Title:from Athens to Melbourne: British Olympic Diplomacy during the Formative Year

•  The formative years of the modern Olympic Movement, during which time successive Olympic Games played a role in the institutionalization of modern sporting forms, were also the years during which so-called Old Diplomacy fell into disrepute, resulting from failure to provide an effective framework through which to manage mounting tensions between the Great Powers. The drift toward a more open form of diplomacy, referred to as ‘New Diplomacy’ (Hamilton and Langhorne 1995); signalled the adoption of a form of discourse which was reputedly more open and subject to the emerging democratic processes of modern nation states. Against this backdrop, the chapter examines the emerging interplay between diplomacy and the Olympic Games. It suggests that while there has been a formalization of diplomatic activity as it relates to the Games, a surprising number of features are recognizable from the early Games. This includes both diplomatic support for the staging of an international event and recognition of the significance of sporting contacts in terms of managing foreign relations. Beyond a consideration of British state diplomacy, the chapter refers to the gradual development of the IOC and other non-state actors as they developed linkages with international organizations such as the League of Nations and the Council of Europe.