ZJ-Art+and+Entertainment-How+did+the+Olympics+come+about+and+what+were+the+different+games+and+activities+within+them?

=How Did the Olympics Come About and What Were the Different Games and Activities Within Them?=

In ancient Greece there were four main ceremonial games(but there were many different ones that are not named here). They were called the Panhellenic games. The individual games were called the Pythian which were the funeral games, the Nemean, Olympic and the Isthmian games. The Panhellenic and Olympic games were held once every four years and the Isthmian and Nemean were held once every two years. With each game the winners won a prize connected to the meaning of the game - for the Panhellenic games the prize that was given was a laurel and a vine crown that came from a cemetary, for the Olympic games there was a traditional wild olive branch, for Nemean they were given celery and for the Isthmain the winners were given a wild pine. In the earliest games there was only one sport called the Stadtion wich was a quick sprint of 180 meters. As the years went by more activies were introduced into the games - they included the 5,000 meter sprint, boxing, javelin, wrestling and discus. All games that were held were to be played nude.

Olympics
The Olympics were held in the honor of the greek god Zeus. In the Olympics games there was a special agreement called the Olympic Truce. This agreement allowed atheletes safe passage in and out of the games. At the entrance several Olympics officials would stand at their post, they had the power to give fines to any person that broke the Truce, it also included the atheletes which were banned from competing in the games. The people who could compete in the games were the greek nationals, the citizens who were allowed to watch the games included everyone but the women.

Pythian
The Pythian games also known as the Delphis games were held in honor of the dead and the god Apollo. Befor the games began the citizens of Greece had four days of festival to celebrate and have fun, in the festival they played music from the flute and kitara, danced and acted, painted and said hymns for Apollo. In the Phythian games they held the same activities as the Olympics games, but got a different prize. The prize the winner got was a wreath of bay laurel which was important and sacred to Apollo, they would sometimes even get an apple but the thing that they got that was important to them was having a reputation and being free in Greece.

Nemean
The Nemean games were held in Nemea and in honour of the god Zeus. It is said that the games were first founded by Hercules after he slayed the Nemean lion. Other myths say that it was held as a funeral game in honour of a dead child named Opheltes. The prize for winning the Nemean games was a wreath of wild celery leaves from the city of Argos. The activities within the Neman games are listed below:

Stadion: 178 meter race Diaulos:355 meter race Hippios: 710 meter race Dolichos: Long distance race of the lengh of 7 to 24 laps of the stadium Hoplitodromos: It was the Diaulos race but wearing a helmet, bronze shield and body protection Pyx: A boxing game Pale: Standing wrestling which ended when the first person was knocked out or surrendered Pentathlon: A mixture of activities including; stadion, pale, javelin, discus and long jump

Isthmian
The Isthmian games were held/named after the isthmus of Corinth where the games were held and played. They were thought to have originated from the funeral games for Melicertes. The activities within the games are as listed:

Chariot games Pankration Wrestling Musical contests Poetry Contests Boxing

=Modern Day Comparison=

Every four years the Olympics are held in a different country. The next Olympics will be held in 2012 in London and will basicly have the same events that they had in ancient Greece. The activities will have been upgraded and the rules changed, now women are allowed to watch the games, the people competing are wearing clothes etc.