Pierre de Frédy, Baron de Coubertin (1 January 1863 – 2 September 1937) was a French
pedagogue and
historian who is best known as the founder of the
International Olympic Committee.
Born in Paris into an aristocratic family, the fourth child of Baron Charles Louis de Fredy de Coubertin and Agathe-Gabrielle de Mirville, de Coubertin was inspired by his visits to British and American colleges and universities, and set out to improve education in France. He believed that part of this improvement should be sports education, which he considered to be an important part of the personal development of young people. He was particularly fond of rugby and was the referee of the first ever French championship rugby union final on 20 March 1892 between Racing Club de France and Stade Français.
Historians and academics agree that Dr. Thomas Arnold, the legendary Head Master of Rugby School (1828-1842), was the single most important influence on the life and thought of Pierre de Coubertin (1,2).
De Coubertin was first and foremost an educationalist. In establishing the modern Olympic Movement, his ultimate goal was to improve the education of young people through organised sport. De Coubertin repeatedly attributed this idea (3,4) to the central role played by sports and games in English public schools and to the reforms pioneered by Thomas Arnold.
