the première Olympics, De Coubertin did not want the games to be permanently hosted elsewhere.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Hirthler |first1=George |title=Celebrating Pierre de Coubertin: the French genius of sport who founded the modern Olympic Games – Olympic News |url=https://www.olympic.org/news/celebrating-pierre-de-coubertin-the-french-genius-of-sport-who-founded-the-modern-olympic-games |website=International Olympic Committee |access-date=20 March 2020 |language=en |date=3 September 2019}}</ref> 

The [[1900 Summer Olympics|1900 Games]] were overshadowed by the [[Exposition Universelle (1900)|Exposition Universelle]],<ref>{{cite web |title=Paris 1900: Games at the centre of the world |url=https://www.olympic.org/news/paris-1900-games-at-the-centre-of-the-world |website=International Olympic Committee |access-date=20 March 2020 |language=en |date=13 September 2017}}</ref> whose organising committee disagreed with De Coubertin's ideas to such an extent that he resigned. The organisation of the 1900 Games was haphazard by today's standards, and although some events, such as archery, drew widespread attention, many others were poorly attended. Historians' opinions still differ over which events should be considered "Olympic".

[[File:Aspiotis Olympics 1906 Vault.jpg|thumb|Vaulting at the 1906 games]]
Consequently, the IOC supported the Greek idea by granting them a second series of quadrennial games in between the first series.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Koulouri |first1=Christina |title=The Inside View of an Outsider: Greek Scholarship on the History of the Olympic Games |journal=Journal of Sport History |date=2005 |volume=32 |issue=2 |pages=217–228 |jstor=43610398 |issn=0094-1700}}</ref> All of the games would be International Olympic Games: the difference was that half of them would follow De Coubertin's idea of "organisation internationale", while the other half would follow the Greeks' idea of a permanent home with the [[Hellenic Olympic Committee|Committee of the Olympic Games]], as it was then known, as experienced organisers. 

This was a departure from the ancient schedule, but it was expected that, if the ancient Greeks could keep a four-year schedule, the modern Olympic Movement could keep a two-year schedule. As 1902 was now too close to be logistically workable, and Greece was experiencing political and economic difficulties, the 2nd Olympic Games in Athens were scheduled for 1906, and the IOC as a whole gave Greece full support for the organisation.<ref>{{cite book |editor1-last=John E. Findling |editor1-first=Kimberly D. Pelle |title=Encyclopedia of the modern Olympic movement |date= 2004 |publisher=Greenwood Press |isbn=978-0313322785 |page=45 |url=http://data.rero.ch/01-R003675003/html |access-date=20 March 2020 }}{{Dead link|date=February 2021 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref>

The [[1904 Summer Olympics]] in [[St. Louis, Missouri]] were overshadowed by the [[Louisiana Purchase Exposition]], and their organisation was even worse than that of Paris 1900, while travel difficulties meant that only 20% of the athletes were non-American; of these, half were Canadian.

It was clear the [[Olympic Movement]] was in a dire situation and desperately needed to recapture the spirit of [[1896 Summer Olympics|Athens 1896]]. It also needed to do so quickly, as to those who did not participate in St. Louis, [[1908 Summer Olympics|1908]] was a gap of eight years, by which time there would be little, if any, goodwill left for the Games. 

To make matters worse, Rome, the proposed host for 1908, was also planning an [[World's Fair|exhibition]] at the same time as the Games, which had been responsible for the failures of Paris and St. Louis.

To the IOC, the 1906 Athens Games being just around the corner would have been a lifeline. While De Coubertin still opposed the idea and did not do anything more than his function required of him, the IOC as a whole gave the Greek organising committee full support for the organisation.