The Ancient
Olympics
by CTCWeb Editors
When
someone tells me there is only one way to do things, it always
lights a fire under my butt. My instant reaction is, 'I'm gonna
prove you wrong.'
- Picabo Street, Gold medal winner in the women's super-giant-slalom
race in 1998 in Nagano, Japan
The Schedule
In the opening ceremonies, Olympic athletes
and Elean Hellanodikai paraded together along the Sacred
Way. The walk to Olympia took two days, including travel to Piera
for sacrifices at a sacred spring. The athletes and official
stayed overnight at Letrinoi before they marched into the sanctuary.
A large crowd was on hand for their arrival. Athletes registered
at the bouleuterion, council house, and declared the official
oath in front of the statue of Zeus Horkios, Zeus of the
Oath. Athletes had to swear that they had trained in their home
cities for at least the prior ten months and that they would
obey the rules and regulations of the games. The officials, too,
had to swear an oath. They swore to judge competitions fairly.
(Click here to read Pausanias' description of the
oath process at the Olympics games, which included swearing an
oath on boar's flesh.)
On the opening day, athletes did not participate
in the initial competition of the games. This competition involved
only trumpeters and heralds. Because there were no sportscasters
to call play-by-play, trumpeters and heralds winning this competition
had the honor of announcing the names of victors and sounding
the start of all events. The first day was also set aside for
sacrifices. Athletes and officials made sacrifices to their patron
gods. Athletes participating in equestrian events made sacrifice
to those gods whose names translated to "of the Horse,"
for example, Athena Hippia and Poseidon Hippios.
In the late afternoon, with no athletic competitions scheduled
until the second day, everyone was free to socialize.
On the second day, the stadion race
for boys was held. Runners chose their positions by lots, and
winners received a palm branch. Boys wrestling came next, followed
by boxing and the pankration. The pentathlon and equestrian
events took place on the third day. In the fourth century BCE,
the equestrian events took place in the following order: tethrippon
or four horse chariot race; race for adult horses; apene,
mule drawn chariot race; race for mares; synoris for horses;
synoris for foals; and the foals race. The mule drawn
chariot race was discontinued in 444 or 440 BCE. In the pentathlon,
five events were held in combination. These events were jumping,
running, javelin, discus, and wrestling. Ceremonies in honor
of Pelops were held at the close of the third day at the Pelopion.
|
Although they could
not compete or even attend the games, married women could be
Olympic victors. Victorious at the tethrippon, Kyniska
proclaimed that she was the only woman to earn this victory.
How did she do it? She owned horses that ran in the race and
won. The owners of horses who won equestrian events were declared
victors, even though they did not compete. |
The fourth day started with the sacrifice
of a hecatombe, 100 oxen, to Zeus by the Eleans. Athletes,
officials, priest, and others participated in this ceremony.
On this day the men's wrestling, boxing, and pankration
events took place. The running events, the hoplitodromos,
stadion, diaulos, and dolichos, also took
place. On the fifth and final day, all victors gathered at the
Temple of Zeus wearing red headbands and carrying palm branches.
The Hellanodikai placed a kotinos, a crown of wild
olive leaves, on the head of each victor. Heralds announced the
victors' names and hometowns. Then the Eleans held a great feast
in honor of the victorious athletes.
