The Olympics, which officially opens in Athens today, have always been an occasion for many countries to come together with the premise of competing in a sport. We know, however, that the Olympics are much more than a series of sporting events. This is a time when the world could set aside their political and religious views to unite for a common cause.

However, politics and religion have long been present in the Olympics. As early as 365 B.C., at the time of the ancient world's 104th Olympic games, an athlete named Pantarces of Elis negotiated a truce between the Achaeans and the Eleans, with resulted in both sides releasing their prisoners of war. During the Olympic Games, wars were suspended and truces observed. Countries also announced their political alliances at these games.

The Olympic site in ancient times was also a well-respected holy and neutral place where the Greeks worshipped their god Zeus. The Olympic Games were mainly a religious festival.

The ancient Olympic games were always held in Greece, so there were no political pressures or bribery, such as the International Olympic Committee faces today when deciding where to hold the Games. The winners of each event in the ancient Olympics received an olive branch instead of a gold medal. This symbolized peace and harmony, as the olive branch does to this day.

There will be more than 10,000 athletes in 28 sports at the games this year, and that does not even count the individual events. With the 2004 Olympics returning home to Greece, maybe this could be a time for all countries to proclaim a truce against terrorism.

Can people from different countries really get along when they put their political and religious differences aside? I think the answer to that question is "Don't judge a person until you've walked a mile in their shoes." First we need to get to know one another, before we can approach the topics that create wars.

So let's hope the expectations of these Olympics Games bring people together for friendship and fellowship, with a chance for different cultures to understand one another on a more personal level, instead of how we are perceived by our governments. For this two-week period, maybe the world can just enjoy uniting together for the sake of keeping a precious ancient tradition alive - the Olympic ideal.

Kimberly Oswald is a free-lance writer who lives in Fairfield with her husband and three daughters.

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