Competitors of the Olympics in the past participated in the nude Art and literature competitions were once part of the Olympics Even the Olympic Games experienced deadly terrorist attack The Olympic flame was taken underwater during Sydney Games India once dominated in the field hockey and earned 8 gold medals The gold medal awarded today is actually gold-plated silver ... and much more. The Amazing Olympics: Down the Centuries tracks the games from its inception in 776 BC to its reinvention in Athens in 1896 to the present day. Resplendent with cartoons, caricatures and photographs, this fun-book brings alive the greatest sporting spectacle on earth.