|
|
|
Advantages of Martial Arts for Kids
Martial arts are still considered a rather controversial subject, and the unfortunate misconception that they can promote violence is still present. However, just a little research will show any parent that martial arts promote the exact opposite of...
Eating Disorders And The Use Of Yoga In Prevention And Treatment
It was not so long ago that eating disorders, such as bolimia and anorexia, were thought to be purely the result of mental conditions. More recently, though, some physical factors have been attributed to these conditions. It is now thought that...
Fly Fishing Secrets for the Novice as well as the seasoned Angler
Fly fishing is an exciting and fast growing sport in all over the world, and especially here in the U.S.A. The reasons for the increasing popularity of fly fishing are obvious. Fly fishing is enjoyable, relaxing, and rewarding in many different...
Investing in a Billiard Cue.
Buying your own pool cue can be a confusing business as there are so many different brands on offer. Because of this it is important that you do not jump straight in and buy the first cue that catches your eye. I agree that most people will...
When Should You Hang Up Your Betting Boots for the Day?
• Quit as soon as you are in front for the day?
• Set a stop loss and quit betting for the day if you reach that point?
• Set a profit target and quit as soon as you reach that goal?
• If your first few bets lose, then you should quit...
|
|
| |
|
|
|
|
Ancient Olympians Were Really In It for the Money
(ARA) - The athletes will be feeling a lot of nostalgia when the 2004 Olympic Games get underway next August. For the first time in nearly 100 years, the games are returning to their place of origin: Athens, Greece.
Today’s Olympic games are all about the heat of competition. Athletes from around the world will compete against each other to prove they are the best at what they do. The winners will take home medals and pride of country.
“A lot of people think that’s what the ancient Greeks competed for too, but they’re wrong. Ancient athletes were in it for the money,” says William Blake Tyrrell, a professor of classics at Michigan State University. Tyrrell has done extensive research on Greek athletics from the period stretching from Homeric times through the 4th century B.C. His findings are published in the new book, “The Smell of Sweat.”
The 350-page book covers the events themselves, the religious and athletic centers, the festivals in which the games took place, the voices of the games’ celebrators, the critics and the athletes themselves.
“In this book, you’ll learn that Greek athletics was a cut-throat business, engaged for victory and victory alone without even a glimmer of the modern Olympic notion of competing for its own sake and doing one's best,” says Tyrrell. “In ancient Greece, if one's best was not the best, then it was nothing. To miss by an inch was as disgraceful as to miss by a mile.”
Tyrrell focuses on the bias in earlier treatments of Greek athletics and the “myth of Greek amateurism” in the book’s introduction. Chapters one through six examine evidence from Homeric times to the Golden Age of Athens.
The text moves from discussion about the virtue of the warrior as a model for the athlete to the role religion played in the games and the development of Olympia as an early Panhellenic center. In the early days of the Games, “heavy events,” such as wrestling, boxing and pankration -- a no-holds barred fight considered the ultimate combat sport -- were the competitions held in the highest regard. Later on, games of skill such as the pentathalon, jump, discus and javelin took on more importance.
“Athletics was a mediated battle that replaced the individual glory that once was the warrior’s, the glory that Greeks had heard of all their lives from epic poets, but could not achieve,” says Tyrrell.
“The Smell of Sweat” is accompanied by an extensive bibliography and companion CD-ROM of sources, translated into English. It is good reading for students of Greek athletics and culture, and available on Amazon.com and in major book stores. Orders can also be placed directly with Bolchazy-Carducci Publishers by logging onto www.bolchazy.com.
Courtesy of ARA Content
About the author:
Courtesy of ARA Content
|
|
|
|
|
|