ABSTRACT
The Olympics were the project of Pierre de Coubertin, an aristocratic Frenchman who loved the British commitment to sport and who was also determined to inspire the youth of France to develop courage, determination, and physical abilities. The modern Olympic Games, first held in Athens, Greece, in 1896, created an especially prominent focus for international rivalries. The rise of sports as a forum for show casing national virtues and pursuing international rivalries proved a boon to African Americans who sought to use sport to win greater racial respect. While both national and international sport would soon take a back seat to the armed conflict of World War II, the war offered other opportunities. The sport had migrated out of private clubs into high schools and colleges, and the quality of US track and field athletes was rising rapidly. Northeastern colleges organized the Intercollegiate Association of Amateur Athletes of America in 1876, and began to conduct annual, full-scale track meets.
