With the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi coming to an end on Sunday, I thought I’d write a topic on sports in ancient times. We all know that the modern day Olympics began in Greece and that they were held in Olympia. Athletes from Greek city states from across modern day Greece, Asia Minor and other Greek colonies all got to participate – so it was quite a global event in the Greek world.
The Olympics was more of a religious festival back then, women were not allowed to participate and any wars that were going on would cease for the duration of the games. Quite a contrast to today’s Olympics where countries engaged in war are allowed to participate, wars continue on and the Olympic Games themselves, have become extremely commercial. Love the Olympics or hate them, they are still a good way for the world to get together and compete in a friendly manner in athletic activities.
But did you know that in ancient times the Romans had their own Olympic Games? They were held in Naples beginning in 2 AD during the rule of Emperor Augustus called the Isolympic Games. They were fashioned after the Greek games and appropriately held in Neapolis (Naples), a city founded by the Greeks. These games at the time were considered to be equal to the games in Olympia, Greece. The athletes themselves came from as far away as Asia Minor and in these games, women were also allowed to compete and win prizes.
I thought I’d provide you with a different perspective of the importance of sports and athletic activities throughout history.
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