Wenlock Olympian Games

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The Wenlock Olympian Games began in 1850 in Much Wenlock, Shropshire, England. They are run by the Wenlock Olympian Society (WOS) and are considered a forerunner of the modern Olympic Games. Each year the games are held at venues around Shropshire.

Origins
On February 25, 1850, the Wenlock Agricultural Reading Society set up a group called The Olympian Class to promote physical, moral, and intellectual improvement for the people of Wenlock, especially workers. Dr William Penny Brookes led the effort as secretary, inspired by his work as a doctor and surgeon in the Wenlock area.

First events
The first meeting took place on October 22–23, 1850, at Much Wenlock Racecourse. The early events mixed athletics with traditional country sports such as quoits, football, and cricket, plus running, hurdles, and penny-farthing cycling. Some fun events included a blindfolded wheelbarrow race and, in 1851, an “Old Women’s Race” for a prize of tea.

Name and organization
In 1860, Brookes created the Shropshire Olympian Games. Some critics disliked the Greek-influenced name Olympian, but the name stuck. That year the Wenlock Olympian Class split from the Wenlock Agricultural Reading Society and became the Wenlock Olympian Society (WOS).

National and international influence
The first National Olympian Games were held in London in 1866, organized by the National Olympian Association (NOA), which Brookes helped found in 1865. The NOA ended in 1883. In 1890, Baron Pierre de Coubertin visited the Wenlock Society and was inspired to help start the modern Olympic movement. Brookes became an honorary delegate at the 1894 Sorbonne Congress where the International Olympic Committee (IOC) was established. He could not attend in person due to ill health.

Revival and modern era
After Brookes’s death in 1895, the Wenlock Games continued intermittently and were revived in 1950 and again in 1977. The current annual series has run since 1977 and is officially recognized by the IOC and the British Olympic Association (BOA). The BOA was represented by the Princess Royal in 1990, and the IOC by Juan Antonio Samaranch in 1994.

Mascots and medals
The mascot for the London 2012 Summer Olympics was named Wenlock in honor of Much Wenlock. The Paralympics mascot for 2012 was Mandeville, named after Stoke Mandeville Hospital, where the Paralympic Games began. Medals for the Wenlock Games feature Nike, the Greek goddess of victory, the same symbol used on Olympic medals.

Leadership
After the sudden death of president Roy Rogers, triple jump world record holder and Olympic gold medallist Jonathan Edwards was elected President of the WOS in 2011.

Today
The Wenlock Olympian Games continue as a local, annual event that keeps the spirit of Brookes’s original aim—improving body, mind, and community—alive in Shropshire.