class 263 close analysis

Outline the order in which individual events were (apparently) introduced at Olympia, giving dates wherever known. What might this timeline suggest?

• 776 BCE: stadion (~200 m)
• 724 BCE: diaulos (~400 m)
• 720 BCE: dolichos (~7–9.5 km)
• 708 BCE: palē (wrestling) + pentathlon
• 688 BCE: pyx (boxing)
• 680 BCE: tethrippon (four-horse chariot)
• 648 BCE: pankration + kelēs (horseback race)
• 520 BCE: hoplitodromos (race in armor)
• Suggests the Olympic program expanded gradually over time from a single footrace into more specialized combat, pentathlon, equestrian, and military events

Describe the structure and rules governing the palē competition. In what ways was this both fair and unfair?

• Palē = Greek wrestling
• Added to Olympia in 708 BCE
• Focused on throwing/bringing an opponent down rather than striking
• Competitors were paired in an elimination-style structure
• Fair: same basic rules applied to competitors
• Unfair: some wrestlers could advance akoniti (“dustless”), meaning without actually wrestling, so competitors did not always have to fight the same amount, and also no weight classes
• Palaistra comes from palē and means “wrestling place”

• triakter

Name, describe, and briefly assess two sources of evidence we have for women’s participation in athletics in ancient Greece. What can we claim, confidently, from this evidence?

• Source 1: Kyniska • Spartan princess and first woman known to win an Olympic victory through her horses/chariot team • Her victory pedestal at Olympia gives direct epigraphic evidence • Pausanias also says she was the first woman to breed horses and win at Olympia

• Source 2: Heraia
• Organized footraces for unmarried girls at Olympia
• Divided into three age groups
• We can confidently say women did participate in athletics in some contexts
• But participation depended on place, status, age, and event
• We should not claim women’s athletics were universal across Greece

Briefly summarize our knowledge of Delphi, and how it differs from other sites of stephanitic competition

• Delphi was a major sanctuary of Apollo
• Home of the Pythian Games
• Traditional starting date: 586 BCE
• One of the four major stephanitic sites with Olympia, Isthmia, and Nemea
• Prize at Delphi: laurel/bay crown
• Delphi was viewed as the “center of the world”
• Omphalos symbolized this central position
• Famous for Apollo’s oracle
• Musical competition was especially important there
• This distinguished Delphi from the other major stephanitic sites

Discuss the potential early, pre-Olympic origins of ancient Greek athletics, referencing specific evidence wherever possible.

• Athletics probably existed before the traditional first Olympics in 776 BCE
• Homer gives literary evidence
• Odyssey Book 8: Phaeacians compete in boxing, wrestling, jumping, and foot-racing
• Iliad: funeral games for Patroclus
• Funeral games connect athletics with honor, prizes, elite status, and commemoration
• Material evidence also predates Olympia
• Late Bronze Age Cypriot krater, ca. 1350–1250 BCE, shows belt-wrestling
• Additonally, archaeological evidence from Bronze age shows Minoan bull leaping, boxing, and Mycenean warrior tradition may have contributed later to greek athletic conditions.

Discuss the Greek athlete’s kit—including accessories and athletic equipment—and the evidence we have for it.

• Greek male athletes commonly competed nude
• Oil was applied to the body
• Aryballos = small container used to carry oil
• Konis = dust/powder used in athletic preparation
• Strigil/stlengis = scraper used to remove oil, sweat, dust, and dirt
• Gloios = mixture of oil, sweat, and dust scraped from the athlete
• Gloios was sometimes believed to preserve some of the athlete’s power
• Event-specific equipment included diskos for discus and akon for javelin
• Evidence comes from surviving objects, vase paintings, sculpture, and literary sources

surviving bronze stergils

Provide and compare the etymologies of the words "athletics" and "sport." How do the origins of these words differ from the ways they are commonly use today?

• “Athletics” comes from athlon/athla
• Athlon/athla relates to a prize or prize contest
• Original meaning of athletics emphasizes competing to win a prize
• “Sport” comes from English “disport”
• Disport meant diversion from serious duties
• Also meant relaxation, recreation, entertainment, or amusement
• Main contrast: athletics originally emphasized competition/prizes
• Sport originally emphasized recreation/diversion
• Modern “sport” now usually means serious organized competition, which differs from its original meaning