The Ancient
Olympics
by CTCWeb Editors
The Events (con't)
Pentathlon
|
Origin |
According to myth, Jason, the leader
of the Argonauts, invented the pentathlon. Jason combined five
events, jumping, running, discus, javelin, and wrestling, into
a single event in which he competed against his friend, Peleus.
Despite coming in second in all events except wrestling, in which
he took first, Peleus was awarded the victory by Jason. According
to myth, Peleus did lose to the mythical huntress Atalanta at
wrestling, but that is another story. The pentathlon became an
Olympic event in 708 BCE. |
|
Equipment |
Pentathlon equipment included the
discus, javelin,
and halteres for jumping. |
|
Rules |
The order of events is unknown.
It is not known whether a contestant had to win all events or
just three out of five to win the pentathlon. |
|
Images |
See this vase for images from the pentathlon. |
|
Text |
See Diodorus Siculus,
Library, 17.113.1,
Pausanias, Description
of Greece, 5.8.4. |
|
Modern Athlete |
Jim Thorpe was one of America’s
greatest all-around athletes. Born in Indian Territory in Oklahoma
in 1888, Thorpe proved his athletic prowess in a number of sports
including track and field, baseball, football, lacrosse, basketball,
hockey, swimming, boxing, archery, and tennis. At the 1912 Olympics
games, Thorpe won both the decathlon and the pentathlon but the
Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) learned that he had played semiprofessional
baseball and disallowed his victories. The International Olympic
Committee (IOC) posthumously restored his Olympic medals in 1982. |
Running
|
Origin |
 One of the most significant and ancient of all
sports, running held an important place in Greek society. Numerous
myths describe the running of great distances by heroes such
as Herakles. The origin of the sport is unknown, but from Hippias
of Elis we know that the event was part of the first Olympic
games. Arising out of the warring tradition, athletes competing
in the hoplitodromos exhibited the skills of warriors
in battle by running in full battle armor. |
|
Equipment |
Runners did not have special equipment.
Though originally the athletes wore loinclothes, runners discarded
these and ran naked. See Orsippus of Megara for more on the tradition
of running naked. Athletes competing in the hoplitodromos
running event wore the armor of a hoplite (soldier), which
included greaves, a helmet, and a shield. Together, these weighed
50 to 60 pounds. To assure a fair start, a hysplex, starting
gate, was used. |
|
Rules |
Runners who started early were
disqualified and endured corporal punishment (a beating). Runners
could not push, knock down, or hold other runners. Bribery and
magic spells were forbidden. In the stadion, the runners
ran 200 meters. In the diaulos, they ran 400 meters. The
dolichos was a long race between 1,400 and 1,800 meters.
Athletes in the hoplitodromos ran 400 to 800 meters. |
|
Images |
Click here for a list of ancient running images. |
|
Text |
See Pausanias, Description
of Greece, 8.26.4,
Pausanias, Description
of Greece, 5.8.4. |
|
Ancient Athlete |
Leonidas of Rhodes competed in
and won the stadion, the diaulos, and the hoplitodromos
in four successive Olympics. Leonidas was deified for his victories
in these three most difficult running events and earned greater
renown that any other Olympic victor in these events. |
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