At the closing banquet of the Olympic Congress in Paris in 1894, Baron Pierre de Coubertin reminded his colleagues that sport and training could be used for many purposes.  As they embarked on the launch of the modern Olympic Movement, he wanted them focused on his purpose—to promote and popularize sport for the benefit of individual health, fulfillment and happiness and, in the process, unite the world in friendship and peace through the Games.  Here’s the passage from his speech from which today’s quote is drawn.

“The Greek heritage is so vast, Gentlemen, that all those in the modern world who have conceived of physical exercise in one of its many aspects have legitimately been able to lay claim to Greece, which embraced them all. Some viewed training as a form of national defense, others as the search for physical beauty and health through a delicate balance between mind and body.”