may come from anywhere in the world.P: Winter Games? How can the runners enjoy competing in winter? And what about the horses?L: Oh no! There are no running races or horse riding events. Instead there are competitions like skiing and ice skating which need snow and ice. Thats why theyre called the Winter Olympics. Its in the Summer Olympics that you have the running races, together with swimming, sailing and all the team sports.P: I see. Earlier you said that athletes are invited from all over the world. Do you mean the Greek world? Our Greek cities used to compete against each other just for the honour of winning. No other countries could join in, nor could slaves or women!L: Nowadays any country can take part if their athletes are good enough. There are over 250 sports and each one has its own standard. Women are not only allowed, but play a very important role in gymnastics, athletics, team sports and P: Please wait a minute! All those events, all those countries and even women taking part! Where are all the athletes housed?L: For each Olympics, a special village is built for them to live in, a main reception building, several stadiums for competitions, and a gymnasium as well.P: Thats sounds very expansive. Does anyone want to host the Olympic Games?L: As a matter of fact,every country wants the opportunity. Its a great responsibility but also a great honour to be chosen. Theres as much competitions among countries to host the Olympics as to win Olympic medals. The 2008 Olympics will be held in Beijing.P: Oh yes! You must be very proud. L: Certainly. And after that the 2012 Olympics will be held in London. They have already started planning for it. A new village for the athletes and all the stadiums will be built to the east of London. New medals will be designed of course and P: Did you say medals? So even the olive wreath has been replaced! Oh dear! Do you compete for prize money too?L: No, we dont. Its still all about being able to run faster, jumper higher and throw further. Thats the motto of the Olympics, you know“ Swifter, Higher and Stronger.”P: Well, thats a good news. How interesting! Thank you so much for your time.The story of AtlantaAtlanta was a Greek princess. She was very beautiful and could run faster than any man in Greece. But she was not allowed to run and win glory for herself in the Olympic Games. She was so angry that she said to her farther that she would not marry anyone who could not run faster than her. Her father said that she must marry, so Atlanta made a bargain with him. She said to him, “ These are my rules. When a man says he wants to marry me, I will run against him. If he cannot run as fast as me, he will be killed. No one will be pardoned.”Many kings and princes wanted to marry Atlanta, but when they heard of her rules they knew it was hopeless. So many of them sadly went home, but others stayed to run the race. There was a man called Hippomenes who was amazed when he heard of Atlantas rules, “ Why are these men so foolish?” hethought. “ Why will they let themselves be killed because they cannot run as fast as this princess?” However, when he saw Atlanta come out of her house to run, Hippomenes changed his mind. “ I will marry Atlantaor die !“ he said.The race started and although the man ran very fast, Atlanta ran faster. As Hippomenes watched he thought, “ How can I run as fast as Atlanta?” He went to ask the Greek Goddess of Love for help. She promised to help him and gave him three golden apples. She said, “ Throw an apple in front of Atlanta when she is running past. When she stops to pick it up, you will be able to run past her and win.” Hippomenes took the apples and went to the King. He said, “ I want to marry Atlanta.” The King was sad to see another man die, but Hippomenes said, “ I will marry her or die!” So the race began.Three inspiring stories about the Olympic Games1. The kind NorwegianThere is a cross-country skiing race which is part of the Winter Olympics. In 2006 a Canadian skier, Sara Renner, was taking part in the cross-country final when her left pole broke. This was a serious problem as she needed the pole to help her travel quickly through the deep snow. Immediately Bjornar Hakensmoen , the coach of the Norwegian team, gave her another pole. So Renner was able to get a silver medal. Hakensmoen said that he had only behaved as any good sportsman should, but Sara said that Hakensmoen had shown everybody the true meaning of sport.2. The Special Olympic athleteFor athlete Eric Williams gold medals are nice, but good sportsmanship is more important. Eric has a low mental ability but this does not stop him from taking apart in the Olympics. In 2005 Eric competed in running races and the long jump. He said, “ Ive been competing in the Special Olympics ever since I was at high school. Its really a good experience. You get to meet different athletes and volunteers and make all kinds of friends. “ John Corbett,