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The ecumenical model of the IOC and the internationalization of sport
Since the mid-19th century, sport has gradually become one of the most significant leisure activities for the middle and especially the upper social strata  in the big cities of the industrially developed countries of Europe and America. At the same time gymnastics was incorporated into military exercise and sports activity was included in the activities of schools and universities. In these social environments, sports clubs and associations (which often set social restrictions as to who could join them) were created, the rules of the contests were shaped and codified, sports meetings and games were organized. Usually these games included one sport each time, at local or national level. During these initial processes towards the organization of sports institutions, the IOC was created in Paris, in 1894.
The composition of the first IOC was indicative of the social origin of the people who were involved at that time in the organization and development of sport. Among the first 14 members of the IOC, nine were from Europe (2 from Great Britain, and one from France, Russia, Sweden, Italy, Belgium and Germany, Bohemia and Hungary), two from America (Argentina and the USA) and one from Oceania (New Zealand). The Greek scholar D. Vikelas was elected president and P. de Coubertin general secretary. Soon, two more members were added, one from Italy and one from Germany. Five of them bore a title of nobility, two were officers, three were university professors and all of them were well off. Three years later, the first modern Olympic Games were held in Athens. 311 athletes from thirteen countries participated in them. 230 athletes were Greek, 19 German, 19 French, 14 were from the USA, 8 were Hungarian, 8 British, 4 Danish, 1 Swedish, 1 Australian, 1 Bulgarian, 1 Swiss and 1 Chilean.
The undertaking was judged successful. Although the performances of the athletes, especially in athletics, were inferior to the best performances of that time, these international games had brought together a variety of sports, such as athletics and sailing, weightlifting and tennis. A few years later, the IOC was the first and biggest international sports organization. In the early 1910s the IOC was a developed sports network, which was centred in Europe and North America and spread over more and more "spots" on the planet. At that time it numbered more than 30 members, whereas for example the International Association of Athletics Federations that was founded in 1912 had members from 17 national delegations. At the same time, the Olympic Games, despite the organizational failure of the 1900 and the 1904 Olympics (in Paris and Saint Louis respectively), constituted the major sports event.
In the Olympic Games of 1912 participated more than 2,500 athletes from 28 countries, who competed in more than 100 events of 14 sports. The most important thing in relation to the 1912 Olympics (both symbolically and with reference to the dynamics acquired by the Games and the IOC network) is that for the first time athletes from all five continents participated in international games. In addition, a prerequisite was introduced for the participation of the athletes, namely the existence of a national sports federation in their country. A few years later, in the 1924 Paris Olympics, the incorporation of a sport in the programme of the Olympic Games presupposed, among other things, the existence of an international federation for this sport.
Therefore, during the first decades of the century, the "ecumenical" model of the Olympic idea of Coubertin was taking shape. Several decades later, more than 10,000 athletes from approximately 200 countries participated in the Olympic Games of 2000 and the programme of the Games included about 300 events of 28 sports. During the modern Olympic history, which counts over a hundred years, that which the IOC accomplished and which was a prerequisite for the consolidation of its venture, was the imposition of common rules and structures in the worldwide organization and development of sport. Sport, an activity, which at first designated mostly the social elite of the advanced countries of Europe and America, spread to a large extent through the IOC and the Olympic Games its geographical and social boundaries in so far as to become the most popular activity in the entire world. At the same time, the IOC constitutes the second biggest international organization after the UN, whereas the Olympic Games are the major sports event as to the number of sports and entries (nations and athletes). Besides, the Olympic Games are the most popular television spectacle and are broadcast even in the countries that do not participate in them. It is characteristic that, although 199 countries participated in the Olympics of 2000, which was the highest participation ever, it was broadcast in more countries (about 220) and according to estimations, viewers totalled 3,7 billions.
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