More than two thousand years ago, myths and legends were composed about Olympia, it was glorified by philosophers, historians and poets. It was famous for its holy places, temples of Zeus and Hera, historical monuments, the construction of which dates back to the 2nd millennium BC. Later, in honor of the Olympic Games, various structures were built and numerous statues were erected, including the famous majestic statue of Zeus. It was here that tens of thousands of inhabitants of Hellas gathered to become participants and witnesses of the largest sports competitions of antiquity.
The folk hero Hercules, the legendary king Pelops, the Spartan legislator Lycurgus, the king of Elis Ifit - these names in myths and legends are associated with the appearance of sports in sacred Olympia. There is no consensus on when they first took place. considered to be reliablethe date carved on a marble slab next to the name of the winner in the runners' competition. 776 BC e. entered the annals of sports as the year in which the first Olympic Games were held in Ancient Greece. The day of their opening and the beginning of a three-month truce in the Hellenic cities were learned from the messengers of the temple of Zeus.
There were strict restrictions for the participants in the competition. They were only born free citizens of Greek origin, who did not stain themselves with a violation of an oath, a dishonorable act or other crime. According to the Olympic rules, athletes who declared their participation in the main competitions of the four-year period were given 10 months to prepare, and a month before the start of the Olympics they had to come to Olympia and demonstrate their readiness to participate in competitions. Women were forbidden to be during the festival on the territory of the sanctuary of Zeus, and, of course, the Olympic Games of Ancient Greece were held without their participation.
At the first thirteen Olympics, only runners competed for one distance, which, depending on the step length of the judge, was 175 - 192.27 meters. At the fifteenth Olympiad, the pentathlon appeared, consisting of running, wrestling, discus and javelin throwing, long jumps. After some time, the Olympic Games in Ancient Greece enriched their program with new competitions - fist fights and chariot races drawn by two or four horses. In 648 BC, pankration, the most cruel and difficult kind, was included in the program.competitions, combining wrestling and fisticuffs. The Olympics in Ancient Greece also included horse racing and running in military gear.
As an element of a religious cult, the Olympic Games in Ancient Greece began and ended with religious ceremonies. Athletes spent the first day of the games at the altars and altars of their patron gods, and on the final day after the awards were presented to the winners, they repeated the ceremony. The victory won at the Olympics was extremely highly valued, since it glorified not only the athlete, but also the policy he represented.
With the advent of the Romans, the Olympic Games in Ancient Greece gradually lost their former scope, and soon lost their former significance. The year 394 became the date of the prohibition of games by the Roman emperor Theodosius, who saw a pagan rite in the sports festival.
