LONDON has staged the Games twice before, in 1908 and 1948, but on both occasions it stepped in at short notice when others could not do the job and is of course due to host again in 2012.

Many cultures through the centuries have staged events celebrating sporting achievement although the source of the modern Olympics were the games, first held nearly three thousand years. Between the ancient games’ abolition in 393 AD and the late nineteenth century nothing much was heard of the Olympics. Then along came Baron Pierre de Coubertin. He was steeped in the traditions of ancient Greece through the classical education common to the propertied classes of the day, but his direct inspiration for the modern Olympic movement was an event in the village of Much Wenlock in the English midlands.

The very first modern Olympic Games opened in the first week of April 1896, involving 14 nations, just 241 atheletes in 43 events. Since the Greek government had been unable to fund construction of a stadium, a wealthy Greek architect, Georgios Averoff, donated one million drachmas (over $100,000) to restore the Panathenaic Stadium, with white marble for the Olympic Games.

1908 - 27th April to 31st October.
Participants: 2,008 athletes (1,971 men, 37 women)

The 1908 Olympic Games were originally scheduled to be hosted by Rome, but the eruption of Mount Vesuvius caused the Games to be relocated to London. This was an ideal solution as England had more collective experience organisiing larger sports events than any other country - Henley Royal Regatta, All-england tennis tournament and 30-year-old Amateur Athletic Association's national track and field championships.

These Games were much better organised than the previous Olympic Games, for the first time, teams were organised completely on national lines, a development which led to much criticism during the politically highly-charged inter-war years and countries had a limited number of atheletes that could compete in any given event. The 1908 Olympics were also the first to have an opening ceremony. They were starting to become known throughout the world, and athletes the world over wanted to compete. On the first Sunday of the Games, a religious service took place in St Paul’s Cathedral. The Bishop of Pennsylvania gave a sermon here that remained famous, containing the words - "The important thing in these Olympiads is not to win, but to take part".

1944
The 1944 Olympics were to be held in London, awarded in 1939, however, were cancelled due to World War II. These Games would have celebrated the 50th anniversary of the Modern Olympiad. A small celebratory sporting competition was held in Lausanne, in lieu of the Olympics, at IOC HQ.

1948 - 29th July to 14th August.
Participants: 4,104 athletes (3,714 men, 390 women)

When it was announced that the Olympic Games would be resumed, many debated whether it was wise to have a festival when many European countries were in ruins and the people near starvation.

No new facilities were built for these Games, but the Wembley Stadium had survived the war and proved adequate. No Olympic Village was erected; the male athletes were housed at an army camp in Uxbridge and the women housed at Southlands College in dormitories.

There was one major snafu at the Games. Though the United States had won the 400-meter relay by a full eighteen feet, a judge ruled that one of the U.S. team members had passed the baton outside of the passing zone. Thus, the U.S. team was disqualified. The medals were handed out, the national anthems were played. The United States officially protested the ruling and after careful review of the films and photographs taken of the baton pass, the judges decided that the pass had been completely legal; thus the United States team was the real winner. Starting blocks and photo-finishes were used at an Olympics for the first time in 1948.

2012 - 27th July to 12th August
Following three failed consecutive UK bids (Birmingham in 1992 and Manchester in 1996 and 2000), the decision was made to bid with London, given the clear indication that it was the only city in the UK that had a chance of being selected when put up against other world cities in a competitive bidding process. London beat out the favourites (Paris) on the fourth and final ballot 54 to 50 and because the first city to host the Games three times.

The budget projection is around £1.4 billion and the plan for 2012 focuses on the regeneration of a 500-acre swathe of land around Stratford in the east of the city, one of the most deprived areas of the UK. It will include an 80,000 seater athletics stadium, an athletes' village and a string of other key sporting venues, creating a strong case for an Olympic legacy.

The park is to contain:

• The Olympic Stadium
• The Aquatics Centre
• The London Velopark
• The Olympic Hockey Centre
• Four indoor arenas
  • Olympic Park Arena 1 - Volleyball
  • Olympic Park Arena 2 - Basketball, modern pentathlon
  • Olympic Park Arena 3 - Handball
  • Olympic Park Arena 4 - Fencing
• The Olympic Village - After the games the village was planned a become a district of the Stratford City development, a multi-billion pound development project on the former railway goods yard to the east of the Olympic Park
• The Olympic Press and Broadcast Centres
• A tennis training centre

The Sports include:

• Aquatics
• Archery
• Athletics
• Badminton
• Basketball
• Boxing
• Canoe/kayak
• Cycling
• Equestrianism
• Fencing
• Football
• Gymnastics
• Handball
• Field hockey
• Judo
• Modern pentathlon
• Rowing
• Sailing
• Shooting
• Table tennis
• Taekwondo
• Tennis
• Triathlon
• Volleyball
• Weightlifting
• Wrestling

Existing venues to be used include the new Wembley for football finals, Wimbledon for tennis, Lord's for archery and the Dome for gymnastics and basketball.

View our guide to Accommodation, Hotels and Travel Guide for the Olympics - London 2012.