What made the games so popular? Well, for one, the men competed so they could get fit for military purposes. It was a very religious festival, and people came to worship Zeus and other gods. Almost 50,000 people came each year and some stayed outside the stadium even, when there was a shortage of water and food, but they still came and watched. People went for not only religious purposes, but just for entertainment. The games were one of the if not most popular event at that time. The athletes competed in a small number of events. The …show more content…
They would run up and jump and throw the weight behind them to increase the distance they jump. Then there were Equestrian events. These races included all the horse and chariot races. They took place in the Hippodrome, which is a flat, open area. The althletes became very popular, such as Cynisca of Sparta, the first woman to be listed as an olympic victor, and Koroibos of Elis, the very first Olympic champion. There were a couple reasons why the Greeks came up with the games. One, it was actually supposed to ba a festival for Zeus, but it got so much fame, that non-Zeus worshipers would come. Two, it would train more men for the military. The men would compete but were also training for military purposes. A myth of the origin of the games comes from the story of Pelops, a local Olympian hero. There many other myths as to how the Olympics came about, but no one knows for sure. Basically, the games were just another way of worshiping the Greek gods. So, in conclusion, the Greek Olympic Games were a great and celebratory festival for Zues, and mostly men competed in a series of events, ranging from discus, to the very first event, the stade. The games were a great way to worhip, while entertaining the people. They also proved that women could do things just as good as men. All in all, the games were one of oldest traditions that we still have today in our