The Ancient Olympic Games are traditionally dated to 776 B.C.E.; but we know that Greek athletic competition had a long history prior to this recorded date. Homer devoted much of Book 23 of the Iliad to an account of the funeral games-really sporting events-that Achilles gave in honor of his dead friend, Patroclus. And in the Odyssey competitive games are an important part of the welcoming ritual organized by the Phaiakians for Odysseus.

The ancient competition, naturally, was quite different from our modern games. There were far fewer events and only free Greek speaking men (and sometimes boys) were allowed to compete. There was no team competition, and the stress on individual achievement through public competition was related to the Greek ideal of excellence, called Arete. Like our modern athlete, men who competed successful

On the third day of the Olympic festival came the most solemn ritual of all-the official sacrifice to Zeus. Sometimes up to 100 cattle were sacrificed to Zeus in front of the assembled crowd. The rest of the third day was devoted to the boys' events.

When the footraces were finished the heavy events- wrestling, boxing, and the pankration began. Wrestling was considered a science and an art as well as a popular athletic event and was probably the most popular sport in Ancient Greece. Grace and skill were prized more than brut strength. The subtle points of the sport had been known for hundreds of years and wrestling was an essential part of the education of Greek boys.

Greece was conquered and made part of a Roman province in 146 B.C.E. The Olympic Games however went on without interruption. Roman aristocrats and athletes now came across the waters to compete with Greek athletes in the ancient Games. The Romans gradually changed the Greek athletic ideal. The sporting events became more performance and spectacle than competition. Many times the athletes were slaves or gladiators. Higher class Romans were unwilling to display themselves in public athletic competition.

ly would win fame and honor (and oftentimes rewards) for themselves and for their city or state.

Competition started on the second day with the chariot and horse races. These events took place in the Hippodrome, a wide, level, open space with pillars at the ends, one marking the start and finish and the other marking the turning post. Very little is known about the rules of chariot and horse races but it's logical to assume that there must have been many accidents at the turning post. Horse and chariot owners, usually well to do aristocrats, rarely competed themselves but instead were allowed to hire jockeys to ride for them.

Some common words found in the essay are:
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Approximate Word count = 1751
Approximate Pages = 7 (250 words per page double spaced)