Hi Readers! Can you believe it, this is my last post on the very first ancient Greece Olympics. So do you guys know how the first Olympics were started? If you don't, have no fear, this blog post is here!
The very first Olympics was held in 776 B.C. Let me paint a picture for what it looked like way back then. Imagine thousands and thousands of people gathered in an open air coliseum. Zeus’s temple gleaming at the far end. The events set-up for all the people to see and cheer. For the ancient Greeks this was a major event! Still not picturing the scene?
The very first Olympics was held in 776 B.C. Let me paint a picture for what it looked like way back then. Imagine thousands and thousands of people gathered in an open air coliseum. Zeus’s temple gleaming at the far end. The events set-up for all the people to see and cheer. For the ancient Greeks this was a major event! Still not picturing the scene?
Take a look at this!
Well anyway the Olympics was founded by a man named Pelops, who was the king of Pisa at the Peloponnese and the son of Tantalus. He created the Olympics because he was well respected at Olympia which developed the foundation of the games.
So why were the Olympics called the “Olympics”? First of all, while the first modern day Olympics started in Athens, the ancient Greek Olympics were in a city called Olympia, located in the western part of Greece, the part that is called the Peloponnese. Also, there is a famous mountain there called Mount Olympia which was thoughts to be a place where gods and goddess would often visit the mortal world. Sometimes people get confused between the ancient Olympics and the modern Olympics, which began in 1896 in Athens to honor the Goddess of Athena who was the Goddess of War. Instead, the ancient Greek Olympics were closely linked to festivals for Zeus and were held around the Temple of Zeus and Temple of Hera, his wife, in Olympia.
You might now be asking, what events were at the first Olympics? The Pentathlon was a major event that included running, jumping, disc throwing, wrestling, and boxing. There was an event called the Pankration which was a combination of boxing and wrestling. It was considered to be one of the toughest sports! Equestrian events such as horse racing and chariot racing were super popular and took place at a place called the Hippodrome. Did you know that the word “hippo” actually means horse in ancient Greek? For Chariot racing there were both 2-horse races and 4-horse races. Horse riding was a course that was 6 laps around the track which is a total of 4.5 miles. There was separate racing for horse and foals. If you are like me and don’t know what a ‘foal’ is….it’s simply a word for a young horse. Only very rich people could afford to own horses and pay for the training with a jockey. As a result, the owner of the horse would receive the prize instead of the person who actually rode the horse.
Well anyway the Olympics was founded by a man named Pelops, who was the king of Pisa at the Peloponnese and the son of Tantalus. He created the Olympics because he was well respected at Olympia which developed the foundation of the games.
So why were the Olympics called the “Olympics”? First of all, while the first modern day Olympics started in Athens, the ancient Greek Olympics were in a city called Olympia, located in the western part of Greece, the part that is called the Peloponnese. Also, there is a famous mountain there called Mount Olympia which was thoughts to be a place where gods and goddess would often visit the mortal world. Sometimes people get confused between the ancient Olympics and the modern Olympics, which began in 1896 in Athens to honor the Goddess of Athena who was the Goddess of War. Instead, the ancient Greek Olympics were closely linked to festivals for Zeus and were held around the Temple of Zeus and Temple of Hera, his wife, in Olympia.
You might now be asking, what events were at the first Olympics? The Pentathlon was a major event that included running, jumping, disc throwing, wrestling, and boxing. There was an event called the Pankration which was a combination of boxing and wrestling. It was considered to be one of the toughest sports! Equestrian events such as horse racing and chariot racing were super popular and took place at a place called the Hippodrome. Did you know that the word “hippo” actually means horse in ancient Greek? For Chariot racing there were both 2-horse races and 4-horse races. Horse riding was a course that was 6 laps around the track which is a total of 4.5 miles. There was separate racing for horse and foals. If you are like me and don’t know what a ‘foal’ is….it’s simply a word for a young horse. Only very rich people could afford to own horses and pay for the training with a jockey. As a result, the owner of the horse would receive the prize instead of the person who actually rode the horse.
This movie clip of horse racing is actually from Roman times, but this gives you a feel of what it was also like in ancient Greece.
It seems that there were olive wreaths given to winners of individual games, and then there was one overall winner in the ancient Greek Olympics. That winner was given a palm branch and red ribbons around his head and hands. Early on, only men could compete in the games, and men from all over the Greek city-states, which covered a wide area of Europe today, were allowed to enter. Married women were not even allowed to watch.
Some really great athletes are still remembered today for their achievements at the ancient Greek Olympics. Leonidas of the island of Rhodes is a most famous runner. Other athletes have called him a hero because he also won 12 wreaths and won at stade, diaulos and armour races. The first woman to be in ancient Olympics, Kyniska of Sparta, won in chariot racing. Astylos of Croton won several times for the stade and daiulos events, which were running, jumping, discus throwing activities. Milon was another winner from Croton. He was known for wrestling. Melankomas from Caria won in boxing with a style that was light and simple.
To conclude, the ancient Olympics were famous across the land and were a great event to honor all of the gods. They continued for almost twelve centuries, but were closed down when Rome had power and Emperor Theodosius said they were not good. He believed in one God and wanted to establish christianity throughout the empire. He did not like that the Greeks believed in many gods and wanted to get rid of this kind of thinking. Fortunately, the Olympics came back centuries later and the tradition of athletes competing across different states based on honor and skill are very much a part of us today.
It seems that there were olive wreaths given to winners of individual games, and then there was one overall winner in the ancient Greek Olympics. That winner was given a palm branch and red ribbons around his head and hands. Early on, only men could compete in the games, and men from all over the Greek city-states, which covered a wide area of Europe today, were allowed to enter. Married women were not even allowed to watch.
Some really great athletes are still remembered today for their achievements at the ancient Greek Olympics. Leonidas of the island of Rhodes is a most famous runner. Other athletes have called him a hero because he also won 12 wreaths and won at stade, diaulos and armour races. The first woman to be in ancient Olympics, Kyniska of Sparta, won in chariot racing. Astylos of Croton won several times for the stade and daiulos events, which were running, jumping, discus throwing activities. Milon was another winner from Croton. He was known for wrestling. Melankomas from Caria won in boxing with a style that was light and simple.
To conclude, the ancient Olympics were famous across the land and were a great event to honor all of the gods. They continued for almost twelve centuries, but were closed down when Rome had power and Emperor Theodosius said they were not good. He believed in one God and wanted to establish christianity throughout the empire. He did not like that the Greeks believed in many gods and wanted to get rid of this kind of thinking. Fortunately, the Olympics came back centuries later and the tradition of athletes competing across different states based on honor and skill are very much a part of us today.