Olympism as a Civil Religion?

Abstract

Terms like pseudo-religion or quasi-religion are often used to describe the implications of the idea of Olympism. In the article it is researched whether the concept of civil religion1presents the Olympic idea in a more approachable way. Due to the fact that the controversial term “civil religion†has often been defined in many different ways, this study is not based on one specific definition, but rather on four different conceptions which have proven essential within the discussion about “c.r.â€. With the help of these four conceptions Coubertin`s fundamental thoughts on Olympism are analyzed.