What If You Competed in the Ancient Olympic Games

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Step back over 2,000 years into the heart of ancient Greece and imagine what it was like to compete in the Ancient Olympic Games. In this immersive sleep story, you’ll awaken at dawn in Olympia, take the sacred oath before Zeus, and feel the thrill of running barefoot across the sun-warmed sand as thousands cheer your name.  Experience the rituals, the glory, and the peace of the Olympic truce — all told in calm, meditative narration designed to help you relax and drift gently into sleep.  Let the echoes of ancient hymns, the whisper of the wind through olive trees, and the soft rhythm of history guide you to rest. 🌿✨  #HistoryForSleep #AncientGreece #OlympicGames #SleepStory #RelaxingHistory #BedtimeStoryForAdults #CalmNarration #HistoricalSleepStory #AncientHistory #ASMRStorytime #GreekMythology #PeacefulSleep #MeditativeStory #LearnWhileYouSleep #ImmersiveHistory #HistoryPodcast #SleepMeditation #RelaxAndSleep #AncientOlympics #SoothingVoice

Transcript

00:00:00Hello and welcome to History at Night.

00:00:02When you think of the Olympic Games, you likely imagine a global festival of sport.

00:00:07Thousands of athletes from every country competing for gold, silver and bronze medals.

00:00:13But the original Games, the ancient Olympics, were a very different affair.

00:00:17They were smaller, harsher and in many ways far more profound.

00:00:22There were no gold medals, there were no national teams and the athletes competed completely naked.

00:00:27Why would anyone endure years of brutal training, travel across dangerous lands and compete in violent, often deadly events?

00:00:35All for a simple crown of olive leaves.

00:00:38The answer was something more valuable than gold.

00:00:40Glory.

00:00:42In ancient Greece, to be an Olympic champion was to touch the divine, to win a piece of immortality

00:00:47and to bring unimaginable honour to yourself, your family and your city-state.

00:00:52All under the watchful eye of Zeus, king of the gods.

00:00:57So tonight you will become one of these athletes.

00:01:00We will leave the modern world behind and travel back over 2,000 years.

00:01:04You will experience the long and gruelling transformation from a farm boy into a hardened competitor.

00:01:11You will make the long pilgrimage across Greece, survive the brutal, month-long trial at Ellis

00:01:17and swear your sacred oath to the gods.

00:01:19You will experience the roar of the crowd, the dust of the stadium and the thrill of victory

00:01:25that could make you a legend forever.

00:01:27But before our journey begins, please take a moment to like the video and subscribe.

00:01:33It's a simple and wonderful way to support the channel and it means a great deal to me.

00:01:39I'm also always curious to know where in the world and at what time you're joining me tonight,

00:01:43so I'd really love to hear from you in the comments.

00:01:46And now settle in, let the noise of the modern world fade away

00:01:49and let us travel back to a time of olive groves, marble temples and the pursuit of immortal glory.

00:01:57Your world is small and it smells of dust and wild time.

00:02:01You are 14 years old and the boundaries of your life are the silver-green olive groves

00:02:05that belong to your father, the rocky path that leads to the community well

00:02:09and the sun-bleached stone walls of the handful of houses that make up your demos,

00:02:15one of the many rural villages that dot the rugged countryside of Attica.

00:02:20On a clear day, from the highest hill, you can just make out the distant gleam of marble

00:02:24from the Acropolis in the great city of Athens, a place that feels as distant as the moon.

00:02:30This word is the root of your identity.

00:02:33On a small scale, it is your village, this specific collection of families, fields and traditions

00:02:38bound by history and blood.

00:02:40But in a greater sense, the demos refers to all citizens of your city-state,

00:02:44the collective people from whom power flows.

00:02:47For you, though, it is simply home, the only world you have ever known.

00:02:51Life here is governed by the sun.

00:02:53It wakes you in the morning, casting long shadows from the hills,

00:02:57and it drives you to the shade of the fig trees in the breathless heat of the afternoon.

00:03:01The only sounds are the incessant, high-pitched ringing of the cicadas

00:03:05and the distant bleating of your family's goats.

00:03:09Your body is not a temple, it is a tool.

00:03:12It is strong not from any formal training,

00:03:15but from the simple, relentless labour of your existence.

00:03:19You wake before dawn, your first task to lead the goats to their grazing patch.

00:03:23You spend hours under the sun, working the soil of the groves,

00:03:27your back and shoulders aching with a familiar, deep-set burn.

00:03:31In the evening, you haul heavy clay jars of water back to the house for your mother.

00:03:36Your hands are hard and calloused, your feet are tough from the unforgiving ground,

00:03:41and your skin is the colour of baked earth.

00:03:44You do this without thought or question.

00:03:47It is the life your father lived, and his father before him.

00:03:50The great stories of heroes and gods feel like they belong to another world entirely.

00:03:55Tales told on winter nights that have no bearing on the hard, practical reality of your days.

00:04:03But today is different.

00:04:04The midday work is done, and a rare hour of respite is granted.

00:04:08You are with the other boys of the demo seeking shade near a dry creek bed.

00:04:13An argument, as it often does, turns into a challenge.

00:04:17Lai Kaeon, whose father owns more goats than anyone else,

00:04:20and who is bigger than you, boasts of his speed.

00:04:22He points to the crest of the nearby hill,

00:04:25where a single, gnarled olive tree stands against the piercing blue of the sky.

00:04:30The first one to touch the trunk is the best among us, he declares.

00:04:34It is a game.

00:04:36Nothing more.

00:04:37But as you all leap to your feet, something inside you awakens.

00:04:41The others run with the frantic, clumsy energy of youth.

00:04:45You feel different.

00:04:46Your feet barely seem to strike the ground.

00:04:49The steep, rocky incline that usually winds you.

00:04:51It is not an obstacle, but a welcome challenge.

00:04:55You feel your lungs drawing in the hot air easily, powerfully.

00:05:00The shouts of the other boys fade behind you,

00:05:02replaced by the sound of the wind rushing past your ears.

00:05:06You are not just running.

00:05:07You are flying over the earth.

00:05:09You reach the ancient tree, a full fifty paces ahead of Lai Kaeon,

00:05:13your hands slapping against its rough bark while he is still struggling up the slope.

00:05:17You are not even out of breath, only filled with a strange, exhilarating energy you have

00:05:23never felt before.

00:05:24As the other boys arrive, panting and cursing, you notice someone else has been watching.

00:05:30It is Diocles, an old man whose son died in a skirmish with a raiding party from a rival

00:05:36city years ago.

00:05:37He no longer works the fields, but spends his days sitting in the shade, observing the life

00:05:42of the demos.

00:05:43He is said to have travelled to Corinth and even Sparta in his youth, and he carries an

00:05:47authority that the other elders lack.

00:05:50He beckons you with a single, crooked finger.

00:05:53You approach him with caution.

00:05:55His eyes, usually clouded with memory, are sharp and clear.

00:06:00They are not looking at you, the boy, but at your body.

00:06:03He studies your legs, your shoulders, the depth of your chest.

00:06:07You do not run like a goat herder, he says, his voice a dry rasp.

00:06:13You run like a stag.

00:06:15How old are you?

00:06:16You tell him.

00:06:17He nods slowly, stroking his grey beard.

00:06:20There is a gift in you, boy.

00:06:22A gift from the gods.

00:06:24To let it wither in these dusty fields would be an insult to them.

00:06:27He speaks of things you have only heard in whispers.

00:06:30The games at Nemia, the festival at Isthmia, and the one that matters above all others.

00:06:34He says the word Olympia, and for the first time, it does not sound like a myth.

00:06:41It sounds like a destination.

00:06:43Later that evening, you watch as Diocles speaks with your father, a stern and practical man

00:06:49who measures life in harvests and rainfall.

00:06:51Look at you in a way he never has before.

00:06:54He sees past the sun, the labourer, and for the first time, he sees the potential for something

00:07:00more, a chance at a legacy, at a glory that his fields could never provide.

00:07:05The conversation ends.

00:07:07Your father walks over to you, his face a mask of grim determination.

00:07:11He places a heavy hand on your shoulder.

00:07:14Tomorrow your brothers will tend the goats, he says.

00:07:17Your life as a farmer is over.

00:07:19Diocles says you must be tested.

00:07:21Your real work is about to begin.

00:07:23You look out at the familiar hills, now bathed in the purple light of dusk, and you realise

00:07:29they are no longer the border of your world.

00:07:31They are the first step on a new and terrifying path.

00:07:36The journey from your demos is a descent from the quiet hills into a roaring sea of humanity.

00:07:42As you pass through the great gates of Athens, the familiar world of ringing cicadas and bleating

00:07:47goats is swallowed by an overwhelming din, the rumble of cartwheels on stone, the ceaseless

00:07:53shouts of merchants in the agora, the cacophony of a city that never rests.

00:07:58The air is thick with the unfamiliar smells of charcoal smoke, exotic spices, and the sweat

00:08:04of the crowd pressing in from all sides.

00:08:06Your father guides you through the dizzying maze of streets, his hand a firm grip on your

00:08:11shoulder, leading you to a walled compound on the city's edge.

00:08:15A famous gymnasian.

00:08:16This, he tells you, is your new world.

00:08:20The moment you step through the gates, your senses are overwhelmed.

00:08:23This is not a building.

00:08:24It is a world unto itself.

00:08:26Before you lies the palestra, a vast square courtyard of packed earth, surrounded by a covered

00:08:32colonnade where robed men, older and wealthier than any you have ever seen, stand talking

00:08:37and gesturing.

00:08:38Beyond it, you see long, open-air running tracks stretching into the distance.

00:08:42The men here train in the traditional Greek way, their physiques on full display.

00:08:48They are bigger than you, their muscles more defined, their skin a latticework of old scars

00:08:53and fresh scrapes.

00:08:54They move with a purpose and confidence that makes you feel small and soft, a boy in a land

00:08:59of giants.

00:09:00The air itself is different here.

00:09:03It is thick and heavy, carrying a scent you have never experienced, a pungent, almost

00:09:08cloying mixture that will soon become the smell of your own life.

00:09:13It is the smell of olive oil, gallons of it, warming in the sun.

00:09:17It is the smell of fine sand and dry dust, kicked up by running feet and grappling bodies.

00:09:24And under it all is the sharp, metallic tang of male sweat, the odour of pure, unending

00:09:29exertion.

00:09:31The sounds are just as alien, the rhythmic thud of bodies being thrown in the wrestling

00:09:35pit.

00:09:36The sharp, guttural grunts of men lifting stone weights.

00:09:40The high-pitched whirr of a bronze discus slicing through the air and underpinning it

00:09:45all, the constant sharp commands of the trainers.

00:09:49You are led to one of these men, your new master.

00:09:51He does not greet you or ask your name.

00:09:53He simply looks you over, his eyes critical, missing nothing.

00:09:58His first command is simple.

00:10:00Your training starts now.

00:10:02Remove your tunic.

00:10:04You do as you are told, folding the simple garment that connects you to your old life.

00:10:08Here you are not a farmer's son, you are an athlete, and your body is now an instrument

00:10:14to be honed.

00:10:15Another youth, an assistant, hands you a small clay flask of olive oil.

00:10:19You watch the others and mimic their actions, pouring the cool, viscous liquid into your

00:10:25palm and rubbing it across your body.

00:10:28Next, you are guided to a bin of fine sand and instructed to coat your oiled body in a

00:10:33light layer of dust.

00:10:34The trainer explains that this helps with grip and protects the skin.

00:10:38Finally, you are put through a series of grueling exercises, running, jumping, lifting, not

00:10:44as training, but as a raw assessment of your capabilities.

00:10:48Your muscles, accustomed to the rhythms of farm labour, scream in protest at these new

00:10:53explosive demands.

00:10:55When it is over, you are panting, your body trembling with an exhaustion deeper than any

00:11:00you have ever known.

00:11:01But you are not done.

00:11:03You are handed a slengis, a curved, bronze instrument you have never seen before.

00:11:08You are shown how to use it, to brace your skin and scrape away the thick paste of oil,

00:11:14sand, sweat and dirt.

00:11:17The process is rough, leaving your skin red and raw.

00:11:21As you stand there, scraped clean but still reeking of the gymnasium's unique perfume, you look

00:11:26at your own reflection in a polished, bronze shield hanging on the wall.

00:11:31The boy who left the demos this morning is gone.

00:11:34In his place is a raw, aching apprentice in the house of sweat and oil.

00:11:39This strange, brutal place has claimed you.

00:11:43Your new life quickly settles into a rhythm of monotonous, grinding toil.

00:11:48The world of your childhood, the goats, the fields, the scent of your mother's baking bread,

00:11:54fades into a distant memory.

00:11:56Your entire existence now revolves around one principle.

00:12:00A word your trainer drills into you until it echoes in your sleep.

00:12:04Ponos.

00:12:06He explains that it means more than just pain or work.

00:12:10It is purposeful, sacred suffering.

00:12:12It is the noble toil through which a boy is hammered into a man, and a man is elevated

00:12:17into a hero.

00:12:19Your body, he tells you, his voice devoid of sympathy, is a block of unworked marble.

00:12:24I am the sculptor, and my tools are exhaustion and pain.

00:12:28Through ponos we will chip away the soft, useless parts of you, and reveal the champion within.

00:12:35Your days are no longer measured by the sun, but by the tetras, a four-day cycle that governs

00:12:40your exertion.

00:12:42The first day is one of preparation and moderate intensity, short sprints, light exercises.

00:12:50The second day is the day of high intensity, a brutal, all-out assault on your physical

00:12:55limits that leaves you trembling on the verge of collapse.

00:12:58The third day is for recovery, but it is not rest.

00:13:02It involves slow, deliberate movements and skill refinement.

00:13:06The fourth day is one of medium intensity, a bridge back to the beginning of the cycle.

00:13:11This rhythm is relentless.

00:13:14There are no holidays, no days of true rest.

00:13:18There is only the cycle and the work.

00:13:20The work itself is a strange combination of raw labour and precise skill.

00:13:25You spend hours lifting and throwing heavy, uncut stones to build raw power in your back

00:13:31and shoulders.

00:13:31You run sprints in the soft, deep sand of the riverbed, a torturous exercise that builds

00:13:37explosive strength in your legs.

00:13:39You are paired with older, stronger athletes for wrestling practice, and you spend most of the time

00:13:44being thrown mercilessly into the packed earth of the palaestra, each impact a lesson in leverage

00:13:50and humility.

00:13:52Your trainer forces you to practice the intricate spin of the discus throw until your muscles

00:13:57commit the movement to memory, long after your mind has grown numb with repetition.

00:14:01Every session ends the same way, with your body screaming for rest and your trainer demanding

00:14:07one more attempt.

00:14:09When it comes to your food, you expected the traditional path.

00:14:13For generations, champions were built on a foundation of simplicity and self-control.

00:14:17You imagined your meals would be what all of Greece considered wholesome.

00:14:22Coarse barley cakes known as marza, baskets of fresh goat cheese, tyros, handfuls of sweet

00:14:28dried figs and thick bread dipped in watered down wine.

00:14:32This was the diet of sofrocene, of balance and moderation.

00:14:37It was food designed to build a lean, hardy body.

00:14:40Not a heavy one, and athletes took pride in their ascetic lifestyle.

00:14:44But Phaedros, your trainer, belongs to a new, more radical school.

00:14:48He scoffs at this tradition.

00:14:51Do you want to be a philosopher or do you want to be a victor?

00:14:54He asks, his voice laced with contempt.

00:14:57That is the food of thinkers.

00:14:59We are not thinking.

00:15:00We are building a weapon.

00:15:03And so, your diet is transformed into something new and strange.

00:15:07The balanced, grain-based meals of Greece are forbidden.

00:15:11Instead, you are fed massive quantities of meat.

00:15:14Often goat or pork, along with only the driest bread and a few figs.

00:15:19Your trainer believes in the controversial, new, meat diet.

00:15:23Arguing that to build the flesh of a bull, you must eat like a lion.

00:15:27The food is heavy and bland.

00:15:29There is no joy in eating.

00:15:30It is merely fuel for the next session of ponos.

00:15:33You choke down the dry meat.

00:15:35Your stomach churning.

00:15:36Knowing that you are eating not for pleasure, but for sheer mass and power.

00:15:41Slowly, almost imperceptibly at first, your body begins to respond.

00:15:46The lean, wiry strength of the farm boy is being replaced by something new.

00:15:50Your shoulders broaden.

00:15:52Your chest deepens.

00:15:53And dense, powerful muscle builds on your thighs and back.

00:15:56When you hoist the training stones now, they feel lighter.

00:16:00When you wrestle, you are not thrown as easily.

00:16:03The scars on your skin from scrapes and falls are joined by the hard, knotted tissue of developing muscle.

00:16:09The change is not just physical.

00:16:11Your mind is hardening too.

00:16:14You learn to silence the part of you that screams to stop.

00:16:17You learn to see pain not as an enemy, but as an indicator of progress.

00:16:21One evening, after the training is done, you catch your reflection in the bronze shield that hangs on the wall of the gymnasium.

00:16:28Your body is bruised and covered in a sheen of oil and grime.

00:16:32Every muscle fibre aches with a deep, resonant thrum.

00:16:35But through the exhaustion, you see it for the first time.

00:16:39The outline is there, the broad shoulders, the powerful core, the thick neck.

00:16:44It is the faint, emerging shape of the man you are supposed to become.

00:16:47The trainer's words echo in your mind.

00:16:50You understand now.

00:16:51To shape a body of stone, you must first forge a will of iron.

00:16:54The pain has a purpose.

00:16:56It is the sculptor's chisel.

00:16:58The man who orchestrates your daily sufferings, named Phaedros.

00:17:01He is a former wrestler, a fact written across his body, in a road map of scars, a thickened brow, and a nose that has been broken more than once.

00:17:10He moves with the quiet, deliberate grace of a predator.

00:17:14And his eyes, small and dark, seem to miss nothing.

00:17:17Phaedros is not just your trainer.

00:17:19He is the absolute master of your existence.

00:17:22He dictates what you eat, how you sleep.

00:17:25And when you are allowed, even a moment's rest.

00:17:29His word is law within the walls of the gymnasium, and his authority is unquestionable.

00:17:34You are no longer your father's son.

00:17:36You are Phaedros's creation, his project, his living sculpture.

00:17:41His primary tool of instruction is a long, forked stick, cut from a slender olive branch.

00:17:47It is almost always in his hand.

00:17:49This stick is not for pointing.

00:17:51It is for correction.

00:17:52One afternoon, while you are practicing your discus form, your release is a fraction of a second too late.

00:17:59Before the bronze disc has even clattered to the ground, the switch lands with a sharp, stinging crack across your shoulders.

00:18:06The pain is electric, immediate.

00:18:08There is no shouting, no lecture.

00:18:11Just the pain.

00:18:12And his low, cold voice.

00:18:14Your arm followed your hip.

00:18:15Your hip follows your heel.

00:18:17Again.

00:18:18You learn quickly that perfection is the only acceptable standard.

00:18:22Anything less is met with the swift, impartial judgment of the stick.

00:18:26You come to understand that his methods, while brutal, are not born of malice.

00:18:31Phaedros is preparing you for the reality of the Aegon.

00:18:34He is hardening you.

00:18:35The sting of his switch is a pale shadow of the brutal impact of a boxer's fist.

00:18:41The ache in your muscles is a dull whisper compared to the agony of a joint being twisted in a wrestler's grip.

00:18:46He is teaching your mind to separate itself from the body's complaints.

00:18:51He is forging a will that will not break under pressure.

00:18:54A focus that will not shatter in the chaos of competition.

00:18:58Every strike is a lesson.

00:18:59Every moment of pain he inflicts is a deliberate vaccination against the greater pain of defeat.

00:19:05But he is not just a tormentor.

00:19:08There are moments, rare and fleeting, when the tyrant recedes and the master teacher emerges.

00:19:14During a wrestling session, you are consistently being thrown by a stronger, heavier opponent.

00:19:21Phaedros halts the match.

00:19:22He steps onto the dirt and with a surprising gentleness he adjusts your stance.

00:19:26You fight his strength, he murmurs, his voice just for you.

00:19:32A foolish errand.

00:19:33Use his weight instead.

00:19:35See how he leans?

00:19:36His strength is his weakness.

00:19:38He then demonstrates the move with an economy of motion that is breathtaking,

00:19:43using his opponent's own momentum to send him sprawling.

00:19:46In that moment, you see the artist behind the brute,

00:19:50the deep, brilliant well of knowledge that he possesses.

00:19:53You learn that his approval is a currency far more valuable than coin.

00:19:57He never offers praise.

00:19:59A perfectly executed exercise is met only with his silence.

00:20:02And you come to cherish that silence, as it means you have met his expectations.

00:20:07The greatest reward you can ever receive is a short, almost imperceptible nod.

00:20:12That small gesture from Phaedros feels more significant than any cheering crowd.

00:20:17It is a sign that the block of marble is beginning to take the shape he desires.

00:20:20It is a sign that, perhaps you are worthy of the ponos he inflicts upon you.

00:20:26One day, at the end of a long run, you collapse.

00:20:29Your lungs on fire, convinced you cannot take another step.

00:20:33Phaedros doesn't strike you.

00:20:35He simply crouches beside you, his shadow falling over you.

00:20:39Rest then, he says quietly.

00:20:41And as you rest, think of the journey home.

00:20:45Imagine telling your father that the pain was too much.

00:20:49Imagine the silence of your demos when they see you have returned, with nothing.

00:20:53That is a pain that will last longer than this.

00:20:57He stands and walks away, leaving you with a choice.

00:21:00You get up and finish the run.

00:21:02You come to realise that the cruel hand that guides you is the only one capable of leading you to Olympia.

00:21:06You may fear him, you may even hate him, in your moments of deepest agony.

00:21:12But you trust him.

00:21:13You trust his knowledge, his judgement and his purpose.

00:21:17He is the gatekeeper of your dream.

00:21:20And you know, with a certainty, that settles deep in your bones,

00:21:24that to pass through that gate, you must first endure his world.

00:21:28And so, you endure.

00:21:30You surrender yourself completely to the rhythm of his commands.

00:21:34To the endless cycle of ponos.

00:21:36Day bleeds into week.

00:21:38Week into month.

00:21:39The seasons turn outside the walls of the gymnasium.

00:21:42But inside your world there is only the unchanging routine of toil and exhaustion.

00:21:46The boy of 14 who first walked through the gates vanishes.

00:21:50Hammered away by the relentless work.

00:21:52In his place, a man is forged.

00:21:54You are 18 now.

00:21:56And the man you have become would be unrecognisable to the boy who left the demos.

00:22:00The soft lines of youth are gone.

00:22:03Hammered away.

00:22:04And replaced by the dense, powerful muscle of a pentathlete.

00:22:08Your shoulders are broad.

00:22:09Your hands are calloused into thick plates of leather.

00:22:12And your mind, once filled with the simple concerns of the harvest,

00:22:15is now a focused instrument.

00:22:17Honed by the relentless discipline of your master.

00:22:20Phydros.

00:22:21You are no longer new.

00:22:23You are no longer a boy.

00:22:24You are a weapon.

00:22:25Waiting to be unleashed.

00:22:26One morning, the familiar rhythm of the gymnasium is broken.

00:22:31Two men arrive.

00:22:32Their clothes marked by the dust of a long journey.

00:22:35They are the spondoforoi, the truce bearers from Ellis.

00:22:38They carry bronze staffs as symbols of their sacred authority.

00:22:42And a hush falls over the entire complex as they enter.

00:22:47All activity ceases.

00:22:49Wrestlers disentangle.

00:22:50Runners halt.

00:22:51And even the sharp-tongued trainers fall silent.

00:22:54The presence of these men commands a deep, instinctual reverence.

00:22:58They move to the centre of the palaestra.

00:23:01And one of the heralds raises his staff.

00:23:03His voice rings out with ancient formality.

00:23:06A proclamation he will deliver in every major city in the Hellenic world.

00:23:10He declares the will of the gods.

00:23:12The great games in honour of Olympian Zeus will be held in two months' time.

00:23:17And from this moment, until the last traveller has safely returned to his home,

00:23:21the Ekahiria, the sacred truce, is in effect.

00:23:25The words hang in the air, transforming everything.

00:23:29The abstract goal you have suffered for has suddenly become a concrete reality,

00:23:33a date circled on the calendar of your life.

00:23:35For you, the Ekahiria is more than just a political decree.

00:23:39It is a divine shield.

00:23:40It means that the long, dangerous road to the Peloponnese,

00:23:43a journey that would normally be fraught with risk from bandits or skirmishes between feuding city-states,

00:23:49is now under the protection of Zeus himself.

00:23:53To attack you or any other pilgrim on the way to the Games would be a sacrilege of the highest order,

00:23:59inviting not just the wrath of men, but the vengeance of the gods.

00:24:03After the heralds depart, Phydros pulls you aside, away from the other athletes he trains.

00:24:08His focus is now entirely on you.

00:24:11In his eyes, you are the only one who matters for this Olympic cycle.

00:24:15The truce has been called, he says, his voice low and hard, meant only for your ears.

00:24:21The sacred peace has begun.

00:24:24It means we have a little more time here to hone every skill until it is second nature.

00:24:29Then we begin the long road to Ellis and the trial before the judges.

00:24:32Consider this your final warning.

00:24:35From this moment until you stand in the stadium, there is no wasted breath, no wasted motion.

00:24:41Everything must be for victory.

00:24:43Do you understand?

00:24:45You nod, the weight of his words settling upon you.

00:24:49There is no more room for error.

00:24:51No more time for building.

00:24:53The abstract goal has become a ticking clock.

00:24:56That night's sleep does not come easily.

00:24:57Your mind is no longer on the toil of the past, but on the dust of the road you know you will meet soon.

00:25:04The day of your departure arrives without ceremony.

00:25:07Your father meets you at the gates of the gymnasium.

00:25:10He does not embrace you.

00:25:12He simply hands you a small leather purse with enough coins for cheap lodging and food.

00:25:17Bring honour to this family, he says, his voice a low command.

00:25:21It is both a blessing and a burden.

00:25:24Phydros shoulders his own pack, gives a curt nod.

00:25:27And turns to the west.

00:25:29Your travelling party is small and self-reliant.

00:25:32You, Phydros and a quiet, wiry young attendant named Lykers.

00:25:37You travel on foot.

00:25:39It is the only real way for an athlete on a pilgrimage.

00:25:42A horse is a luxury for a general.

00:25:44And a liability on the punishing mountain roads.

00:25:47A beast for battle.

00:25:48Not a companion for a sacred journey.

00:25:50Your own two feet are all the transport a competitor needs.

00:25:54The journey is colossal.

00:25:56A trek of nearly 200 miles.

00:25:59At a disciplined pace, it will take the better part of two weeks.

00:26:02A true test of a different kind of endurance.

00:26:05The first three days are a familiar burn as you cross the plains of your homeland, Attica.

00:26:10Then, you reach the great Isthmus of Corinth, the narrow bridge of land connecting your world to the great peninsula of the Peloponnese.

00:26:20Here, the road becomes more crowded as you join travellers from nearby Megara and Thebes, the first hint of the great assembly to come.

00:26:27After crossing the Isthmus, your path turns south-west and for several more days, you push through the rugged, hilly territory of Achaia.

00:26:36It is here nearly a week into your journey that the true river of humanity begins to form.

00:26:42Roads from the north carrying pilgrims from Delphi and Thessaly merge with your own.

00:26:46The path becomes a slow-moving, crowded artery of life, all of it pouring west towards the same sacred destination.

00:26:55The air, once filled with the sounds of nature, now hums with a dozen different dialects, the scent of cooking fires and a palpable, shared sense of purpose.

00:27:05Immersed in this crowd, you learn to watch the other athletes.

00:27:09It is a silent, moving competition before the games even begin.

00:27:12A group of broad-shouldered men from Macedon, their skins paler than yours, eye you up as they pass.

00:27:19Phaedrus points out a lean, tough runner from Argos, known for his stamina.

00:27:24Watch how he walks, Phaedrus murmurs.

00:27:27He conserves every motion.

00:27:29He is disciplined.

00:27:31You study them, and they study you.

00:27:34There is no open hostility.

00:27:36The truce forbids it.

00:27:38But there is a constant, simmering rivalry.

00:27:40The knights are a lottery.

00:27:42Sometimes you find a space on the floor of a crowded, flea-ridden traveller's inn.

00:27:47More often, you sleep under the stars, surrounded by the sounds of the vast, temporary community.

00:27:54This journey strips away all comfort, reinforcing the lessons of austerity and hardship Phaedrus has drilled into you.

00:28:01The landscape itself seems to grow more mythic with each passing day.

00:28:05Every mountain pass and river valley has a story, a connection to Heracles or some other hero of old.

00:28:12The journey has transformed from a simple trip into a true pilgrimage.

00:28:16You are no longer just an athlete.

00:28:19You are a pilgrim, approaching a sacred place.

00:28:22One afternoon, Phaedrus stops and points to the horizon.

00:28:25In the distance, you can see the faint outline of city walls under the shimmering heat.

00:28:29Aelis, he says, his voice flat.

00:28:32A wave of both dread and relief washes over you.

00:28:35You are tired, dirty, and your feet are raw.

00:28:38But you have made it.

00:28:40The long road is over.

00:28:41Now, the true test, the final, brutal month of proving your worth, is about to begin.

00:28:49You pass through the gates of Aelis, and the festive chaos of the road immediately vanishes,

00:28:54replaced by an atmosphere of pure, unadulterated tension.

00:28:58This is not a city of merchants and spectators.

00:29:01For this one month, it is a city of athletes.

00:29:05The air itself feels different.

00:29:07Charged with the nervous energy of hundreds of competitors, who have staked their entire

00:29:11lives on this moment.

00:29:13You and your small party are directed towards the city's main gymnasium, a sprawling complex

00:29:18even larger than the one you left behind.

00:29:21Here, you are no longer an individual.

00:29:23You are one of many hopefuls.

00:29:25A single drop in an ocean of ambition.

00:29:27Before you even touch a discus, you are summoned before the judges, the Helenodecai.

00:29:32They are men of high birth from the noble families of Aelis, and they carry

00:29:36an aura of almost divine authority.

00:29:39Dressed in magnificent purple robes, they sit in passively, as you are brought before

00:29:43them.

00:29:44They do not smile.

00:29:46Their faces are stern, practiced masks of judgment.

00:29:49One of them records your name, your father's name, and your home city in a register.

00:29:54Another inspects your body, not with the calculating eye of a trainer, but with the cool dispassion

00:30:00of a priest examining a sacrificial animal to ensure it is without blemish.

00:30:04You feel the weight of their gaze, knowing these men hold your dream in the palm of their

00:30:08hands.

00:30:09Their word is absolute law.

00:30:11Life becomes a brutally simple and unwavering routine, and for you the first change is a

00:30:16profound shock.

00:30:18For four years, under Phydros' command, you have eaten meat like a lion to build your strength.

00:30:24Here, that is forbidden.

00:30:25The judges enforce the old ascetic diet on all competitors to ensure fairness and piety.

00:30:32You all eat the same simple meals.

00:30:34Coarse barley cakes, figs and cheese.

00:30:37This is a measure of humility, stripping away every athlete's special preparations to return

00:30:42them to a state of shared discipline before the gods.

00:30:46You feel a knot of fear in your stomach.

00:30:48Will your power fade on this simple fare?

00:30:50But Phydros dismisses your concern with a look.

00:30:54The foundation is built, he tells you later in a quiet whisper.

00:30:57This is now a test of your spirit's endurance, not just your body's.

00:31:02You are now surrounded by the very best from the entire Hellenic world.

00:31:06In the wrestling pit, you see Spartans whose bodies seem to be hewn from rock.

00:31:10On the running track, you see men from Sicily, who are so fast they appear to float over the

00:31:15ground.

00:31:15The confidence you have carefully built is shaken.

00:31:20Here, you are merely one of a hundred others who are just as strong and just as hungry as

00:31:25you are.

00:31:26One afternoon, you witness a javelin thrower, a man you recognise from the road, get dismissed

00:31:32with a quiet gesture from a judge after a poor performance.

00:31:36His dream dies in an instant.

00:31:38The fear this instils in you is cold and sharp.

00:31:41And so you push on, day after identical day.

00:31:44The sun rises, you train until your muscles tear, you eat your simple meal, you fall into

00:31:50a dead sleep, and you wake to do it all again.

00:31:53The month becomes a blur of pain, dust and focus.

00:31:57You no longer think of your home or your past.

00:31:59There is only the next exercise, the next command, the next rival.

00:32:04Men you trained beside one week are gone the next, their dreams extinguished.

00:32:08The crowd of hopefuls thins with each setting sun, and you survive, one day at a time, holding

00:32:14on to your ambition with a desperate, silent grip.

00:32:18Phydros is your shadow, coaching you with his eyes and with urgent, quiet counsel in

00:32:22the evenings.

00:32:24And then, after a lifetime of toil, condensed into thirty days, the final day of the month

00:32:28arrives.

00:32:29All the remaining athletes are gathered in the main courtyard.

00:32:33A profound silence falls as one of the chief judges steps forward, holding a papyrus scroll.

00:32:38He begins to read the names of those who have been deemed worthy to proceed to Olympia.

00:32:42Each name called is met with a quiet explosion of relief from one man, and a wave of despair

00:32:47from a dozen others.

00:32:49The list feels impossibly long, then terrifyingly short.

00:32:52You hold your breath, your heart hammering against your ribs.

00:32:55And then you hear it, your name.

00:32:58The sound is so overwhelming that the world seems to go silent for a moment.

00:33:02You have survived.

00:33:03You look at Phydros, who gives you a single, sharp nod.

00:33:07It is the highest praise he has ever offered.

00:33:09The proving is over.

00:33:11You are now truly an Olympian.

00:33:13The night after the selection is unlike any you have ever known.

00:33:18The oppressive tension that has suffocated the city of Elis for a month finally breaks.

00:33:23A quiet, exhausted camaraderie settles over you and the other men, who have been deemed worthy.

00:33:30You are no longer rivals, not for tonight.

00:33:33You are survivors.

00:33:35You share a flask of watered-down wine with a wrestler from Thebes, a man you considered

00:33:40your mortal enemy just yesterday.

00:33:42You exchange a silent, respectful nod with the swift runner from Sicily.

00:33:46You have all passed through the same fire, and a new, unspoken bond has been forged between

00:33:51you, the Brotherhood of the Chosen.

00:33:54The procession begins at dawn.

00:33:56It is a slow, solemn and magnificent affair.

00:34:00At the head of the column march, the Hellenodikai, their purple robes a stark statement of their

00:34:05sacred authority.

00:34:07Behind them, you and the other athletes walk together.

00:34:09A great procession of the finest physiques in the Hellenic world, moving not with the

00:34:14urgency of a race, but with the measured tread of a religious pilgrimage.

00:34:19Phaedros walks near you, his usual harshness replaced by a grim, focused silence.

00:34:25He is no longer your master tormentor.

00:34:27He is your guide on this final, holy leg of the journey.

00:34:30The road from Elis to Olympia is known as the Sacred Way, and you feel its significance

00:34:35with every step.

00:34:36On the first day, the march stops at a sacred spring that bubbles up from the earth.

00:34:41Here, a purification ritual is held.

00:34:43One by one, you and the other athletes wash your hands and faces in the cool, clear water.

00:34:49A symbolic act of cleansing yourselves of the profane world of training, before you present

00:34:54yourselves to the gods.

00:34:56The simple act focuses your mind, stripping away lingering fear, and replacing it with a

00:35:01profound sense of purpose.

00:35:03The day concludes at a designated stopping point, along the Sacred Way, and camp is made

00:35:09as the sun sets.

00:35:10There is no revelry, only the quiet sounds of hundreds of men preparing for the final

00:35:15leg of their journey.

00:35:17The air is filled with a unique mixture of exhaustion and electric anticipation.

00:35:23Phaedros sits with you by a small fire, not speaking of technique, but of mindset.

00:35:28Tomorrow you will see the grove.

00:35:29He says, do not let your awe make you forget why you are there.

00:35:34You are not a spectator.

00:35:35You are an offering.

00:35:38You sleep that night on the hard ground, closer to your goal than ever before, the dreams of

00:35:43glory wrestling with the fear of the gods.

00:35:45The procession resumes with the first light of the second day.

00:35:50The final miles feel different.

00:35:53The anticipation from the night before is sharpened into a keen edge.

00:35:56The path begins to wind through gentle hills, shaded by ancient silver-leafed olive trees.

00:36:02You can feel a change in the air itself, a stillness, a sense of approaching something

00:36:07of immense power and antiquity.

00:36:08Then you come around a final bend in the road and the valley opens up before you.

00:36:14You stop and your breath catches in your throat.

00:36:17It is Olympia.

00:36:18It is not a city of men, but a sanctuary of the gods.

00:36:22Dominating everything is the Temple of Zeus, a structure so massive and perfectly proportioned

00:36:27that it seems impossible it was built by human hands.

00:36:30You can see the smaller, more ancient Temple of Hera nearby and the row of stone treasuries

00:36:35built by various city-states.

00:36:38And in the centre of it all, you see not a building, but a great dark mound.

00:36:43The altar of Zeus, built over centuries from the compacted ash of countless sacrifices.

00:36:48The entire grove seems to hum with a silent, invisible power.

00:36:53All the stories, all the pain, the years of Ponos.

00:36:56It all collapses into this one, overwhelming moment.

00:37:00It is real.

00:37:02Phaedros places a heavy hand on your shoulder.

00:37:04This, he says, his voice thick with a reverence you have never heard from him before, is what

00:37:10you have bled for.

00:37:12You take your first steps into the sacred heart of Olympia, the Altes.

00:37:16The ground beneath your feet feels different, charged with history and divinity.

00:37:21The sounds of the world seem to fade away, replaced by a profound, ringing silence.

00:37:26You have left the world of men behind.

00:37:29You have entered the domain of the gods.

00:37:30And here, upon their holy ground, your ultimate fate will be decided.

00:37:36The awe you felt upon completing the procession and entering Olympia settles into a quiet,

00:37:41nervous reverence.

00:37:42There is little time for wonder.

00:37:45You and the other athletes are quickly ushered into designated quarters, the sheer scale of

00:37:49the temples and the countless statues of past victors flashing past your eyes.

00:37:54They are the legends who came before you, their glory frozen in time, and you feel the immense

00:37:59weight of their legacy.

00:38:01You are no longer just an athlete on a journey.

00:38:04You are a link in an ancient, sacred chain.

00:38:07And the duties of that chain begin immediately.

00:38:10Before the sun can set on your day of arrival, a herald summons you and the other qualified

00:38:15Olympians.

00:38:15You are not directed to the stadium or the training grounds, but to the buluterion, the

00:38:21council house of Olympia.

00:38:23This is not a place of celebration.

00:38:25It is an imposing, solemn building, where the official business of the games is conducted.

00:38:31Inside, the air is cool and heavy with the scent of old incense and something more primal.

00:38:37Your eyes are immediately drawn to the statue that dominates the room.

00:38:40It is Zeus, but not the majestic seated king you have seen in other temples.

00:38:44This is Zeus Horkios.

00:38:46Zeus, the keeper of oaths.

00:38:48He is a terrifying figure cast in bronze, standing with a thunderbolt in each outstretched

00:38:53hand, his expression a mask of grim, divine fury.

00:38:58The statue was crafted for one purpose, to strike terror into the hearts of any man who

00:39:03would consider breaking his vow.

00:39:05At the foot of the statue, your stomach tightens at what you see next.

00:39:09Priests have just sacrificed a wild boar and its freshly cut pieces lie on the ground.

00:39:14The sharp, metallic smell of blood cuts through the incense.

00:39:18This is not just a sacrifice.

00:39:20It is a warning.

00:39:21Just as this animal has been dismembered, so too will the gods destroy any man who swears

00:39:27a false oath on this holy ground.

00:39:29You are gathered with the other competitors.

00:39:31The mood is tense and deathly quiet.

00:39:34You see Phaedros standing nearby, his face a mask of stone.

00:39:37And then through the crowd you see another familiar face.

00:39:41Your father.

00:39:42He has made the long journey himself.

00:39:44His face etched with the worry and hope of a man whose family's honour is now on the line.

00:39:50He gives you a single, grim nod.

00:39:52The presence of both your father and your trainer underscores the weight of this moment.

00:39:57This is where the rules of the gods are formally laid upon the rules of men.

00:40:01A herald calls you forward in a group.

00:40:03You approach the statue, your heart pounding a heavy rhythm against your ribs.

00:40:08You are instructed to place your hands upon the bloody, still warm pieces of the sacrificial boar.

00:40:14The touch is jarring.

00:40:16A visceral connection to the brutal consequence of failure.

00:40:19With your hands upon the sacrifice, you must repeat the words of the sacred oath, spoken aloud by a priest.

00:40:26You swear to Zeus that you have trained faithfully for the ten months preceding the games.

00:40:31You swear that you will compete with honour and will not resort to bribery, trickery or any foul play to secure victory.

00:40:38The words feel heavy in your mouth, each one a binding chain.

00:40:42You are entering a sacred contract with the king of the gods himself as the witness and enforcer.

00:40:47When you are done, you step back.

00:40:50But the ceremony is not over.

00:40:52Your father and Phydros must then step forward, place their hands on the sacrifice and swear their own oath,

00:40:58vouching for your purity as a competitor.

00:41:01The responsibility is shared.

00:41:04If you cheat, you bring disgrace and divine retribution, not only upon yourself but upon your family and your master.

00:41:11Finally, you walk out of the dark, intimidating Bulleterian and back into the bright sunlight.

00:41:18The world looks the same, but you feel profoundly changed.

00:41:21A sacred, terrifying bond has been tied around your soul.

00:41:25The games are no longer simply a contest of muscle and skill.

00:41:29They are now a test of your piety and your honour, held in the direct sight of the gods.

00:41:34The path to victory is clear, but the penalty for cheating is no longer just disqualification.

00:41:39It is utter and divine destruction.

00:41:43The morning after the oath dawns with a new energy, the sacred tension of the formal opening has given way to a buzzing, chaotic excitement.

00:41:51Today your own contests have not yet begun.

00:41:53You and your fellow athletes are, for a few hours, spectators.

00:41:57A great river of people is flowing away from the sacred grove, and you are swept along with them,

00:42:03drawn by a sound that starts as a low hum and grows into a deafening roar.

00:42:07The sound pulls you toward a vast, open plain outside the Altees.

00:42:11The Hippodrome.

00:42:12You have never seen a spectacle of this scale.

00:42:15This is not a formal stadium of stone, but a massive, oblong track of packed earth,

00:42:21flanked by natural hillsides that are now teeming with tens of thousands of people.

00:42:26The air is thick with dust and the smell of horses, a churning sea of shouting, gesturing and betting spectators.

00:42:33This is where the first and most expensive of the contests are held.

00:42:38This is the domain of the rich.

00:42:39Phydros guides you to a spot on the embankment,

00:42:43and you watch as the teams prepare for the Tethrapon, the four-horse chariot race.

00:42:48The chariots are impossibly light, little more than small wooden platforms on two wheels,

00:42:53painted with the emblems of their owners.

00:42:55The horses are magnificent, powerful creatures from the finest breeding lines in Greece,

00:43:00their muscles twitching with nervous energy, their harnesses gleaming with bronze.

00:43:06Phydros points to one team.

00:43:07Owned by a nobleman from Syracuse, he says, his voice laced with a cynical respect.

00:43:15And that one, by an Athenian general.

00:43:17They will not risk their own lives, of course.

00:43:20They hire drivers.

00:43:22But if the chariot wins, the olive wreath and the glory belong to the owner.

00:43:25You see the drivers, lean, tough men whose faces are grim masks of focus.

00:43:30Their fate is to risk death for another man's honour.

00:43:34You watch, fascinated, as the teams are loaded into the ingenious starting gate, the hypaphasis.

00:43:41It is a massive ship-prow-shaped structure, with stalls for each chariot.

00:43:45As the trumpet sounds, a complex system of ropes is lowered in sequence, first for the chariots

00:43:51in the back, then the ones in front, releasing them onto the track in a perfectly fair start.

00:43:56The moment the last gate drops, the crowd erupts in a single, deafening roar.

00:44:02The race is an explosion of organised chaos.

00:44:04The thunder of 40 hooves shakes the very ground you stand on.

00:44:08The light chariots bounce and skid on the uneven track, throwing up a blinding cloud of dust.

00:44:14The real test comes at the far end of the track, at the tight 180-degree turn around the post.

00:44:21It is here that skill, bravery and luck collide.

00:44:24On the second lap, you see it happen.

00:44:27A driver cuts the turn too sharply.

00:44:28His chariot's wheel clips the post and the entire vehicle disintegrates in a shower of splintered wood.

00:44:35The driver is thrown, and another chariot, unable to swerve in time, ploughs into his fallen horses.

00:44:42The sound of cracking wood and the high-pitched screams of animals cuts through the crowd's roar.

00:44:47It is a moment of breathtaking, terrifying violence.

00:44:51Faidros tells you of the legends of the track, of a spot on the course known as the Tarak Sippus,

00:44:56the horse-frightener, an invisible presence that is said to panic the animals and cause the most spectacular crashes.

00:45:04You watch the drivers wrestle with their powerful teams, their bodies braced,

00:45:08their knuckles white as they fight to control four galloping horses, hell-bent on victory.

00:45:13As the race finishes, a victor pulls ahead, crossing the line to a wave of ecstatic shouts.

00:45:19The crowd pours onto the field, surrounding the wealthy owner, who is already celebrating his triumph.

00:45:24The driver, bruised, sweat-soaked, and covered in a thick layer of grime, is barely noticed as he calms his heaving horses.

00:45:31You leave the hippodrome with the roar of the crowd still ringing in your ears.

00:45:36It was a magnificent, terrifying spectacle of wealth and danger.

00:45:40But it was not your world.

00:45:42Your glory cannot be bought, and your victory cannot be won by another.

00:45:45The time for watching is over.

00:45:49Soon you will step into your own arena, the stadium,

00:45:52where the only thing that matters is the strength and skill of your own two hands and your own two feet.

00:45:58You leave the hippodrome behind and walk with a quiet, focused dread toward the great stadium.

00:46:05The chaotic roar of the horse races is replaced by the focused hum of a different kind of crowd.

00:46:11As you pass through the arched tunnel that leads onto the field, the crypt,

00:46:16you emerge from coolness and shadow into a colossal space,

00:46:20a long rectangle of packed earth flanked by grassy embankments, packed with thousands of spectators.

00:46:26This is it, the place you have dreamed of and feared for years.

00:46:30The air is hot, and the scale of the crowd, a living wall of humanity, is immense.

00:46:36There is nowhere to hide.

00:46:38You take your place with the other pentathletes.

00:46:40There are twenty of you, the best all-around competitors from across the Hellenic world.

00:46:46You recognise the massive Theban you saw on the road,

00:46:48a wrestler whose sheer bulk seems to radiate power.

00:46:52You see the lean, tough runner from Argos,

00:46:54and the supremely confident champion from Corinth.

00:46:57Phaedros gives you one last look, his eyes boring into you.

00:47:02Remember your training, is all he says.

00:47:05The crowd is not real.

00:47:07The other men are not real.

00:47:08There is only the mark.

00:47:10Do not think.

00:47:11React.

00:47:12A judge signals the start of the first discipline.

00:47:15The discus throw.

00:47:17A competitor from Corinth, a man with a chest like a wine barrel, steps up first.

00:47:23He spins with immense power, his body a blur of controlled violence,

00:47:27and the heavy bronze discus flies through the air with a soft whirr,

00:47:31landing with a heavy thud far down the field.

00:47:33The crowd murmurs its approval.

00:47:36The mark is set.

00:47:37One by one, your rivals take their turns, each throw a statement of intent.

00:47:42The Theban uses brute force, his throw landing just short of the Corinthians.

00:47:47The runner from Argos throws with more grace than power, his mark respectable but not threatening.

00:47:53Then, it is your turn.

00:47:55You walk to the starting line, the weight of the bronze discus cool and heavy in your hand.

00:48:01You can feel the thousands of eyes on you, a physical weight on your skin.

00:48:05You force them out.

00:48:07You remember the endless afternoons with Phydros, the sting of his switch after a clumsy release,

00:48:12the muscle memory beaten into you.

00:48:15You take a breath, begin your spin, and let the muscle memory take over.

00:48:18Your body knows what to do.

00:48:21You release.

00:48:22The discus soars a spinning bronze sun and lands just past the Corinthians mark.

00:48:28A wave of quiet relief washes over you.

00:48:30You are in the lead.

00:48:32For now.

00:48:33But there is no time for satisfaction.

00:48:35The judges move you immediately to the second event.

00:48:38The long jump.

00:48:40The halmer.

00:48:41It is the most technical of the field events, a true test of rhythm and coordination.

00:48:46You are each handed two halteries.

00:48:49Crescent-shaped stone weights, each as heavy as a small melon.

00:48:53A flute player begins a slow, rhythmic tune, a melody designed to guide the timing of your approach.

00:48:59The Corinthian seeking to reclaim his lead goes first.

00:49:02He swings the weights powerfully, but his timing is off.

00:49:06He stumbles on his landing, and the jump is only average.

00:49:09The crowd groans its disappointment.

00:49:11You watch as the Theban takes his turn.

00:49:13He uses the heavy stones to launch his massive frame forward,

00:49:16landing with a powerful thud that shakes the ground.

00:49:19The mark is impressive.

00:49:21The pressure is back on you.

00:49:23You step to the line,

00:49:24the stones feeling heavy in your hands.

00:49:27The flute music seems distant.

00:49:29All you can hear is the pounding of your own heart.

00:49:32You begin to swing the weights,

00:49:34forward and back,

00:49:35building momentum.

00:49:37You remember Phydros' voice,

00:49:39a constant echo in your mind.

00:49:40Let the stones pull you.

00:49:43Do not fight them.

00:49:45At the perfect moment,

00:49:46you launch yourself forward,

00:49:48thrusting the stones out in front of you as you jump,

00:49:51then pulling them back violently,

00:49:52in mid-air,

00:49:53to propel your body forward.

00:49:55You land hard in the sand pit,

00:49:56stumbling but staying on your feet.

00:49:59You wait,

00:49:59holding your breath,

00:50:00as a judge inspects the mark.

00:50:02He straightens up and looks at the crowd.

00:50:05Your jump is longer than the Theban's.

00:50:07You are still in the lead.

00:50:08As you walk back to the competitors' area,

00:50:11you see two men from the group

00:50:12being quietly dismissed by the judges.

00:50:14Their performance in the first two events

00:50:16was not good enough.

00:50:17They will not continue.

00:50:19The field of contenders is shrinking.

00:50:21You have survived,

00:50:22but the javelin,

00:50:23your weakest event,

00:50:24is next.

00:50:26There is no time to savour your lead.

00:50:28The judges move the remaining group of athletes,

00:50:31a dozen of you are left now,

00:50:32to the far end of the stadium for the third event.

00:50:35The javelin throw,

00:50:36the acon,

00:50:37a cold knot forms in your stomach.

00:50:41This is the discipline you fear.

00:50:43Your body is built for the power of the discus

00:50:45and the explosive coordination of the jump.

00:50:48The javelin is different.

00:50:49It is a creature of pure technique,

00:50:52a test of fluid grace

00:50:53that has always felt awkward in your powerful frame.

00:50:56Phydros' voice echoes in your memory

00:50:58from a thousand frustrating practice sessions.

00:51:01You cannot force it.

00:51:03You must guide it.

00:51:04Let it fly.

00:51:06You are each handed a slender javelin of elderwood,

00:51:09about as tall as you are,

00:51:11with a small bronze tip.

00:51:13The crucial element is the ankyl,

00:51:15a thin leather thong wrapped around the centre of the shaft.

00:51:18You watch the others.

00:51:19The massive Theban,

00:51:21your main rival,

00:51:23throws with clumsy brute force.

00:51:25His javelin wobbles in the air

00:51:27and lands with a disappointing thud.

00:51:29He is a wrestler,

00:51:30and it shows.

00:51:32This gives you hope.

00:51:33But then the champion from Corinth steps forward.

00:51:37His movements are like a dancer's.

00:51:39He takes a short, rhythmic run-up,

00:51:41his fingers expertly looped in the ankyl.

00:51:44As he throws,

00:51:45the thong unwinds,

00:51:47spinning the javelin with a sharp hiss.

00:51:49It flies with perfect, stable grace,

00:51:52soaring through the hot air

00:51:53and piercing the earth an incredible distance away.

00:51:56The crowd roars.

00:51:57The mark is monumental.

00:51:59The pressure on you is now immense.

00:52:01You don't need to beat the Corinthian's throw.

00:52:03No one will.

00:52:04But you must produce a mark good enough

00:52:06to keep you in the top tier.

00:52:08You step to the line,

00:52:10your palms sweating.

00:52:11You can feel the familiar awkwardness

00:52:13as you grip the shaft

00:52:14and loop the leather thong around your fingers.

00:52:17You close your eyes,

00:52:18shutting out the crowd.

00:52:20The Theban,

00:52:21the Corinthian.

00:52:22You picture Phaedros.

00:52:24You remember his endless corrections.

00:52:26You begin your run,

00:52:28trying to feel the rhythm,

00:52:29not force it.

00:52:30You throw.

00:52:31The javelin leaves your hand cleanly,

00:52:33spinning as it should.

00:52:35It is not the most beautiful throw.

00:52:37It is not the longest.

00:52:39But it flies true

00:52:40and lands with a solid, respectable mark.

00:52:43You have not failed.

00:52:44You have survived.

00:52:46As the judges review the marks,

00:52:47more men are dismissed.

00:52:49Their shoulders slumped in defeat.

00:52:51The field has now been cut to just five men.

00:52:53The final qualifying event

00:52:56before the wrestling finale

00:52:57is the Stadion,

00:52:59a single furious sprint

00:53:00down the length of the stadium.

00:53:02You walk to the Balbis,

00:53:04the stone starting line,

00:53:05and place your bare feet

00:53:06into the parallel grooves

00:53:08cut for the runners.

00:53:09Your muscles are heavy,

00:53:11screaming with the fatigue

00:53:12of the three field events.

00:53:14Beside you stands the runner from Argos,

00:53:16the lean, tough specialist.

00:53:18On your other side,

00:53:20the massive Theban

00:53:20settles into a clumsy starting position,

00:53:23his body built for grappling,

00:53:24not for speed.

00:53:26This is a test of what you have left.

00:53:28A judge raises his arm,

00:53:30then brings it down with a sharp cry.

00:53:32You explode from the line.

00:53:34The earth flies beneath your feet.

00:53:36The roar of the crowd

00:53:37becomes a single,

00:53:38sustained wall of sound.

00:53:40You are not thinking of form,

00:53:42only of the finish line,

00:53:43a simple line drawn in the dirt

00:53:45that now seems like

00:53:46the only thing in the world.

00:53:48The runner from Argos is a blur,

00:53:50pulling ahead to win the race

00:53:51as everyone expected.

00:53:53But you are right behind him,

00:53:55your lungs on fire,

00:53:57driving your exhausted body forward

00:53:58with pure will.

00:54:00You cross the line second,

00:54:02the Corinthian is third,

00:54:03the Theban lumbers across last,

00:54:06his face a mask of grim effort.

00:54:08You stand bent over,

00:54:09hands on your knees,

00:54:11gasping for air,

00:54:12the taste of blood and dust

00:54:13in your mouth.

00:54:15An agonising silence

00:54:16falls over the stadium,

00:54:17as the judges confer,

00:54:19their heads close together.

00:54:21They are calculating the results

00:54:22of all four events,

00:54:24deciding the two finalists.

00:54:27After what feels like an eternity,

00:54:29a herald steps forward,

00:54:31the crowd falls silent.

00:54:33The pentathlon,

00:54:35he bellows,

00:54:36his voice echoing across the field,

00:54:38will be decided by a final contest

00:54:40of wrestling between the two

00:54:41highest scoring athletes.

00:54:43He turns to the judges

00:54:45who give him a name.

00:54:46From Thebes,

00:54:47the son of Damaster.

00:54:49The massive wrestler roars

00:54:50and beats his chest.

00:54:51He has made it to the final.

00:54:53The herald waits for the crowd

00:54:55to quiet.

00:54:56He looks at his tablet again.

00:54:58A long, terrible pause.

00:54:59He looks directly at you.

00:55:01And from Athens,

00:55:02the son of Ariston.

00:55:04The world seems to stop.

00:55:07You have done it.

00:55:08You have made it to the final.

00:55:10All that stands between you

00:55:11and the olive wreath

00:55:12is the mountain of muscle and bone

00:55:14from Thebes.

00:55:16The roar of the crowd,

00:55:17as your name is called,

00:55:18is a physical force,

00:55:19a wave of sound

00:55:20that washes over you

00:55:21and seems to shake the very ground.

00:55:24The other pentathletes,

00:55:25the men you have struggled

00:55:26beside and against

00:55:27all afternoon,

00:55:28fade away,

00:55:29their dreams extinguished.

00:55:30They retreat to the sidelines,

00:55:32their faces a mixture

00:55:33of disappointment

00:55:34and respect.

00:55:36The entire stadium,

00:55:37the entire world,

00:55:38seems to shrink

00:55:39until it contains

00:55:40only two figures.

00:55:41You and the mountain

00:55:43of muscle from Thebes.

00:55:44You walk to the centre

00:55:45of the stadium,

00:55:46to the scammer.

00:55:48The shallow pit of sand

00:55:49where the match will be held.

00:55:51The Theban is already there,

00:55:53beating his chest,

00:55:54a confident smirk

00:55:55on his face.

00:55:57He is a pure wrestler

00:55:58and this is his domain.

00:56:00You are an all-arounder,

00:56:02your body exhausted

00:56:03from four previous events.

00:56:06Phydros rushes to your side

00:56:07for one final,

00:56:09urgent instruction.

00:56:10His voice a low hiss

00:56:11in your ear.

00:56:13Do not meet his charge.

00:56:14His strength is a rock

00:56:15and you will break against it.

00:56:18Be water.

00:56:19Evade him.

00:56:20Use his own weight against him.

00:56:22Remember your training.

00:56:24A judge gives the signal.

00:56:26The match begins.

00:56:28You circle each other,

00:56:29your bare feet sinking

00:56:30into the warm soft sand.

00:56:33The contrast between you

00:56:34is stark.

00:56:35He is a bull,

00:56:36thick-necked and broad,

00:56:37moving with a ponderous,

00:56:39inevitable force.

00:56:40You are leaner,

00:56:42quicker,

00:56:42your body a map of taut,

00:56:44efficient muscle.

00:56:45He charges.

00:56:47You heed Phydros' words,

00:56:49sidestepping his initial lunge.

00:56:51He grunts in frustration.

00:56:53You lock up

00:56:53and you feel his power

00:56:54for the first time.

00:56:56It is immense,

00:56:56a crushing,

00:56:57brute force

00:56:58that threatens to overwhelm you.

00:57:00He gets you in a body lock,

00:57:02his arms like iron bands

00:57:03around your ribs

00:57:04and simply lifts you

00:57:05from the earth.

00:57:06With a roar,

00:57:07he slams you to the ground.

00:57:09The impact drives the air

00:57:10from your lungs

00:57:10in a painful gasp.

00:57:12The sun seems to dim

00:57:13for a moment.

00:57:15A fall.

00:57:16The Theban stands over you,

00:57:18raising a fist

00:57:19to the cheering crowd.

00:57:20He is one throw

00:57:21closer to the wreath,

00:57:23a knot of despair

00:57:24tightens in your gut.

00:57:25Phydros is shouting

00:57:26from the side

00:57:27but his voice

00:57:28is lost in the noise.

00:57:30You force yourself

00:57:30to your feet,

00:57:31your back screaming

00:57:32in protest

00:57:33and take your place again.

00:57:35The second round begins.

00:57:37You know you cannot survive

00:57:38another display

00:57:39of pure power.

00:57:40You must be smarter.

00:57:41You stay low,

00:57:42moving constantly,

00:57:44forcing him to turn,

00:57:45to chase you.

00:57:47He grows impatient,

00:57:48his movements

00:57:48becoming sloppy.

00:57:50He lunges again,

00:57:50reaching for your head.

00:57:51This time,

00:57:52you are ready.

00:57:53As he comes forward,

00:57:55you drop your centre

00:57:55of gravity,

00:57:56duck under his grasping arm

00:57:58and pivot.

00:57:59You use his own

00:58:00massive momentum

00:58:00against him,

00:58:01executing a hip throw

00:58:02that Phydros

00:58:03drilled into you

00:58:04a thousand times.

00:58:05The Theban's feet

00:58:06leave the ground.

00:58:07He crashes onto his back

00:58:08with a look of pure shock

00:58:10on his face,

00:58:11sending up a cloud of dust.

00:58:13The crowd roars

00:58:13a sound of surprise

00:58:14and delight.

00:58:16One fall each.

00:58:17The third and final round

00:58:18is a war of attrition.

00:58:19The scorching sun

00:58:21and the accumulated

00:58:22exhaustion of the day

00:58:23have taken their toll

00:58:24on both of you.

00:58:25Your movements are slower,

00:58:27your lungs burning.

00:58:28The sweat and oil

00:58:29on your bodies

00:58:30mix with the dust,

00:58:31turning your skin

00:58:32to a slick,

00:58:33gritty mud.

00:58:35You are locked together

00:58:36for what feels like

00:58:36an eternity,

00:58:38a gruelling stalemate

00:58:39of heaving chests

00:58:40and straining muscles.

00:58:42You see an opening,

00:58:44a moment of weakness.

00:58:46He overcommits,

00:58:47reaching for your neck

00:58:48one last time.

00:58:49It is now or never.

00:58:51You duck under his arm,

00:58:52lock your hands

00:58:53behind his thick back

00:58:54and drive forward

00:58:55with every last ounce

00:58:56of your being.

00:58:57It is a desperate,

00:58:58twisting heave.

00:59:00For a heartbeat,

00:59:01you are both suspended

00:59:02in a state of perfect imbalance.

00:59:05Then,

00:59:05with a great sigh

00:59:06of collapsing muscle,

00:59:07he goes down.

00:59:08He hits the ground

00:59:09and you fall with him,

00:59:11too exhausted

00:59:11to remain standing.

00:59:13There is a moment

00:59:13of absolute silence.

00:59:15You lie in the dust,

00:59:16the weight of the Theban

00:59:18beneath you,

00:59:19your ears ringing.

00:59:20Then you feel a hand

00:59:21on your shoulder.

00:59:23The judge.

00:59:24He raises your arm.

00:59:25The fall is yours.

00:59:27The match is yours.

00:59:29The pentathlon

00:59:30is yours.

00:59:31The roar of the crowd,

00:59:33the sound of your own

00:59:34immortality,

00:59:35washes over you.

00:59:37But you barely hear it.

00:59:38The world is a blur

00:59:39of dust and exhaustion.

00:59:42The first person

00:59:43to reach you

00:59:43is Phaedros.

00:59:44He hauls you

00:59:45roughly to your feet.

00:59:47For a moment,

00:59:48you see his familiar

00:59:48stern face

00:59:49and you expect

00:59:50a critique.

00:59:52But the iron mask

00:59:52is gone.

00:59:54For the first time

00:59:54in four years,

00:59:55the trainer's

00:59:56calculating gaze

00:59:57is replaced

00:59:57by something else,

00:59:59something fierce

01:00:00and bright.

01:00:02It is pride.

01:00:04He says nothing,

01:00:05but he clasps

01:00:06your shoulder

01:00:06with a grip

01:00:07that is not a correction,

01:00:08but a profound

01:00:09acknowledgement.

01:00:11In that grip,

01:00:12you feel the entirety

01:00:13of your shared journey.

01:00:15The pain,

01:00:16the sacrifice,

01:00:17the relentless ponos.

01:00:19Then another figure

01:00:21pushes through

01:00:21the officials.

01:00:23Your father.

01:00:24He's not a man

01:00:25for displays of emotion,

01:00:26but his face

01:00:27is transformed.

01:00:29The grim lines

01:00:29of worry

01:00:30have vanished

01:00:30and his eyes

01:00:31are shining

01:00:32with unshed tears.

01:00:34He puts his rough

01:00:35farmer's hands

01:00:35on both your shoulders,

01:00:37his grip trembling

01:00:38slightly.

01:00:39He simply says

01:00:40your name,

01:00:41his voice thick

01:00:42and choked

01:00:42with a pride

01:00:43so immense

01:00:43it leaves no room

01:00:45for other words.

01:00:46You stand between them,

01:00:48held up by the two men

01:00:49who forged your life,

01:00:50the roar of the stadium,

01:00:51a distant echo.

01:00:53You are not a legend yet.

01:00:54You are not a hero.

01:00:56You are just a son

01:00:57and a student

01:00:58who has given

01:00:59everything he had

01:01:00and for the first time

01:01:01in your life

01:01:01you understand

01:01:02that it was enough.

01:01:04The next morning,

01:01:05day four of the festival,

01:01:07you wake to a new reality,

01:01:08the deep aching exhaustion

01:01:10of the pentathlon

01:01:11is still settled

01:01:13in your bones

01:01:13but it is overshadowed

01:01:15by the surreal

01:01:15lightness of victory.

01:01:17As you walk

01:01:18through the sacred grove

01:01:19you are no longer

01:01:19an anonymous hopeful.

01:01:21People stop and stare,

01:01:22you hear your name,

01:01:24the son of Ariston,

01:01:25whispered with reverence

01:01:26by strangers.

01:01:28Your father walks

01:01:29beside you,

01:01:30his back straighter

01:01:31than you have ever seen it,

01:01:32a look of fierce,

01:01:34quiet pride in his eyes

01:01:35that is more rewarding

01:01:36than any cheer.

01:01:37Phaedrus is on your other side,

01:01:39his usual iron severity

01:01:40softened by a deep,

01:01:42quiet satisfaction.

01:01:44The three of you,

01:01:45bound by your shared triumph,

01:01:47make your way to the stadium

01:01:48to watch the final day

01:01:49of competition.

01:01:51The atmosphere

01:01:51is completely different

01:01:52from the day

01:01:53of your own contest.

01:01:54The air is thicker,

01:01:56charged with a raw,

01:01:57bloodthirsty energy.

01:01:58The crowd is louder,

01:02:00more volatile.

01:02:01Today is the day

01:02:02of the heavy events,

01:02:03the day of brutal,

01:02:05one-on-one combat.

01:02:07First is the boxing,

01:02:08the picks.

01:02:09You watch as two men,

01:02:11giants with massive shoulders

01:02:12and chest,

01:02:13step into the designated area.

01:02:15Their faces are landscapes

01:02:17of past battles,

01:02:18thickened scar tissue

01:02:19over their brows,

01:02:21flattened noses,

01:02:22and the swollen,

01:02:23deformed cartilage

01:02:24of their ears,

01:02:25telling the story

01:02:25of a thousand blows.

01:02:28They are made

01:02:28of different clay,

01:02:30your father murmurs,

01:02:31awed by their sheer presence.

01:02:33Phaedrus simply grunts.

01:02:35Strong but slow.

01:02:37Look at his footwork.

01:02:39Even now he is analysing,

01:02:41teaching.

01:02:42The fight begins.

01:02:44It is a slow,

01:02:45methodical,

01:02:46and terrible art.

01:02:47The sound is like nothing

01:02:48you have ever heard.

01:02:50The wet,

01:02:50percussive thud

01:02:51of leather on flesh.

01:02:53The sickening crack

01:02:54of a blow

01:02:54landing on a cheekbone.

01:02:56The fighters circle

01:02:57under the relentless sun,

01:02:59slowly breaking

01:02:59each other down.

01:03:00As a pentathlete,

01:03:03you are trained

01:03:03for balance,

01:03:04for the harmonious

01:03:05application of speed,

01:03:06strength,

01:03:06and skill.

01:03:08These men are different.

01:03:09They have been forged

01:03:10for the singular purpose

01:03:11of giving

01:03:12and receiving punishment.

01:03:14Their bodies are anvils.

01:03:16Their fists are hammers.

01:03:17You look at them

01:03:18with a profound,

01:03:19almost fearful respect.

01:03:21Theirs is a different

01:03:22kind of ponos,

01:03:22a different path

01:03:23to glory.

01:03:25After the boxing concludes,

01:03:26the crowd's excitement

01:03:27reaches a fever pitch.

01:03:28It is time for the main event,

01:03:31the most brutal of all contests,

01:03:32the Pancration.

01:03:34A terrifying combination

01:03:35of wrestling and boxing,

01:03:36where only biting

01:03:37and eye-gouging

01:03:38are forbidden.

01:03:40The two finalists

01:03:41who enter the stadium

01:03:42look less like athletes

01:03:43and more like

01:03:44mythological figures.

01:03:46They are the most

01:03:46dangerous men in Greece.

01:03:48The fight begins

01:03:49with a flurry of kicks

01:03:50and punches,

01:03:51but it soon goes

01:03:52to the ground,

01:03:53and it is there

01:03:54that the true horror

01:03:55of the sport is revealed.

01:03:57It is a desperate,

01:03:57writhing struggle

01:03:58of chokeholds,

01:04:00joint locks,

01:04:01and pure,

01:04:02savage strength.

01:04:03You watch as one man

01:04:04traps the other's arm,

01:04:06twisting it

01:04:06at an unnatural angle

01:04:07until the bone

01:04:09is on the verge

01:04:09of snapping,

01:04:10forcing his opponent

01:04:11to tap the ground

01:04:12in submission.

01:04:13It is a display

01:04:14of such controlled violence

01:04:15that it leaves you breathless.

01:04:17You watch the victors

01:04:18of these events,

01:04:19their bodies battered

01:04:20and bleeding,

01:04:21but their arms

01:04:22raised in triumph.

01:04:23You see the losers,

01:04:24their faces masks

01:04:25of agony

01:04:25and broken pride

01:04:27carried from the field

01:04:28by their friends.

01:04:29You are a champion,

01:04:31but you are humbled.

01:04:32The skill you displayed

01:04:33was one of beautiful,

01:04:35measured execution,

01:04:36but the skill

01:04:37of these men

01:04:38is one of pure,

01:04:39terrifying survival.

01:04:41As you walk away

01:04:42from the stadium

01:04:43that evening,

01:04:44the images of the day's combat

01:04:45are burned

01:04:46into your mind.

01:04:48You are a hero

01:04:48of Olympia,

01:04:50but you have just been reminded

01:04:51that there are other kinds

01:04:52of heroes,

01:04:53other kinds of gods

01:04:54walking this sacred ground.

01:04:56You clutch the memory

01:04:57of your own victory

01:04:58a little tighter,

01:05:00grateful for a path

01:05:01that tested your spirit

01:05:02and skill,

01:05:03but left your body

01:05:04and perhaps your soul

01:05:05intact in a way

01:05:07that these gods of combat

01:05:08will never know.

01:05:10On the morning

01:05:10of the fifth and final day,

01:05:12a quiet stillness

01:05:13settles over Olympia.

01:05:14The great athletic contests

01:05:16are over,

01:05:17the roars of the crowd

01:05:18have faded,

01:05:19and a few hours of calm

01:05:20remain before the victors

01:05:21are crowned.

01:05:22It is in this quiet moment

01:05:23that you walk

01:05:23with your father

01:05:24and Phydros

01:05:25through the sacred grove

01:05:26and your final,

01:05:28most profound lessons

01:05:29about the games begin.

01:05:31As you take a path

01:05:32that leads past

01:05:32the entrance to the stadium,

01:05:34Phydros stops you.

01:05:36He gestures to a long row

01:05:37of identical bronze statues

01:05:39of Zeus,

01:05:40standing stern

01:05:41and imposing

01:05:41on their stone pedestals.

01:05:43Look,

01:05:44he says his voice low,

01:05:46before you receive

01:05:47your wreath

01:05:47you must understand this.

01:05:49You have seen

01:05:50these statues before

01:05:51but have never truly

01:05:52paid them mind.

01:05:53These are the Zanes.

01:05:54They are not offerings

01:05:55of piety.

01:05:57They are monuments

01:05:57to disgrace.

01:05:59He explains that

01:06:00every one of these statues

01:06:01was paid for

01:06:02by the massive fines

01:06:03levied against athletes

01:06:05who were caught cheating,

01:06:06taking a bribe to lose,

01:06:08trying to bribe an opponent,

01:06:10or breaking their sacred oath

01:06:11in some other way.

01:06:13You step closer

01:06:13to one of them.

01:06:15The bronze Zeus

01:06:16glares down at you,

01:06:17a thunderbolt in his hand.

01:06:18At the base of the statue

01:06:20an inscription is carved

01:06:21into the stone

01:06:22for all to read,

01:06:23for all time.

01:06:24Your father reads the words aloud,

01:06:26his voice grim.

01:06:28They name the athlete,

01:06:29his city,

01:06:30and his crime,

01:06:32accepting money

01:06:32to throw a wrestling match.

01:06:34The inscription ends

01:06:35with a stark warning

01:06:36that an Olympic victory

01:06:38is to be won

01:06:39by the prowess

01:06:39of one's body,

01:06:41not by the corruption

01:06:42of wealth.

01:06:43You feel a cold chill

01:06:44despite the morning sun.

01:06:46The shame of this man

01:06:48has been immortalised,

01:06:50cast in bronze

01:06:50to serve as a warning

01:06:51for a thousand years.

01:06:53This is the eternal fate

01:06:55of the cheater.

01:06:57As you continue on your way,

01:06:59you become aware

01:06:59of another,

01:07:00quieter kind of shame.

01:07:02The sanctuary is filled

01:07:03with laughing,

01:07:04celebrating groups,

01:07:05the families and friends

01:07:06of the victors.

01:07:07But you start to notice

01:07:08who is missing.

01:07:10The faces of the men

01:07:11you competed against,

01:07:12the men you defeated,

01:07:13are nowhere to be seen.

01:07:14They are the ghosts

01:07:15at this final feast.

01:07:17Then, near the edge

01:07:18of the sprawling tent city,

01:07:19you see him.

01:07:21It is the confident champion

01:07:22from Corinth,

01:07:23the man who threw

01:07:24the javelin so beautifully.

01:07:26He is not celebrating.

01:07:28He is alone,

01:07:29hastily packing his belongings,

01:07:31his movements furtive

01:07:32and jerky.

01:07:34His magnificent physique,

01:07:35so proud and powerful

01:07:36just two days ago,

01:07:38now seems slumped in

01:07:39on itself.

01:07:40He sees you,

01:07:41and his eyes flicker

01:07:42with a look of pure misery,

01:07:44before he turns away,

01:07:45hiding his face.

01:07:47The gulf between you

01:07:47and him is now absolute.

01:07:49He is no longer

01:07:50your rival.

01:07:51He is an object of pity,

01:07:53a man whose spirit

01:07:54has been broken.

01:07:55Phaedros sees you watching.

01:07:57For him,

01:07:58there will be

01:07:58no hero's welcome,

01:08:00he says,

01:08:01his voice flat

01:08:01and devoid of sympathy.

01:08:03There will be no poet

01:08:04to sing his name.

01:08:05He will take

01:08:06the longest road home

01:08:07and enter his city

01:08:07in silence,

01:08:09hoping no one sees him.

01:08:10That is the fate

01:08:11of the defeated.

01:08:12You finally understand.

01:08:15You have not just won

01:08:15a wreath of olive leaves,

01:08:17you have escaped

01:08:17the two terrible fates

01:08:19that await every man

01:08:20who comes here.

01:08:21To lose is to be forgotten,

01:08:22to be erased

01:08:23by a wall of silence.

01:08:25To cheat is to be

01:08:26remembered forever

01:08:27for your dishonour.

01:08:28Victory is the only path

01:08:29that offers escape.

01:08:31Standing there

01:08:31between the bronze monuments

01:08:33to the cheaters

01:08:33and the living ghosts

01:08:35of the defeated,

01:08:36you at last comprehend

01:08:37the true and total meaning

01:08:39of your triumph.

01:08:39You are now ready

01:08:41to receive your crown.

01:08:43Your sober walk

01:08:43through the grove,

01:08:44past the monuments

01:08:45to disgrace

01:08:45and the ghosts

01:08:46of the defeated

01:08:47is interrupted

01:08:48by a herald's call.

01:08:50The hour has come.

01:08:51You and the other victors

01:08:52are summoned to assemble

01:08:53before the great temple

01:08:55of Zeus.

01:08:56The final moment

01:08:57is at hand.

01:08:58You join the procession,

01:08:59a small exclusive group

01:09:01of the most powerful

01:09:01men in Greece.

01:09:03You walk beside

01:09:03the champion

01:09:04of the stadium race,

01:09:05the victor

01:09:06of the boxing match

01:09:07whose face

01:09:07is a swollen mask

01:09:08of triumph.

01:09:10And the fearsome

01:09:10pancratiast

01:09:11who now seems

01:09:12almost serene.

01:09:13The rivalry is gone,

01:09:15replaced by the quiet,

01:09:16profound respect

01:09:17of shared glory.

01:09:19As you walk,

01:09:20the massive crowds cheer,

01:09:22no longer as partisans

01:09:23for their own cities,

01:09:24but in adoration

01:09:25of you all.

01:09:26They throw flowers

01:09:27and colourful ribbons

01:09:29at your feet

01:09:29in a shower of celebration.

01:09:31You come to a stop

01:09:32before the massive

01:09:33bronze doors

01:09:34of the Temple of Zeus.

01:09:36The building is so colossal

01:09:37that seems to hold up

01:09:38the sky.

01:09:40Here,

01:09:40in the direct shadow

01:09:41of the god,

01:09:42the ten Helanodicei

01:09:44await,

01:09:45their purple robes

01:09:46brilliant in the sun.

01:09:48Beside them,

01:09:49on a table of ivory

01:09:50and gold,

01:09:51are the prizes.

01:09:53Not gold,

01:09:54not silver,

01:09:55but simple green wreaths,

01:09:57freshly cut

01:09:58with a golden sickle

01:09:59from the branches

01:09:59of Calistefanos,

01:10:01the sacred wild olive tree

01:10:02that grows behind

01:10:03the temple.

01:10:04A herald's voice,

01:10:06amplified by a bronze horn,

01:10:08booms across the sanctuary,

01:10:10silencing the thousands

01:10:11of spectators.

01:10:12One by one,

01:10:13he announces the champions.

01:10:15He starts with the winner

01:10:16of the ancient stadion race,

01:10:18the premier event.

01:10:19Then,

01:10:20he moves through

01:10:20the other contests.

01:10:22Finally,

01:10:23he calls the victor

01:10:23of the pentathlon.

01:10:25He cries out your name,

01:10:27your father's name,

01:10:28and your city,

01:10:29the three pillars

01:10:30of your identity

01:10:31for all of Greece

01:10:32to hear.

01:10:33The roar from the crowd

01:10:34is a physical wave of sound,

01:10:36confirming the truth.

01:10:37The name your father gave you

01:10:38is now a name

01:10:39that will be remembered forever.

01:10:41You step forward.

01:10:43One of the judges,

01:10:44a man whose stern gaze

01:10:45terrified you and Ellis,

01:10:46now smiles warmly.

01:10:48He picks up

01:10:48one of the simple wreaths

01:10:49and places it gently

01:10:50upon your head.

01:10:52It is almost weightless,

01:10:53just a circle

01:10:54of twigs and leaves.

01:10:56And yet it feels heavier

01:10:57than any stone

01:10:57you have ever lifted.

01:10:59It is the weight

01:11:00of history,

01:11:01of honour,

01:11:02of immortality.

01:11:04You are given a palm branch

01:11:05to hold in your hand,

01:11:07another ancient symbol

01:11:08of victory.

01:11:10As you turn back

01:11:10to the crowd,

01:11:11they erupt,

01:11:12showering you

01:11:12with so many flowers

01:11:13and ribbons

01:11:14that you are momentarily

01:11:15blinded by the colourful storm.

01:11:18You find your father

01:11:19and Phydros in the crowd.

01:11:20Your father is openly

01:11:21weeping now,

01:11:22his pride absolute.

01:11:24He clasps you

01:11:25in a rough embrace,

01:11:26the first you can

01:11:27ever remember.

01:11:28Phydros stands beside him,

01:11:30and for the first time

01:11:31you see him smile,

01:11:33a genuine broad grin

01:11:34that transforms

01:11:35his scarred face.

01:11:37The work,

01:11:37he says,

01:11:38his voice thick

01:11:39with emotion,

01:11:40is done.

01:11:41That evening

01:11:42the Aline officials

01:11:42host a grand banquet

01:11:44for all the victors

01:11:45in the Prytanion,

01:11:47the sacred

01:11:47administrative heart

01:11:49of Olympia,

01:11:50where the eternal flame

01:11:51burns,

01:11:52a feast of the highest honour.

01:11:54But later,

01:11:54at a smaller

01:11:55private celebration

01:11:56with your father

01:11:57and Phydros,

01:11:58the true prizes revealed.

01:12:00As you sit there,

01:12:01the simple olive wreath

01:12:02resting on the table

01:12:03before you,

01:12:04the poet begins

01:12:05to pluck a tune.

01:12:06And then he begins

01:12:07to sing.

01:12:08It is a new song,

01:12:09an epinikion,

01:12:10a victory ode.

01:12:11It is your song.

01:12:13It tells the story

01:12:14of a boy

01:12:14from a dusty demos,

01:12:16of his years of toil,

01:12:18of his journey,

01:12:19and of his glorious

01:12:20hard-won victory

01:12:21in the sacred stadium.

01:12:22You listen,

01:12:25mesmerised

01:12:26as your sweat

01:12:26and pain

01:12:27are transformed

01:12:28into verse,

01:12:29your struggle

01:12:30turned into a legend.

01:12:32You have achieved

01:12:32kleos,

01:12:33the undying glory

01:12:34that all Greeks

01:12:35dream of.

01:12:36The wreath on the table

01:12:37is the symbol,

01:12:38but this song

01:12:39is the proof.

01:12:40You are no longer

01:12:41just a man,

01:12:42you are now a story,

01:12:44a hero,

01:12:45a victor

01:12:46of Olympia.

01:12:47The journey home

01:12:48from Olympia

01:12:49is nothing like

01:12:50the arduous pilgrimage

01:12:51that brought you there.

01:12:52You are no longer

01:12:53an anonymous boy

01:12:54walking into the unknown.

01:12:56You are a victor.

01:12:57In every town

01:12:58you pass through,

01:12:59the news of your triumph

01:13:00has preceded you.

01:13:02You are greeted

01:13:02with cheers,

01:13:03offered the best food

01:13:04and wine,

01:13:05and treated not as a traveller,

01:13:07but as a returning king.

01:13:09Your father,

01:13:10once a man

01:13:11of few words,

01:13:12is now a masterful storyteller,

01:13:15recounting your victory

01:13:16to anyone who will listen.

01:13:18Phaedros allows himself

01:13:19a quiet,

01:13:20constant satisfaction.

01:13:22The architect

01:13:23of a masterpiece,

01:13:24observing his work.

01:13:26As you approach

01:13:27the great walls of Athens,

01:13:28you see that the fields

01:13:29outside are empty.

01:13:31Then you hear it,

01:13:32a low hum

01:13:33that grows

01:13:33into the roar

01:13:34of a massive crowd.

01:13:36The entire city

01:13:37has poured out

01:13:37to greet you.

01:13:38The formal procession

01:13:39meets you on the road,

01:13:40led by the city's

01:13:41magistrates and priests.

01:13:43But they do not lead you

01:13:44toward the main gate.

01:13:46Instead,

01:13:46they guide you

01:13:47to a section

01:13:47of the city wall

01:13:48where stones

01:13:49have been pulled down,

01:13:50creating a freshly made breach.

01:13:52Phaedros leans in,

01:13:54his voice filled

01:13:54with an uncharacteristic awe.

01:13:57This is the highest honour,

01:13:58he says.

01:13:59They do not let you

01:14:00enter through a gate

01:14:00meant for common men.

01:14:02You enter through

01:14:02the wall itself.

01:14:04The city is telling

01:14:04its enemies

01:14:05that with sons like you

01:14:06to defend it,

01:14:07it has no need

01:14:08for stone fortifications.

01:14:10You are placed

01:14:10in a magnificent

01:14:11four-horse chariot,

01:14:13the olive wreath

01:14:13from Olympia

01:14:14on your head.

01:14:15The chariot rolls

01:14:16slowly through the breach

01:14:17and into the city,

01:14:18where the streets

01:14:19are so packed

01:14:20with cheering people

01:14:21that it feels

01:14:22as though you are moving

01:14:23through a living sea.

01:14:24They shower you

01:14:25with flowers and ribbons,

01:14:27their faces alight

01:14:27with a joy

01:14:28that is both for you

01:14:29and for the glory

01:14:31you have brought to them.

01:14:32In the crowd,

01:14:33you spot familiar faces,

01:14:35men from your own demos

01:14:36who made the journey

01:14:37from your village.

01:14:38Their shouts

01:14:39are the loudest of all,

01:14:40their pride

01:14:41the most personal,

01:14:42for you are not just

01:14:43Athens' champion,

01:14:45you are theirs.

01:14:46They see in you

01:14:47the strength and honour

01:14:48of Athens itself.

01:14:50You are no longer

01:14:50just Ariston's son,

01:14:52you are a son of the city.

01:14:54The parade ends

01:14:55at the heart of Athens

01:14:56in the Agora,

01:14:57where a formal ceremony

01:14:58is held.

01:14:59A magistrate speaking

01:15:00for all the people

01:15:01of Athens

01:15:02proclaims the honours

01:15:03the city bestows upon you.

01:15:05First,

01:15:06a cash prize

01:15:06of 500 drachmai.

01:15:08Then,

01:15:09the privilege

01:15:10of front-row seats

01:15:11at the theatre for life.

01:15:12And finally,

01:15:13the greatest honour

01:15:14of all,

01:15:15seatsis.

01:15:16The right to take

01:15:17your meals for free

01:15:17every day for the rest

01:15:19of your life

01:15:19in the Praetenean

01:15:21alongside the most

01:15:22important officials

01:15:23and heroes of the state.

01:15:25Your father then

01:15:26steps forward,

01:15:27his voice thick

01:15:27with pride.

01:15:29He announces

01:15:29that the prize money

01:15:30will be used

01:15:31for its true purpose.

01:15:33To commission

01:15:33a master sculptor

01:15:34to create

01:15:35a bronze statue of you

01:15:36to be placed

01:15:37in the gymnasium.

01:15:38And you understand.

01:15:40This is how

01:15:40a fleeting victory

01:15:41is transformed

01:15:42into Kleos,

01:15:44undying glory.

01:15:45The statue

01:15:46will be the physical

01:15:47embodiment

01:15:48of your achievement,

01:15:49a permanent public monument.

01:15:51You can already see it

01:15:52in your mind.

01:15:53For centuries to come,

01:15:55young boys

01:15:56will train

01:15:56in its shadow.

01:15:58They will hear

01:15:58your name

01:15:58and they will be inspired

01:16:00to pursue

01:16:01their own glory.

01:16:02In this way,

01:16:03your victory

01:16:03and your family's name

01:16:05will never die.

01:16:08You stand there,

01:16:09the hero of the hour,

01:16:11the olive wreath

01:16:12on your head

01:16:12and the adoration

01:16:13of an entire city

01:16:14washing over you.

01:16:16You look at your proud father,

01:16:18at your satisfied

01:16:19master Phydros

01:16:20and at the cheering faces

01:16:22in the crowd.

01:16:23The long, painful journey

01:16:25that began

01:16:25in a distant village

01:16:26has ended here

01:16:27on the pinnacle

01:16:28of the world.

01:16:29Your name is set in stone,

01:16:31your story is set to music

01:16:32and your likeness

01:16:33will be cast

01:16:34in everlasting bronze.

01:16:36You have achieved

01:16:36everything a mortal man

01:16:37could ever dream of.

01:16:39You have become a legend.

01:16:40Your journey as an athlete

01:16:42is now complete.

01:16:44Your legend is secure

01:16:45but your story

01:16:47was just one thread

01:16:48in a vast,

01:16:48complex tapestry

01:16:49that,

01:16:50for nearly 1200 years,

01:16:52was the single

01:16:53most important

01:16:54recurring event

01:16:54in the entire

01:16:56Hellenic world.

01:16:57The victory wreath

01:16:58did not mark

01:16:59the end of an athlete's story.

01:17:00It was the beginning

01:17:01of a new life

01:17:02of immense privilege

01:17:03and expectation.

01:17:05For some,

01:17:05their new role

01:17:06was simply

01:17:06to be a living monument,

01:17:08spending their days

01:17:09in the city's gymnasium

01:17:10or public halls,

01:17:12their presence

01:17:12a constant source

01:17:13of civic pride.

01:17:15But for many,

01:17:16their heroic status

01:17:17was a key

01:17:17that unlocked

01:17:18the doors to power.

01:17:20The legendary wrestler

01:17:21Milo of Croton,

01:17:22for example,

01:17:23was said to have led

01:17:24his city's army

01:17:25into battle,

01:17:26dressed as Heracles.

01:17:27Other victors

01:17:28became respected

01:17:29politicians and diplomats,

01:17:31their fame

01:17:31giving their words

01:17:32a divine weight.

01:17:34A natural path

01:17:35was to become

01:17:35a master trainer,

01:17:36a gymnasties like Phaedros,

01:17:38passing on their knowledge

01:17:40to the next generation.

01:17:41Perhaps the greatest ambition

01:17:43was to found

01:17:43an athletic dynasty.

01:17:45The boxer Diagoras

01:17:47of Rhodes

01:17:47achieved this,

01:17:49living to see

01:17:49his own sons

01:17:50crowned as victors,

01:17:51solidifying the family's

01:17:53heroic status

01:17:53for generations.

01:17:55In the most extreme cases,

01:17:57the greatest champions,

01:17:58like the fearsome

01:17:58Theogenes of Thesos,

01:18:01were even worshipped

01:18:01as demigods

01:18:02after their deaths,

01:18:03their statues believed

01:18:04to hold healing powers.

01:18:06Victory at Olympia

01:18:07was not a career,

01:18:08it was a transfiguration.

01:18:10It could turn

01:18:11a farmer's son

01:18:12into a general,

01:18:13a politician,

01:18:14or even a god.

01:18:15To understand

01:18:16the source

01:18:17of this incredible honour,

01:18:18we must look

01:18:19to the origins

01:18:19of the festival itself.

01:18:22The Greeks,

01:18:23searching for a beginning

01:18:23worthy of the game's glory,

01:18:25told two great myths.

01:18:27The first is a story

01:18:28of brutal ambition.

01:18:30The hero Pelops

01:18:31and his treacherous chariot

01:18:32race to win a kingdom.

01:18:34The funeral games

01:18:36he held

01:18:36were said to be

01:18:36the first Olympics.

01:18:38The second myth

01:18:39is one of divine strength,

01:18:41the hero Heracles

01:18:42who founded the games

01:18:43to give thanks

01:18:44to his father,

01:18:45Zeus,

01:18:46after completing

01:18:47one of his great labours.

01:18:49From these epic myths,

01:18:50history emerges

01:18:51at a specific date,

01:18:53776 BC.

01:18:56This is the year

01:18:56the Greeks recognised

01:18:57as the first official

01:18:58Olympic Games.

01:19:00The festival then

01:19:01was almost unrecognisable.

01:19:02There was only one event,

01:19:04a simple foot race,

01:19:05the stadion.

01:19:07The first man

01:19:07to have his name

01:19:08recorded as a victor

01:19:09was not a great warrior

01:19:10but a humble cook

01:19:11from the nearby city

01:19:13of Elis

01:19:13named Koroibos.

01:19:15From this simple beginning,

01:19:16the games would grow

01:19:17over the centuries

01:19:18into the most

01:19:19magnificent spectacle

01:19:20in the ancient world.

01:19:22At its peak,

01:19:23the festival was

01:19:23the largest gathering

01:19:24of people in Greece.

01:19:25For those five days,

01:19:27a temporary city

01:19:28of over 40,000 souls

01:19:29sprang up

01:19:30in the quiet valley.

01:19:31Olympia became

01:19:32the unofficial capital

01:19:33of the Greek world.

01:19:35Politicians and diplomats

01:19:36from rival city-states

01:19:38used the sacred ground

01:19:39to negotiate treaties.

01:19:41The historian Herodotus

01:19:43is said to have recited

01:19:44his histories

01:19:45to the crowds here.

01:19:46But above all the politics,

01:19:48the commerce

01:19:48and the art,

01:19:49the festival remained

01:19:50a profoundly religious event.

01:19:53The true centre of Olympia

01:19:54was not the stadium.

01:19:56It was the great altar

01:19:57of Zeus.

01:19:58It was not a grand

01:19:59temple of stone

01:20:00but a massive

01:20:01conical mound,

01:20:02nearly 20 feet high,

01:20:04made from the compacted ash

01:20:06and burnt offerings

01:20:07of centuries of sacrifices.

01:20:09It was here

01:20:10on the third day

01:20:10of the games

01:20:11that the great

01:20:12Hecatomb took place,

01:20:14the sacrifice

01:20:14of 100 oxen.

01:20:16This was the sacred

01:20:18climax of the festival,

01:20:19a powerful

01:20:20and bloody tribute

01:20:21to the god

01:20:21in whose honour

01:20:22every race was run

01:20:24and every wreath

01:20:25was won.

01:20:26As we have seen,

01:20:27the world of the

01:20:28Olympic athlete

01:20:28was an exclusively

01:20:29male one.

01:20:30But what of the other

01:20:31half of the Greek world?

01:20:33The story of women

01:20:33in relation to the games

01:20:35is a complex

01:20:36and fascinating one.

01:20:37A story not of participation

01:20:39but of strict prohibition,

01:20:41daring defiance

01:20:42and a separate,

01:20:43parallel tradition.

01:20:45For most women,

01:20:45the law was absolute

01:20:46and terrifying.

01:20:48Any married woman

01:20:49caught attending

01:20:49or even crossing

01:20:51the river Alpheus

01:20:52during the period

01:20:52of the men's games

01:20:53was to be thrown

01:20:54to her death

01:20:55from the cliffs

01:20:56of Mount Typaeum.

01:20:57The reasons for this

01:20:58draconian rule

01:20:59are lost to history,

01:21:01though scholars speculate

01:21:02it was due to the game's

01:21:03ancient connection

01:21:04to male fertility rights

01:21:06or simply because

01:21:07the athletes competed

01:21:08without clothing.

01:21:10But one story survives

01:21:11of a woman

01:21:11who dared to defy

01:21:13this law,

01:21:14not for spectacle,

01:21:16but for love.

01:21:17Her name was

01:21:18Calipatera.

01:21:19She was the daughter

01:21:20of the legendary boxer

01:21:21Diagoras of Rhodes

01:21:23and her brothers and son

01:21:24were all champion athletes.

01:21:26After her husband died,

01:21:28she trained her son

01:21:28for the games herself.

01:21:30On the day of his competition,

01:21:31she disguised herself

01:21:32as a male trainer

01:21:33and smuggled herself

01:21:34into the stadium.

01:21:36When her son won his match,

01:21:38Calipatera,

01:21:39overcome with ecstatic pride,

01:21:41leaped over

01:21:42the trainer's enclosure.

01:21:44In the process,

01:21:45her robes came loose

01:21:46and her identity

01:21:47was revealed.

01:21:49The Helano di Kai

01:21:50were faced with

01:21:51a terrible dilemma.

01:21:52The law demanded

01:21:53her execution.

01:21:55But to put to death

01:21:56the daughter,

01:21:57sister and mother

01:21:58of Olympic champions

01:21:59was unthinkable.

01:22:00Out of respect

01:22:01for the immense glory

01:22:02her family had brought

01:22:03to the games,

01:22:04they spared her life.

01:22:06However,

01:22:06they immediately passed

01:22:07a new rule

01:22:07to ensure such a thing

01:22:08could never happen again.

01:22:10From that day forward,

01:22:12all trainers,

01:22:13like the athletes themselves,

01:22:15had to enter

01:22:15the stadium naked.

01:22:17While Calipatera's story

01:22:18is one of defiance,

01:22:20the story of the Spartan

01:22:22princess Kyniska

01:22:23is one of ambition.

01:22:25As we've learned,

01:22:26she found the one loophole

01:22:27available to women.

01:22:29By owning and funding

01:22:30a winning chariot team,

01:22:31she became the first

01:22:32female Olympic victor

01:22:34in history.

01:22:35Her name entered

01:22:35into the official records

01:22:36and her glory immortalised

01:22:38with a statue at Olympia,

01:22:40a sanctuary she was forbidden

01:22:41from ever setting foot

01:22:43in herself.

01:22:44These women

01:22:44were the rare exceptions.

01:22:47For most,

01:22:47the only outlet

01:22:48for athletic ambition

01:22:49was their own

01:22:50separate festival,

01:22:51the Haraean Games,

01:22:52held at Olympia,

01:22:54in honour of

01:22:54the goddess Hera.

01:22:56These games

01:22:57were for Parthenoi,

01:22:58unmarried young women.

01:23:00The competitors

01:23:01would run

01:23:01with their hair unbound,

01:23:03wearing a short tunic

01:23:04called a chiton

01:23:05that left their

01:23:06right shoulder

01:23:06and breast bare.

01:23:08They competed

01:23:08in a single event,

01:23:10a foot race,

01:23:11about one-sixth

01:23:12shorter than

01:23:12the men's stadium.

01:23:14The victor

01:23:15did not receive

01:23:15the same glory

01:23:16as a male champion,

01:23:17but her prize

01:23:18was still a great honour,

01:23:20a wreath cut

01:23:20from a sacred olive tree,

01:23:22a share of a

01:23:23sacrificed heifer,

01:23:24and the right

01:23:24to set up

01:23:25a painted portrait

01:23:26of herself

01:23:26in the temple

01:23:27of Hera.

01:23:29This was the complex

01:23:30reality for the unseen

01:23:31half of the Olympic world.

01:23:33It was a story

01:23:34of exclusion

01:23:34and prohibition,

01:23:36but also one

01:23:36of daring defiance,

01:23:38clever ambition,

01:23:39and a proud tradition

01:23:40all their own,

01:23:41a testament

01:23:42to the enduring

01:23:43human need

01:23:43for a chance

01:23:44at glory.

01:23:44The legend

01:23:46of the boy

01:23:47from Attica

01:23:47and thousands

01:23:48of others like him

01:23:49formed the bedrock

01:23:50of a tradition

01:23:51that lasted

01:23:52for an almost

01:23:52unimaginable length

01:23:54of time.

01:23:55Nearly 1,200 years,

01:23:57the games continued

01:23:58even as Greece

01:23:58was conquered

01:23:59by Rome,

01:24:00with Roman emperors

01:24:01themselves

01:24:01sometimes competing.

01:24:03But the world

01:24:04was changing.

01:24:05A new religion,

01:24:06Christianity,

01:24:08was sweeping

01:24:08across the empire,

01:24:09and the ancient

01:24:10festivals,

01:24:11with their sacrifices

01:24:12to Zeus

01:24:12and their pagan

01:24:13gods were seen

01:24:15as a relic

01:24:15of a dying world.

01:24:17The end,

01:24:17when it came,

01:24:18was delivered

01:24:18by a simple decree.

01:24:20In 393 AD,

01:24:23the Christian Roman

01:24:24Emperor Theodosius I

01:24:25abolished the Olympic Games,

01:24:27extinguishing a sacred flame

01:24:28that had burned

01:24:29for more than a millennium.

01:24:31After the final games

01:24:32were held,

01:24:33the sanctuary of Olympia

01:24:34began a long descent

01:24:35into ruin.

01:24:36Its treasures

01:24:37were plundered,

01:24:38its temples burned.

01:24:39In the 6th century AD,

01:24:42two massive earthquakes

01:24:43shattered the colossal

01:24:44stone columns

01:24:45and toppled the statues

01:24:47of the gods.

01:24:48Then,

01:24:49the nearby rivers,

01:24:50the Alfeos

01:24:51and the Cladios,

01:24:52changed their course

01:24:53and flooded the valley,

01:24:55burying the entire sanctuary

01:24:56under more than 20 feet

01:24:58of sand and silt.

01:25:00Olympia,

01:25:00the sacred heart

01:25:01of the Greek world,

01:25:02vanished from the face

01:25:03of the earth.

01:25:05For a thousand years

01:25:05it was a lost world,

01:25:07its location a mystery,

01:25:08its glory preserved

01:25:09only in the fragile pages

01:25:11of ancient texts.

01:25:13The rediscovery began

01:25:14in the 18th century

01:25:15but the great work

01:25:16started in 1875

01:25:18when a team

01:25:19of German archaeologists

01:25:20began a systematic

01:25:21excavation.

01:25:23Slowly,

01:25:24miraculously,

01:25:25the lost world

01:25:26emerged from the earth.

01:25:27They uncovered

01:25:28the foundations

01:25:29of the great temple

01:25:30of Zeus,

01:25:31the stone starting line

01:25:32of the original stadium,

01:25:33the wrestling school

01:25:34and the very pedestals

01:25:36of the Zanes

01:25:36that had once struck fear

01:25:38into the hearts

01:25:39of athletes.

01:25:40The world our hero

01:25:41walked through was real.

01:25:42Today you can walk

01:25:43through it as well.

01:25:45The archaeological site

01:25:46of Olympia

01:25:46is a UNESCO

01:25:47World Heritage treasure.

01:25:50You can stand

01:25:50in the ruins

01:25:51of the gymnasium,

01:25:52pass through

01:25:52the same stone archway

01:25:54the athletes used

01:25:54to enter the stadium

01:25:55and see the foundations

01:25:57of the Boulateria

01:25:58where the sacred oath

01:25:59was sworn.

01:26:00At the quieter,

01:26:01nearby site

01:26:02of ancient Ellis,

01:26:03you can still see

01:26:04the remains of the theatre

01:26:05and the training grounds

01:26:06where our athlete

01:26:07endured his final,

01:26:09gruelling month

01:26:09of preparation.

01:26:11The past is not

01:26:12entirely gone,

01:26:13it is simply sleeping.

01:26:15This rediscovery

01:26:16of the physical remains

01:26:17of Olympia,

01:26:18combined with the

01:26:19timeless ideals

01:26:20of excellence and honour

01:26:21preserved in Greek texts,

01:26:23captured the imagination

01:26:24of a French educator

01:26:25and historian,

01:26:27Baron Pierre de Coubertin.

01:26:29He believed

01:26:30that the modern world

01:26:31could be enriched

01:26:32by reviving the spirit

01:26:33of the ancient games,

01:26:34the pursuit

01:26:35of perfection,

01:26:36the honourable competition

01:26:37and the gathering

01:26:39of the world's youth

01:26:40in peace.

01:26:41His tireless efforts

01:26:42culminated in 1896

01:26:44in the city of Athens

01:26:45with the birth

01:26:46of the first

01:26:47modern Olympic Games.

01:26:49And so,

01:26:50the torch was passed.

01:26:51The ancient quest

01:26:52for a simple wreath

01:26:53of olive leaves,

01:26:54the story of ponos

01:26:55and the pursuit

01:26:56of arete

01:26:56that we have followed,

01:26:58was reborn.

01:26:59The world has changed

01:27:00in countless ways

01:27:01but the fundamental

01:27:02human drive

01:27:03to push our bodies

01:27:03to their limits,

01:27:04to compete with honour

01:27:05and to achieve

01:27:06a small piece

01:27:07of immortal glory

01:27:08remains.

01:27:09The sacred flame

01:27:10that was extinguished

01:27:10so long ago

01:27:11was eventually relit

01:27:13and it burns

01:27:14to this day.

01:27:15And with that,

01:27:16our travels in the

01:27:17ancient world

01:27:18are at an end.

01:27:19Thank you for walking

01:27:20this long road with me.

01:27:22My hope is that

01:27:22the story

01:27:23of this young champion's

01:27:25struggle and triumph

01:27:26stays with you

01:27:27until we meet again

01:27:28in the shadows

01:27:28of the past.

01:27:30I wish you a calm

01:27:31and peaceful night.

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