Olympics Flashcards
Roughly how many people competed in Ancient Greek Games?
only a few hundred. Nowadays it is about 8,000 men & women
What were the 4 sports in the Ancient Olympics?
Athletics, Boxing, Chariot Racing and Wrestling
How many events made up Ancient Greek Olympics? Nowadays there are nearly 200..
Only around 20!
How long did the original Olympic Games last?
over 1000 years
From when to when did the first 1000 years or so of Olympics last?
776 BC to 396 AD
Where was the first Olympics held?
Olympia, Greece
To which god was Olympia sacred?
Zeus
Olympic Games might have started when WHO wrestled his father Kronos for control of the world?
Zeus!
who else might have started it all off, having completed one of his 12 labours?
Herakles
what kind of competition was featured in the first ever Games?
Just a running race!
What was the top sporting city in the Games from 776 to 300 BC?
SPARTA with 46 victories
What other cities were amongst the top 4 sporting cities from 776 to 300BC?
Elis, (local area of Olympia) 30
Athens 22
Croton, Italy 21
in the 2nd Century BC Greece was conquered by which other great power?
Rome
What did the Western Roman Empire prefer, Gladiators/Chariot Races or Athletics?
Gladiators & Chariot Races.
Name 4 ways we get our knowledge about ancient olympics
- excavated stadiums
- stories of athletes & rule books
- lists of winners
- vase paintings and sculptures (even though they show runners going along left hand and left foot at the same time!)
Why were the Crown Games called the Crown Games?
Winners were CROWNED with a wreath of some sort of foliage.. it depended on the city what you got on your head if you won.
How often were the Olympian Games in Olympia and the Pythian Games in Delphi held?
Every 4 years
How often were the Isthmian Games in Corinth and the Nemean Games in Nemea held?
Every 2 years
Which two of the Crown Games were in honour of Zeus?
Olympian Games and Nemean Games.
Which Crown Games were in honour of the god Apollo and the winner got laurel wreath?
Pythian Games in Delphi
Which Crown Games were in honour of Poseidon, and had pine leaves for a wreath as a prize?
Isthmian Games.
Which Crown Games awarded a wreath of wild celery to winners? (in honour of Zeus, and held every 2 years?)
Nemean Games
name some other types of prizes you could win
warm leather jerkins, pitchers of oil, and a tripod made of bronze
Were competitors amateurs as they must be nowadays for the Olympics?
nope!
What types of rewards could winners get when they returned home?!
Money prizes, poems written in their honour and a pension for life
What privileges did a professional athlete have at the time?
they didn’t have to pay taxes or do military service, and they also had their own trade unions!