The Olympic movement is the embodiment of the Greek national character of pioneering, yearning for peace and advocating bodybuilding, which is related to the natural environment.

The geographical scope of ancient Greece includes the Greek Peninsula, the Aegean Islands and the west coast of Asia Minor, among which the Greek Peninsula in the south of the Balkan Peninsula is the main part. The peninsula is adjacent to the Aegean Sea in the east and the Ionian Sea in the west, surrounded by mountains, with few rivers and plains, barren land and insufficient rainfall, which is not conducive to agriculture. This harsh natural environment has cultivated the moral quality of Greeks to face reality and bear hardships and stand hard work. Instead of giving in to difficulties, they used their brains to find an economic development model with local characteristics. Grapes and olives are suitable for growing in Greek soil, so the Greeks planted a large number of these two plants, used them to make wine and extract olive oil after harvest, and then shipped them abroad to exchange food with Egypt and West Asian countries, which not only solved the food supply problem of local residents, but also enhanced contact and communication with the outside world. The advanced technology and excellent culture of ancient oriental civilization were quickly absorbed and used for reference by the Greeks.

Although the agricultural development in the Greek Peninsula is inherently deficient, many mountainous areas are rich in mineral deposits, high-quality clay and exquisite marble, which provide good conditions for the development of handicrafts. There are winding coastlines and numerous natural harbors in the eastern part of the peninsula, which not only help the Greeks to sail and do business, but also make them have an indissoluble bond with the Taiwan Strait, which makes them broaden their horizons, be quick-thinking, open-minded, emancipate their minds, be full of vitality and creativity, and create a unique culture and religion.

The isolated plains on the peninsula help to form an independent city-state. The 6th century BC was the period of the formation of Greek slave city-states, with more than 200 large and small city-states. Because the peninsula is divided into blocks by hillsides, local transportation and communication are extremely inconvenient, and disputes and even wars often occur between cities, making it difficult to achieve reunification. Therefore, the convening of the Olympic Games in Greece will help the Greeks to have peaceful and friendly exchanges, eliminate disputes or wars, and at the same time make the Greeks strong and enhance their ability to defend their country.

Second, the philosopher's view of sports

Greek philosophy is closely related to the ancient Olympic Games. It can be considered that Greek philosophy is the philosophical basis of the ancient Olympic Games, which embodied and practiced Greek philosophy in some aspects.

Greek philosophy will always shine in the history of human civilization, and also leave an immortal monument and precious spiritual heritage for the history of ancient Olympic Games. A group of philosophical pioneers represented by Socrates, Plato and Aristotle all discussed the value of sports. Socrates advocated: "All Greek citizens should pay attention to the way of fitness to meet the needs of the country. Protecting the people for the country is the first duty." Plato himself participated in the ancient Greek commemorative games and won the prize. In his representative work "Republic", he devoted himself to gymnastics, thinking that gymnastics is one of the two major categories of civic education, which can make people healthy, perfect in shape and full of physical strength, and can also cultivate people's brave and tenacious will. He believes that body and spirit interact with each other, and bad morality is caused by improper education and physical imperfection. He proposed to train elite soldiers to defend urban and rural areas and cultivate people with perfect and harmonious development. Aristotle also personally participated in sports practice. In On the Country, he argued that physical education can precede intellectual education. He proposed that physical education, moral education and intellectual education should be interrelated, and a sound intelligence depends on a sound body. He thinks that excessive exercise or insufficient exercise will be harmful to the health. He advocated gymnastics and warned that it was the most suitable method for physical exercise. Sports can not only strengthen the body, but also shape people's physical beauty and spiritual beauty. At the same time, philosophers also discussed in detail the relationship between sports and other fields. Xeno Finney of Eleatic school believes that sports and philosophy, physical strength and wisdom should all be valued. "If a person wins a race or pentathlon in Olympia, the temple of Zeus near the source of Pisa River, or wins a wrestling match, or a fierce fist fight match, or wins that terrible competition called the all-around competition, this person will be full of honor in the eyes of citizens, and will gain a significant honorary position in the competition, and will be invited to a banquet hosted by the city-state at public expense, and will receive a prize. If he wins the driving race, he will get all the prizes, but he doesn't deserve the prize like me. Because our wisdom is better than the physical strength of people and horses. This is of course an unfounded custom. It is unfair to pay too much attention to physical strength and precious wisdom. " ①

Plato thinks that both physical exercise and music literature are very important and cannot be neglected. Because, "people who specialize in physical exercise tend to become too rude, and people who specialize in music and literature will inevitably become too weak." "Therefore, we call those who can best combine music and sports and apply them to their minds in the most appropriate proportion, which is far more appropriate than those who only know chords and play the piano." In Plato's view, the principle of educating and cultivating citizens is to cultivate the mind with music and exercise the body with sports. Citizens of an ideal country should have these two qualities.

Aristotle paid more attention to children's comprehensive education, including reading and writing, painting, sports and music. He particularly emphasized children's early physical training. "When educating children, of course, we must first spend time on their habits and then spend time on their rationality. We must first train their bodies and then inspire their rationality. So, we began to let teenagers learn from physical education teachers and competitive teachers; Physical education teachers will cultivate their normal habits, and competitive teachers will give them skills in various corner kicks. " However, he also pointed out that physical exercise in childhood should not be excessive, and children before puberty should be taught light competitive gymnastics; All strenuous exercise and strict dietary restrictions that hinder physical development are not suitable. The adverse effects of early excessive exercise are very profound. In the "List of Winners of Olympic Games in Past Years", there are only two or three cases in which the same player won the prize in the children's competition first and then in the adult competition. The reason is obvious: the strenuous exercise in early training is actually consuming the physique of children's players. Therefore, the physical education class rules before puberty can only be some light sports. Three years after puberty, you can teach reading and writing, music, painting and other courses; Only when 18 years old, young people are suitable for strenuous exercise and accept strict dietary rules. It is inappropriate to ask people to carry out psychological activities and physical activities at the same time. ①

Although philosophers have different views on the position and function of sports, they have provided such a message: sports have become an indispensable part of ancient Greek life, and have affected people's physical and mental development and social development, thus attracting close attention and detailed discussion from people of insight.