Oleksiy Butovskiy
The question of holding the modern Olympic Games was raised for the first time in 1894 at the International Congress of athletics, convened on the initiative of the Union of French associations of physical sports; the Chief Secretary was Baron Pierre de Coubertin. To work on the organization of the constituent congress of the famous Frenchman drew our countryman Oleksiy Butovskiy, who served at that time at the headquarters of educational institutions and who was walking in the rank of General of the Russian army.
Oleksiy Butovskiy was born June 9, 1838 in Poltava in a noble family. In his youth he studied English, German and French, graduated from a special boarding school, served as a tutor of Military Science at the Petrovsky-Poltava Cadet Corps, he studied at the Nicholas Academy of Engineering. Then Butovskiy moved to St. Petersburg where he was assigned to one of the military schools.
This work, as well as service in the regular army participated in combat operations, cooperation with the
Directorate of military educational institutions allowed Butovskiy understand the importance of the physical education in preparing future officers. Along with performing regular duties education officer Oleksiyei was initiated in high school classes in gymnastics, fencing, outdoor games, read them developed a course on theory and techniques of gymnastics and physical exercises. In the late 80-ies of the XIX century Oleksiy Butovskiy became one of the most popular experts in Russia in the field of physical education, his name was well known abroad. After one of the trips abroad, he noted with regret that in many countries the problem of physical education understood and supported in the power echelons, and in Russia, these issues have been neglected.
Oleksiy Butovskiy and Pierre de Coubertin periodically met and regular corresponded in French, which Oleksiy knew very well. They met in 1892 in France, where on orders of military departments of Russia, Butovskiy studied the training of gymnasts and fencers. General Butovskiy wrote to baron: "I must admit that in Russia the problem of physical education are treated with a high degree of indifference. In general, our press is not interested in these issues; it is believed that this issue does not deserve to talk about it from pages of major newspapers. Nevertheless, I have not abandoned the hope to form a committee in support of the Olympic Games".
Convened by the great Frenchman, Congress defined the timing and venue of the first two modern Olympics - Athens and Paris, 1896 and 1900 - and chose the first members of the IOC. Naturally, from Russia to it came General Butovskiy. An interesting fact: at the Paris Congress with the support of Oleksiyey Butovskiy arrived other Ukrainian noble deputy Dmitry Melenevskii and Duke Sergei Konstantinovich Beloselsky-Belozersky, in the years 1900-1908, IOC member from Russia. The Olympic Charter - the basic legal document restored games was approved in Paris.
In 1896 Oleksiy Butovskiy attended as a member of the IOC at the Olympic Games in Athens. The atmosphere, the official opening ceremony of the Olympics for 80 000 seat stadiums, has made a big impression on the 
general. He realized importance of the Games for his contemporaries, he felt bitterness and frustration due to lack of them compatriots. Details of the first modern Olympics Butovskiy outlined in the book "Athens in the spring of 1896" - the first and the only one Russian-language publication devoted to this historic event.
Enthusiasm of Butovskiy and his companions faced with misunderstanding, sometimes even with the resistance power, even public opinion acted against. However, the main obstacle to our athletes in Athens was the refusal of funding from the state. True, some athletes from Odessa went to Athens under its own power, but they have enough money only to Constantinople. As a result to the Greek capital reached only Nicholas Ritter from Kiev, he enlisted in the shooting competition and struggle. However at the start of it he was never released, explaining his refusal to compete in the loss of the sacred for the athlete medallion.
Sports organizations of the USSR re-established contact with the international federations only in the postwar years. By this time the Games and its ideals were considered bourgeois and contrary to Soviet morale accordingly. Olympic Committee of the USSR was established only in 1951, a year before the debut of the Soviet Union at the Olympics in Helsinki.
At the root of the modern Olympic Movement was our compatriot Oleksiy Butovskiy. In 2006 near the stadium Vorskla in Poltava was set the monument to the great countryman and later the stadium was named after him.
