The Olympic Games have become associated with the Panathenaic stadium in Athens since it was there that the first modern Olympic Games were revived in 1896 with great splendour. Since then and up to the Intermediary Olympic Games in 1906 and even to the present day, it could be said that the Panathenaic stadium is the place where the heart of Athens beats, a place where Athenians frequently garther to share some of the city's great moments.
One of the comparative advantages with respect to hosting the Olympic Games is authenticity. The authenticity of places, landscapes and ideas. And the Panathenaic stadium, which was laid out under Lycurgus in the 4th century BC, in order to host the Panathenaea, the greatest festival of ancient Athens, is a timeless cultural symbol and witness to the most ancient and very close relationship between culture and sport. [...]
(Evangelos Venizelos)