THE FIRST WORLD OLYMPIC CONGRESS OF PHILOSOPHY

Dear colleagues and friends,

On the occasion of the organisation of the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens and taking into consideration that, in their prime in Classical Antiquity, the Olympic Games were not just a contest in sports among athletes, but rather a contest in nobility of mind as well as of body, where other cultural events also took place (such as contests in poetry, rhetoric, etc.) so that philosophers too had the possibility of getting involved in it; starting from the Greek conception of philosophy as a way and a choice of life (αίρεσις βίου, which is therefore also dedicated to the improvement of life), and, finally, in an attempt to preserve the Olympic Games as not merely a sporting and commercial event, the Greek philosophical community, following a long philosophical tradition, has proceeded towards initiating and organising :

THE FIRST WORLD OLYMPIC CONGRESS OF PHILOSOPHY
ON THE TOPIC:
"PHILOSOPHY, COMPETITION AND GOOD LIFE."

The success of this Congress will hopefully lead to the establishment of an institution beneficial, in a variety of ways, for society at large and especially for philosophy and philosophers. As we hope that such an institution will decisively contribute to the promotion of cultural diversity as a means of achieving the good life and better communication among thinkers, cultures and nations, we cordially invite all philosophers, philosophical societies, associations, unions and any other kind of organizations to join their powers in the striving for greater mutual understanding and co-operation.

The Organising Committee of the 1st WOCP