The Firefighter's Olympics began in 1970 as an opportunity for all California firefighers to get together in friendly competition which promotes physical fitness and provides an informal forum for exchanging ideas. Throughout the years the Summer Olympics have been held in Oakland, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Davis, Irvine, Santa Clara, San Jose, San Diego, Palo Alto, Bakersfield, Santa Ana, Sacramento, Ventura,Concord, and Livermore / Pleasanton. The games are governed by the California Firemen's Athletic Association, with a local association bidding to be the host and bring the games to their community.
The San Jose Firefighters are responsible for hosting and organizing the 2006 event.
The Olympics consist of 29 areas of competition. They include baseball, basketball, bass fishing, bench press, bowling, cycling (road and mountain bike), darts, flag football, golf, horseshoes, ice hockey, motocross, physical fitness, power lifting, racquetball, rodeo, roller hockey, shooting, soccer, softball, surfing, table tennis, tennis, track and field, triathlon, water skiing and wakeboarding.