CREATE TABLE table_203_874 (id DECIMAL, "year" DECIMAL, "competition" TEXT, "venue" TEXT, "position" TEXT, "event" TEXT, "notes" TEXT)

what was the name of the competition that took place before the olympic games in 1996 ?
SELECT "competition" FROM table_203_874 WHERE "year" < (SELECT "year" FROM table_203_874 WHERE "competition" = 'olympic games' AND "year" = 1996) ORDER BY "year" DESC LIMIT 1
SELECT "competition" FROM "table_203_874" WHERE "year" < (SELECT "year" FROM "table_203_874" WHERE "competition" = 'olympic games' AND "year" = 1996) ORDER BY "year" DESC NULLS LAST LIMIT 1