Summer Olympics | smithsonianmag.comhttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/rss/tag/summer-olympics/RSS feed for Summer OlympicsenMon, 09 Mar 2026 18:24:03 +0000This Rare Silver Medal From the First Modern Olympic Games in 1896 Just Sold at Auctionhttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/this-rare-silver-medal-from-the-first-modern-olympic-games-in-1896-just-sold-at-auction-180988307/At the time, athletes received silver medals for winning first place. The Olympics didn't introduce gold medals until 1904Mon, 09 Mar 2026 18:24:03 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/this-rare-silver-medal-from-the-first-modern-olympic-games-in-1896-just-sold-at-auction-180988307/This Rare Gold Medal From the 1904 Olympics Sold for More Than $500,000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/rare-gold-medal-1904-olympics-sold-more-than-500000-180985877/The artifact, from the first Games held in the United States, reaped the third-highest price ever fetched for an Olympic medal at auctionThu, 23 Jan 2025 16:26:58 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/rare-gold-medal-1904-olympics-sold-more-than-500000-180985877/Paris Mayor Wants to Keep the Olympic Rings on the Eiffel Towerhttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/paris-mayor-wants-to-keep-the-olympic-rings-on-the-eiffel-tower-180985027/Critics worry that the symbol will tarnish the iconic structure's historic characterThu, 05 Sep 2024 20:18:45 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/paris-mayor-wants-to-keep-the-olympic-rings-on-the-eiffel-tower-180985027/Can a City Known for Its Freeways and Gridlock Deliver a Car-Free Olympics? Los Angeles Thinks Sohttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/innovation/can-a-city-known-for-its-freeways-and-gridlock-deliver-a-car-free-olympics-los-angeles-thinks-so-180984952/To make good on its promise, the 2028 host city is in a four-year sprint to ready its public transportation for the onslaught of athletes, coaches and spectatorsThu, 22 Aug 2024 12:00:00 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/innovation/can-a-city-known-for-its-freeways-and-gridlock-deliver-a-car-free-olympics-los-angeles-thinks-so-180984952/Breaking Just Made Its Olympic Debut. Will It Return in 2032?https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/breaking-just-made-its-olympic-debut-will-it-return-in-2032-180984878/The event won't be featured at the Los Angeles Games in 2028, but that doesn't mean its Olympic journey is overTue, 13 Aug 2024 12:00:00 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/breaking-just-made-its-olympic-debut-will-it-return-in-2032-180984878/These Olympic Gold Medalists Get to Ring a Bell Bound for Notre-Damehttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/these-olympic-gold-medalists-get-to-ring-a-bell-bound-for-notre-dame-180984867/The bell was built for the Games, but it will soon get a second life in one of Paris' most beloved landmarksFri, 09 Aug 2024 19:08:07 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/these-olympic-gold-medalists-get-to-ring-a-bell-bound-for-notre-dame-180984867/How the Olympic Village Evolved From Makeshift Cabins to a City Within a Cityhttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/smithsonian-institution/how-the-olympic-village-evolved-from-makeshift-cabins-to-a-city-within-a-city-180984852/The athletes' accommodations have come a long way in the last 100 years, expanding into modern global hubsThu, 08 Aug 2024 13:39:28 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smithsonian-institution/how-the-olympic-village-evolved-from-makeshift-cabins-to-a-city-within-a-city-180984852/Poetry Was an Official Olympic Event for Nearly 40 Years. What Happened?https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/poetry-was-an-official-olympic-event-for-nearly-40-years-what-happened-180984838/Pierre de Coubertin hoped the modern Games would encourage the ancient Greek notion of harmony between "muscle and mind"Tue, 06 Aug 2024 20:07:02 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/poetry-was-an-official-olympic-event-for-nearly-40-years-what-happened-180984838/Olympians Finally Got to Swim in the Seine Riverhttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/its-official-olympians-swim-in-the-seine-river-180984821/After months of uncertainty, the women's and men's triathlon events kicked off with a dip in the long-polluted waterway that runs through the heart of ParisFri, 02 Aug 2024 20:00:01 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/its-official-olympians-swim-in-the-seine-river-180984821/French Performance Artist Seals Himself in a Giant Bottle for Ten Days Outside Paris' Olympic Stadiumhttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/french-performance-artist-seals-himself-in-a-giant-bottle-for-10-days-outside-the-olympic-stadium-180984815/Abraham Poincheval has become a living message in a bottle, exploring themes of privacy and public spaceThu, 01 Aug 2024 19:35:23 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/french-performance-artist-seals-himself-in-a-giant-bottle-for-10-days-outside-the-olympic-stadium-180984815/