The third event of the pentathlon was spear-throwing. In the athletic
training of an Hellenic youth, spear-throwing came after the hand and
arm had been strengthened by ball-playing and diskos-throwing.
Spear-throwing, as has been shown, growing out of the very early
necessity of war-training, was a primitive mode of exercise. The spear
(δόρυ, λόγχη) used by the Homeric heroes was very large, and as heavy
as they could handle effectively. None but that warrior himself could
wield the spear of Achilles. Hector’s spear was 16 feet long; the
shaft was made of ash. A socket was fitted to the upper end of the
spear, in which was inserted a bronze spear point. But that used at the
pentathlon, and denoted by the term ἄκων, was smaller and lighter.
The attitude of the body, the movement of the arms and shoulders,
and the carriage of the head were very different in spear-throwing
from those in diskos-hurling. The athlete stood erect, and raised his
right arm upward and slightly backward; his right foot was generally
placed backward, while his left was advanced; his eye was fixed on a
goal straight ahead. He grasped the spear in the middle and held it
in a horizontal position on a level with his right ear; sometimes he
moved it backward and forward before throwing, but as often omitted
such preliminary exercise. Sometimes it was thrown by means of a strap
attached to it, as is still the custom in many countries.
In the pentathlon, spear-throwing was a test rather of skill than of
strength; an athlete who could win the victory with the diskos might
suffer defeat with the spear, although diskos-throwing required more
strength than spear-throwing. Spear-throwing trained the eye and made
the arm deft in executing the eye’s direction.
It conferred upon the body other peculiar benefits; the organs of
respiration were stimulated; the chest was strengthened and enlarged;
the right arm was strengthened; in order to throw the spear effectively
the athlete must maintain a graceful poise and have command of his
entire body; to do so with a weight held aloft, strengthened the lower
limbs, made their muscles more facile, and the step more sure.
By inserting this particular exercise into the pentathlon the early
Olympians not only recognized the foregoing advantages, but they also
honored the characteristic exercise of their ancestors, and subsequent
Olympians followed their example. For the spear was the traditional
sign of the freeman; as far back as myth and memory could go, it had
been carried, even in peace, as an honorable and distinguishing token.
Plato, in his scheme of the ideal state, prescribed spear-throwing as a
training for war, and directed that it should be practiced by women as
well as by men.
At Rome, during the time of the emperors, spear-throwing was included
among the gymnastic exercises of that city. Instruction in this
art was received from the Mauritanians. But it is said that the
Emperor Commodus surpassed even the skill of his instructors; in the
amphitheatre he killed, according to the story, a hundred lions with
as many spears; at another time he astonished the spectators by the
dexterity with which he hurled his spear at the Mauritanian ostriches,
as they ran by the amphitheatre at full speed; with every throw he
severed a bird’s head from its body.
We have no accounts to show as to how far a Greek athlete could hurl
a spear, but we know that savages of today can hurl it to a great
distance. It is said by travellers that a Kaffir who suddenly comes
upon game will hit an antelope ten or fifteen yards away without
raising his arm.
The three events that have been described, leaping, diskos-throwing
and spear-throwing, were probably the essential features of the
pentathlon; that is to say, an athlete who won in all three events
was probably crowned victor. If, however, the victories in the three
events were not secured by the same man, the competition was decided by
additional contests in running and wrestling. But as at other stages of
the festival these two exercises were distinct events, a description
of their technique may be omitted in this place. Among those who
distinguished themselves in the pentathlon, were included some of the
most illustrious men of Greece.
The pentathlon was succeeded by horse and chariot races.
Chariot racing, even as far back as the heroic time, had attained a
high rank in the domain of antagonistics; it was, indeed, the first
contest in the funeral games of Patroklos. (Il. xxiii. 262-650.)
In the minute and vivid description of Homer, the nature of the
contest and the arrangements are very clearly indicated. There was
no artificially constructed hippodrome. A flat, open plain, with its
natural irregularities and without buildings of any sort, served as
the race-course. The point of starting was on the sea-coast, but the
turning point was in the plain of Troy. The goal, which was the stump
of a tree, could be seen in the far distance only by its having two
white stones leaning against it on either side. On account of the great
distance, the spectators were not able to distinguish between the
approaching horses. (Il. 450 ff.) Hence rose an altercation between
Idomeneus and Aias, as to whose chariot was leading in the race.
Achilles advised both to wait quietly until the horses were nearer and
the order of the chariots could be recognized by all.
With a very few points of difference, this description of Homer gives
a good idea of a chariot race at Olympia. The difference consisted,
first, in running the length of the course several times instead of
once, in order that a body of spectators might witness the entire
race; second, in the greater number of chariots, and third, in the
arrangements, whereby they might start without confusion. In the games
of Achilles, the chariots were five in number, each with two horses and
a single driver, who stood upright in the chariot. As we have already
mentioned, the Homeric hero made use of two horses in the race as
well as in hostile combat, while the Olympic contestant did not limit
himself to two horses. In fact, the four-horse chariot-race, which was
introduced in the twenty-fifth Olympiad, was the first in honor and in
importance, and always remained the most popular. In this contest, only
kings, nobles, and the wealthy could take part, on account of the great
expense involved in rearing fine horses, and in maintaining costly
chariots. Very often, the victor had his triumphs recorded on the state
issues of coins.
Races on horseback date from the thirty-third Olympiad. Philip of
Macedon won in this contest, and celebrated his victory by having an
enormous horse, ridden by a diminutive jockey, placed on his coinage.
As this victory took place in the same year in which Potidaea fell
into his hands and his son Alexander was born, he regarded that year as
especially auspicious.
While the race of the quadrigæ of horses was introduced as early as the
twenty-fifth Olympiad, that of the bigæ of horses was not introduced
until the ninety-third Olympiad. A quadriga consisted of four horses
harnessed to a chariot; a biga, of two horses. In the seventieth
Olympiad, bigæ of mules were admitted, but in the eighty-fourth
Olympiad they were excluded; their exclusion may be ascribed to two
reasons: first, they presented an unpleasing appearance; second, among
the Eleians, according to Pausanias, a curse had rested on the animals
from ancient times.
Prior to the twenty-fifth Olympiad, all athletic contests had taken
place in the Stadion. As chariot-racing, however, demanded more room,
a separate race-course, called the Hippodrome, was established. The
site of the Hippodrome cannot be exactly traced. This is because
the Alpheios has washed away all certain indications of its limits.
But from the account of Pausanias (V, 4; VI, 20, 7 foll.) it may be
approximately located; it lay to the south of the Stadion and extended
roughly parallel with it, though stretching far beyond it to the east.
The German explorers who excavated Olympia inferred from the state
of the ground that the Hippodrome was about 2526 feet in length. The
Stadion and Hippodrome were closely connected, the rear part of the
aphesis, or starting point, of the Hippodrome adjoining the end of the
Stadion. At the farther end of the Hippodrome was the goal outside of
which the chariots had to turn. To round this goal with advantage, that
is, to keep as close to it as it was possible to do without upsetting
his own chariot or colliding with another, required long practice
and great dexterity on the part of the driver; it was indeed a very
dangerous feat; at every race a large number of the chariots involved
were wrecked, and in such accidents the charioteers rarely escaped
without serious injuries. According to legend, Orestes had met his
death at a Pythian festival; his chariot colliding with the goal, he
fell to the ground, became entangled in the reins, and was dragged or
trampled to death. After every turning of the goal, the chariots were
greeted with the sound of trumpets in order that men and horses might
attain new courage and vigor after so dangerous an ordeal.
The signal for the chariots to come out from the rooms allotted to
them in the aphesis and form in line for the race was given by an eagle
which, by means of mechanism, rose into the air at the same moment that
a dolphin fell to the ground. Such a signal was characteristic of the
Greek; but in the Roman races, the chariots started at the waving of a
white cloth by a person of distinction.
The equestrian contests at Olympia were succeeded by boxing. Boxing
for men was introduced at the Olympic festival in the twenty-third
Olympiad, and for boys in the thirty-seventh Olympiad. But the sport
was already very old, and its introduction at Olympia was probably a
recognition of its popularity and antiquity. In fact, as the fist is
the simplest and most natural weapon of mankind, it is not surprising
to find that boxing was one of the earliest athletic games among the
Hellenes. Homer’s detailed description of the contest of the invincible
Epeios with Euryalos has already been mentioned, and Homer had probably
heard many similar tales of the prowess of Mycenæan boxers. Polydeukes,
the bravest boxer among the pre-Homeric heroes, is said to have
defeated the strong Amykos. The latter was a teacher of the art, and
allowed no stranger to depart from his country without challenging him
to a pugilistic contest. Apollo himself, the gracious companion and
leader of the Pierides, is described as engaging in a boxing contest at
Olympus with Ares, the powerful god of war; perhaps in this myth there
is a suggestion of the advantage which the nimble and quick-witted
boxer sometimes has over a more bulky one. In the mythical founding of
the Nemean games, Tydeus was victorious in a boxing contest. In the
passage of Virgil’s Æneid (Book V, 401 ff.), which so closely resembles
the twenty-third Book of the Iliad, the aged Entellus vanquishes the
young and boastful Dares. This contest showed a complete system of
striking and parrying.
It is quite likely that these and many other similar legends augmented
the natural interest in the sport, and hastened its introduction into
the greatest of all athletic festivals. But at Olympia the sport was
marked with variations. Whereas, for instance, the Homeric heroes, when
boxing, had protected their bodies by means of a girdle around the
loins (Il. XXIII, 683), the Olympian athletes, being already accustomed
to nudity in the wrestling and racing contests, dispensed with such
protection. Again, from the first, Olympian boxers oiled the body,
contrary to the practice of Homeric athletes.
Probably very few of the tactics of modern pugilists were unknown to
the Greek athletes. Some of the accessories of a modern ring-fight,
such as the “preliminary hand-shake,” tossing for corners, etc., were
of course wanting; particularly noticeable was the absence of ropes and
stakes; there was no referee to enforce so strict a code of ethics as
the Marquis of Queensberry rules, fair play being secured by the voice
of the people. Grasping or hugging the opponent was not permitted; it
was in the elimination of such tactics that boxing differed from the
pankration, a combination of boxing and wrestling. Kicking was likewise
forbidden.
The set-to of Greek boxers probably resembled very closely that of
modern pugilists. The ancient descriptions of the manner of giving and
guarding or blocking blows are rather vague; but on antique vases may
be seen representations of boxers facing one another in well-balanced
attitudes, their heads thrown back, and their arms well advanced, in
the manner of the best modern pugilism. In a famous Greek painting of
boxers, one of the men stands with his left foot and hand advanced, his
left arm slightly bent, and his right arm held across his lower chest,
in fact, just as Fitzsimmons or Corbett would stand when expecting a
blow. In the beginning of the contest, the boxer was sparing of his
strength and preferred to assume the defensive position, and so wear
out his opponent. It was, of course, considered a merit for a boxer to
conquer without receiving wounds.
The principal differences between the technique of Olympian boxing and
that of modern pugilism must be ascribed to the use at Olympia of that
cruel boxing weapon known as the cæstus. This consisted of a heavy
thong of dry, hardened leather, wound about the palm of the hand so as
to form a formidable ridge of considerable circumference; it was even
rendered more formidable by being loaded with lead, and studded with
little metal projections. This nail-studded covering was called σφαῖρα,
and was unknown to the ancient Greeks. That it was very dangerous is
shown by the fact that when used in the practice gymnasia, it was
itself covered, in order that young athletes might become accustomed to
its use before subjecting themselves to its deadliness. But even more
brutal than these were the μύρμηκες, called the breakers or crushers
of limbs. One cannot conceive of a more formidable covering for the
hand, unless it be the terrible cæstus of the Romans, to which Virgil
alludes in the memorial games of Anchises (Æn. V, 401): “Tantorum
ingentia septem Terga boum plumbo insuto ferroque rigebant.” “So
terrible was the seven-fold bullhide stiffened with patches of lead and
iron.” An examination of the representations of hands armed with this
covering makes it evident that the straight blow or counter would not
only fail to make the weapon effective, but would, if forcible enough,
crush the fingers of the boxer between the leather and the adversary’s
body. The cæstus must, therefore, have been used for round blows, or
for the old English blow called the “chopper”; these were delivered by
the back of the hand in an outward and downward swing, and, to be given
without injury to the one who dealt them, required considerable skill.
The blows were directed at the upper parts of the body, and the wounds
inflicted on the head, the temples, ears, cheeks and nose, were very
severe and frequently proved fatal. The teeth were often broken or
injured. It is related of Eurydamas, the Cyrenean, that his teeth
were knocked out by his adversary, but that he quietly swallowed them
in order to conceal from him how much he was injured; his adversary,
disheartened by the apparently small effect of his powerful blow, lost
hope and allowed Eurydamas to win the victory. The ears, especially,
were exposed to great danger, and those of regular pugilists were
usually so mutilated and swollen that the phrase “fighter’s ear”
became a stereotyped expression. Little covers for the ear, known as
αὐφώτιρες, were invented for gymnasium work, but they were not used
in public games. Boxers, on account of the bruises and disfigurations
that usually marked their features, were the subjects of numerous
epigrammatic jests. Here is a sample from the pen of a comic poet:
“After twenty years,” says the author of the epigram, “Ulysses was
recognized from his appearance returning to his home, by his dog,
Argos. But thou, Stratophon, after boxing for four hours, hast been so
altered, that neither dogs nor any person in the town could possibly
recognize thee. And if thou lookest at thy face in a mirror, thou
thyself wilt swear that thou art not Stratophon.”
Of the boxer Olympikos, a poet says that he once had a nose, a beard,
eyebrows, ears and eyelids, but that when he had inscribed his name
among the pugilists he lost them all.
The only protection against the wound-dealing cæstus, aside from skill
in blocking blows, was a cap of bronze that was worn by boxers at
Olympia.
Another noteworthy point of difference between Olympian and modern
boxing is that instead of maintaining silence during the contest, as
do the moderns, the Olympians accompanied their blows with certain
inarticulate sounds, believing that their force was thereby increased.
Modern stone-masons frequently do the same.
The contest at Olympia did not end until one of the combatants was
rendered unconscious, or was compelled by fatigue, wounds or despair to
declare himself conquered, which he signified by lifting his right hand.
In this connection it is interesting to trace the evolution of boxing
in Greece. At first, of course, the bare fist was used; but as time
went on, boxers learned to cover their fists and wrists with strips of
undressed oxhide, the ἱμάντας ἐϋτμήτους βοὸς ἀγραύλοιο in the contest
of Epeios and Euryalos (Il. XXIII, 684). Homer mentions these ἱμάντες
as if they were very common. The name μειλίχαι was given them by
later writers, because they dealt a mild blow; they are described by
Pausanias (VIII, 40, 3) as made of raw oxhide, cut into thin strips
and braided according to the custom of the ancients. The strips were
wound round the palm, leaving the fingers uncovered, at least enough so
that they could be bent to form a clenched fist. As the name indicates,
the μειλίχαι were not cruel weapons; they served not only to moderate
the force of the blow, but also to protect the hand from injury. They
were used at the Nemean games as late as the famous contest between
Kreugas and Damoxenos. It is likely that with these soft coverings the
technique of blows conformed more nearly with the modern technique.
It has been already shown that the straight counter was rendered
impracticable by the cæstus. But without the cæstus the Greek was very
skillful with this blow. The Greek also understood the advantage of the
cross-counter, a blow sometimes thought to be a comparatively recent
discovery in pugilism. If the Homeric description of the bare-handed
fight between Odysseus and the impudent ruffian and parasite, Iros,
be analyzed, the blow will be found plainly involved. Iros, who is of
gigantic size, has insulted Odysseus. A ring is formed and they begin
to fight (Od. XVIII, 73-231).
“On his right shoulder Iros laid his stroke,
Odysseus struck him just beneath the ear,
His jaw-bone broke, and made the blood appear,
When straight he strewed the dust.”
The blow of Odysseus must have been a cross-counter. Iros leads with
his left at Odysseus’ head, but the blow falls instead on his right
shoulder. Odysseus avoids the blow just as a trained boxer would avoid
a similar one today; that is to say, he moves his head to the left, and
catches the blow on his right shoulder, at the same moment, “rising
to the stroke.” He then crosses Iros’ arm with his right, strikes him
beneath the ear, and breaks his jaw, thereby “knocking him out.”
The introduction and use of the cæstus, brought about by the
blood-thirstiness of the ancient mob, instead of being in the interest
of further skill was decidedly a backward step. For not only did it
improperly limit the technique of blows, as has been shown, but it was
too sure a menace to the very source of human skill, the senses and
consciousness itself.
Solon praised boxing from an educational point of view. Cato the elder
must have entertained a high opinion of this art, for, according to
Plutarch, he himself instructed his son, with whose education he took
the greatest pains, in the art of boxing.
In justification of this praise, it must be remembered that Greek
boxing, aside from its brutal features, had also its æsthetic side.
A graceful carriage, dexterity, and promptness of activity were
cultivated. We find Apollo, the embodiment of youthful grace and
beauty, and the ideal of Hellenic æstheticism, represented as a boxer.
Even from the medical point of view, boxing was highly esteemed.
Aretaios recommends it for vertigo and chronic headache (De Morb. Dint.
Cur. 1, 2).
This sport engaged young men of the noblest families in all parts of
Hellas. Pythagoras is said to have been victorious when a youth in a
boxing contest at Olympia. Rhodes, Ægina, Arkadia and Elis were noted
for producing skilled pugilists.
Boxing was followed by wrestling and the pankration which were the
final competitions. As is well known, wrestling was one of the most
popular sports among the Greeks, from the days of Homer. According to
mythology, Palaistra, the daughter of Hermes, established the πάλη,
while her brother, Autolykos, is mentioned as the instructor of the
young Herakles in this art. Plato also assigns the origin of wrestling
to the earliest times and declares Antaios and Kerkyon to be the most
ancient wrestlers. But the mode of wrestling was the result of a mere
desire to fight, and so did not develop wrestling as an art. Theseus is
said to have been the first to reduce it to a system and to practice
it according to definite rules. We have already mentioned how Homer,
in the games of Achilles, causes the powerful Telamonian Aias and
Odysseus to engage in a wrestling bout. Wrestling matches were among
the chief events in the famous games at Olympia and elsewhere. They
were introduced earlier than boxing and were believed to show off the
strength, activity and grace of the body to more advantage than any
other contest. No other exercise required such perfect development
of every muscle in the body, or an equal combination of strength and
agility.
Plutarch calls wrestling the most artistic and cunning of athletic
sports. It was as full of tricks and feints as that of modern times.
The opponent was often deceived by feigned positions and movements.
Sometimes the wrestler would feint as if to grasp his adversary in a
certain place, but by a quick, cat-like movement would attack him in
another which had been left exposed. Cunning was likewise practiced by
the Homeric heroes. Odysseus overpowered Aias by striking him in the
hollow of the knee. But while wrestling was characterized by tricks,
the observance of certain rules was insisted on at Olympia. Striking,
kicking, and pushing were prohibited, but, strange to say, disjointing
an opponent’s fingers was allowed, probably on the ground that it
involved grasping.
While the Greeks in their athletic sports sought for grace and symmetry
as well as strength, it is nevertheless true that their wrestlers were
noted for their bulk. Corpulency was considered advantageous for a
wrestler for two reasons: first, the increased weight rendered it less
easy for an opponent to lift him off the ground; second, it was easier
for him, on the other hand, to overpower his adversary at the opportune
moment. Nevertheless, a graceful style of wrestling, while less easy
to attain under this condition, was much sought after. And oftentimes
grace is the concomitant of a skill that possesses a sure advantage
over mere bulk. Very joyous were the Olympic spectators when this fact
was demonstrated. When the boy Kratinos of Aigeira was victorious
in a match in which skill was more apparent than mere strength, the
authorities permitted him to have placed in the Altis not only his own
statue, but that of his teacher. Pausanias says that Kratinos exhibited
a more graceful style than any other wrestler of his time.
Two modes of wrestling were in vogue at Olympia, standing and ground
wrestling; the former, called the τριαγμός, was most common. The
contestants stood upright, face to face, and after one had been thrown
and had risen, the contest was renewed. This was the style practiced
by the Homeric heroes. After Aias and Odysseus had thrown each other
to the ground, they rose and continued the struggle. Victory was
bought with three throws. Standing wrestling was practiced in later
times at all the great games. Plato, especially, prefers this style,
as it develops the upper parts of the body, the arms, shoulders, chest
and neck. In the latter, or ground wrestling, when the combatants
had fallen they continued the struggle on the ground, until one
acknowledged himself conquered. This kind of wrestling belonged
especially to the pankration, and like that cruel contest was unknown
in heroic times. Solon, according to Lucian, claims that this mode is
of great value as a preparation for war. Plato, however, does not so
regard it. Dion Cassius, in his description of a battle between the
Romans and the Jazyges on the ice of the Danube, claimed that in this
particular instance, familiarity with ground wrestling was especially
advantageous.
Of the numerous tricks, feints and holds practiced by the Greeks, the
following were the most noteworthy. The antagonist endeavored to throw
his opponent either by tripping him, or by grasping his foot with
his hand. This latter style is differently illustrated on two vases.
On the first vase the antagonist is represented as grasping with his
right hand his opponent’s foot, which he has raised to a line with the
middle of his body, while with the left arm he is further raising the
thigh, thus forcing his opponent to the ground. On the second vase, the
contestant has raised his opponent’s foot and is holding it up with the
left hand, which is placed under the knee; both contestants are moving
the right arm as if preparing to strike. This probably represents
the pankration, as striking was not allowed in the wrestling bout. A
similar illustration is seen on a coin; but here the antagonist, whose
foot is held by his opponent, holds the latter in his arms in order to
drag him down if he should fall.
Another trick, in which the athlete wound his leg around his opponent’s
thigh, was often practiced. This point is beautifully illustrated by
the famous group of wrestlers in the Uffizi Gallery, Florence, of which
a fine cast may be seen in the Boston Museum of Fine Arts. Winckelmann
considers these wrestlers to be the sons of Niobe, as they were found
in 1583 at the same time and place as the Niobe group. According to the
legend, they were engaged in a wrestling match when slain by Apollo’s
arrows.
The technical names of the various locks and holds which have come
down to us do not give a clear and definite idea of wrestling. If
one of the Hellenic gymnastes, who must have written accounts of the
different modes of wrestling, had left behind a complete list of
movements, or if the most important parts of the literature bearing
upon gymnastics and agonistics had been preserved, we might form a
more definite conception of the wrestling match. To the student of
athletics it may be interesting to mention a few expressions which
have come down to us from this ancient nomenclature. The word δράσσειν
which literally means to seize or grasp the hand, was probably applied
to the alternate grasping of the arms. This movement is beautifully
illustrated on many antique works of Greek art, especially on vases,
gems and coins. It was one of the chief manœuvres of the wrestlers
and might have occurred at the beginning of the contest. Plutarch
designates the different modes of attack, position and manœuvres of the
wrestlers by the terms ἐμβολαί, παρεμβολαί, συστάσεις, παραθέσεις, from
which general conceptions may be formed, but hardly clear imagery. The
following Greek words, ὠθισμοί, περιπλοκαί, λυγισμοί, which literally
mean pushing, grasping and twisting the limbs, were used by Lucian to
express different styles of wrestling. The terms συναφή and κατοχή
used by Hesychios when speaking of athletics, can apply only to the
wrestling match itself. The movement whereby the antagonist is forced
from his position is described by the term ἀπάγειν, literally to
lead away or carry off. Ἄγχειν and ἀποπνίγειν describe the grasping
of the neck and choking, in order to prevent respiration. This trick
of grasping the opponent’s neck and then throttling him until he
acknowledged himself conquered was considered a very cunning act.
Sometimes the wrestler would obstruct respiration by forcing his elbow
under the chin of his adversary, or he would attempt to bring the neck
of the latter between his thighs and then exert such pressure as
almost to strangle him. This occurred more frequently in the ground
wrestling. On a gem is portrayed a group of boy wrestlers, one of whom,
while resting on his right knee, is firmly holding by the throat his
opponent, who is on both knees; to the right stands a prize vase with a
palm, to the left, an umpire with a rod.
The ἅμμα involved grasping the opponent in such a manner that he
could be held in a position that would tire him and perhaps exhaust
his energy. Herakles in his wrestling contest with the mighty giant,
Antaios, was believed to have used this trick; but Herakles held his
antagonist in the air. Running toward each other with lowered heads
for the purpose of butting, after the manner of rams, also belonged to
the province of wrestling, and was practiced by Lucian himself in the
Lykeion at Athens.
Plato protests against right-handedness (Laws, 8-794). He demands that
a trained wrestler, pankratiast and boxer should be able to use both
hands equally, so that if his opponent should succeed in turning him
around he could defend himself from the other side. The wrestler would
sometimes endeavor to place himself behind his adversary by a quick
movement, then wind his leg around his opponent’s body and throw him.
If successful in this attempt he would choke him.
Besides these tricks there were others with the fingers. For instance,
a wrestler would grasp his opponent’s finger-tips and disjoint or break
them, not letting go until the pain compelled his victim to declare
himself conquered. This finger contest sometimes preceded the actual
contest, and was oftentimes the only feature. Sostratos of Sikyon
was specially famed for this mode of contest; he was twelve times
victorious in the Nemean and Isthmian, twice in the Pythian and three
times in the Olympian games. Leontiskos of Messina, in Sicily, also
practiced wrestling in this manner and gained his victory by breaking
his opponent’s fingers.
In ground wrestling the athlete even attempted to break his opponent’s
toes. Another special scheme which belonged to the standing wrestling
was as follows: the contestant made a circle around himself and
challenged his opponent to force him from his position. If the latter
failed to do this, the victory belonged to the former. Especially
noted in this style of wrestling was Milo of Crotona, the most famous
wrestler of antiquity. When a mere boy he was victorious in the
Olympic and Pythian games. Six times his head was crowned with the
sacred olive of Olympia. Young men of the noblest families engaged in
these wrestling contests. Plato, when a youth, is said to have been
victorious in the Pythian and Isthmian games, probably in the wrestling
match.