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Training
The athletes had to be trained in their home city for ten months before the games. They arrived at least one month before the festival took place. At the same time, messengers wearing crowns of olive leaves went to the Greek cities to proclaim the truce, which lasted for three months.
Day One
The ceremony started with the athletes’ registration and the official oath of the competitors and judges. In front of the statue of Zeus, the athletes had to swear that they had been trained for the last ten months and would obey the rules during the games. The judges then had to swear to judge fairly. The games were opened by a procession of athletes and judges.
The first competition was between the trumpeters and the heralds. The winners had the honour to announce the names of the victors and sound the trumpet for all events at Olympia.
This was, of course, a religious ceremony and so sacrifices were made to the gods at their altars.
Day Two
This was the day of the first competition.
First was the stadion race – the sprint from one
end of the stadium to the other, about 200 m.
The next competition was wrestling (picture 7),
then boxing (picture 4) and then the pankration (pronounced pan/cray/shun) matches. These were
a brutal, all-out combat (which today we would call martial arts) which were as close to no-holds-barred fighting that any people has ever allowed. Only biting and gouging were prohibited. Kicking was an essential part of pankration.
Day Three
On this day the events involving horses and the pentathlon (five event) occurred. They included two (picture 6) and four-horse chariot races and races for fully grown horses.
The pentathlon game combined jumping, running, javelin, discus (picture 5) and wrestling.
E 5 Discus throwing
 6 Chariot racing
THE OLYMPIC GAMES Events of an Olympiad
F 7 Wrestling
Day Four
The day began with a big ceremony in honour of the god Zeus and many animals were sacrificed before the games began again.
Day Five
This was the day of the closing ceremonies, with more sacrifices and then the names and home cities of the winners of the events were read out in public. Then there was a great feast before the athletes returned to be honoured by their home cities.
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