President of the International Olympic Committee congress. Athens was approved to host the 1896 Olympic Games, being the original home of the Olympics, and Vikelas was duly chosen as the first President of the IOC. Pierre, Baron de Coubertin, took over the IOC presidency when Demetrius Vikelas stepped down after the Olympics in his own country. Despite its initial success, the Olympic Movement faced hard times, as the 1900 Games (in de Coubertin's own Paris) and 1904 Games were both upstaged by World's Fairs—Exposition Universelle in 1900 and Louisiana Purchase Exposition in 1904—and received little attention. The 1906 Intercalated Games revived the momentum, and the Olympic
President of the International Olympic Committee the IOC since 1980. Under his leadership, the IOC aimed to create more possibilities for developing countries to bid for and host the Olympic Games. Rogge believes that this vision can be achieved in the not too distant future through government backing and new IOC policies that constrain the size, complexity and cost of hosting the Olympic Games. At the 2002 Salt Lake City Olympics, Rogge became the first IOC President to stay in the Olympic village, to enjoy closer contact with the athletes. During the opening ceremonies of the 2010 Vancouver Olympics, Rogge delivered a commemoration of Georgian luge