The Olympic Games In The Ancient Greek Olympic Games

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Have you ever thought about what the Olympic games in ancient Greece were like? Have you ever realized how different the games were then from games today? What I can say is that the ancient Olympic games were definitely unique.Everything in the ancient games were special starting from the sports and who could compete, the traditions of the games, and how the athletes prepared. To start, there were many different sports in the ancient Greek Olympic games.Athletes could participate in running events, long jump, shot put, javelin, boxing, pankration and equestrian activities. The athletes also had many tricks to help them when competing. A lot of the athletes that took part in the long jump events used heavy stone weights, or otherwise called…show more content…
During day 3 the athletes and the citizens portrayed funeral ceremonies by the Altis. The citizens and the people of the Olympic games thought it was very important to honor the winners. So the people wrote very special songs, poems, and hymns for the Olympians. After there were big celebrations to end a good day for the victors. Day 5 was definitely the big day. Since it was the last day everyone celebrated the winners achievements. All the people that watched or spectated made their way to the Temple of Zeus. Beforehand, the olympic committee chose a greek boy to cut a branch from the olive tree that was cherished by Zeus. The branch was then made into wreath, and each winner would be crowned by the judges with one of the wreaths at the temple. After this the parting started. People had feasts, banquets, and private parties through the night to celebrate the victors. There was also a religious take on the games. On day 3 all the athletes made their sacrifice to Zeus starting at the Altis. The heads of the Greek city states all delivered some type of symbol of their state or city for the sacrifices and the celebrations. After all the judges were present, the people and athletes started their parade around Olympia. First they reached the Temple of Hera, then the tomb of Pelops, then the Temple of Rhea, after that the treasure houses around the greek states, and finally the Temple of Zeus. When they reached the temple,…show more content…
If a man was participating in the ancient Olympics, he was probably a professional sportsman. The athletes in the ancient games were also very concerned with winning. Since the athletes were so concerned, they did very intense training in a gym like area called a gymnasion. The athletes competing could also rely on the help of a personal trainer. With very hard and intense training the athletes were pretty prepared. Another thing that athletes took account in was self-discipline. With self-discipline the athletes could become good sports and strong athletes. The athletes stuck to a very strict schedule for training. Their trainers played a important part in making sure that the athletes actually followed their schedule. A lot of the trainers from about 200 AD worked using the tetrad method. The tetrad method included a strict schedule of 4 days of training. On the first day, the athletes would go through very light exercises to make them prepared for the next day. The second day was a hard one. Athletes did very heavy training on this day which probably really would wear them out. So on the third day athletes got a break. The athletes took this time to rest and be prepared for tomorrow. On the final day of training the athletes exercised normally. It wasn’t too intense and it wasn’t super light and easy. After they went through the schedule, the athletes were

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