The athlete competing in a hoplitodromos event is required to wear a helmet and the greaves (that is, the armor protecting the leg… just for comparison, in modern-day sports this could be similar to the shinguards) of a hoplite, or an ancient Greek city-state soldier. These athletes had to race a single lap around the stadium, much like diaulos in nature, but there are tight turns that will be difficult for them to negotiate because of an added twist. They had to carry a wooden shield that the hoplites used, so they have at least fifty pounds of weight on them plus their own body mass. Because of this, the race showed more of the strength and endurance of the athlete rather than his speed and his stamina. This was not only done in the Olympic games, but also as a military exercise to keep their soldiers fit and able. This also made their soldiers faster, because they got used to all the weight that they had to carry. Today this would only be done in the army training, and is no longer a part of the Olympics.

Of course, no aspect of Grecian life was spared by this innovation. The Greeks always wanted to make things more challenging, and so they pushed the buttons a bit. Their sports events was no exception to this rule. They considered the Stadion their greatest Olympic event, and yet, as you will find out, they still were not content with this as the pinnacle event of their Olympics. Somehow they wanted to be able to test the power of their athletes more, and so they introdued the diaulos.

There is not much to explain about the Diaulos, really. It is, in simple terms, the stadion raced twice. What happens is that the runners race the stadion as they usually would, and then at the 180-meter point, they had to go around a marker and race back to the starting line, which would also serve as their finish line. It’s more reminiscent of the party games that we have today than of the actual racing event that we have in the modern-day Olympics, but you can see how this proved even more the stamina and the speed of their athletes. It was introduced in the 14^th Ancient Olympics, and not much was known of the mechanics of the event except what is mentioned above. Still, you could imagine how this may affect the results of the race, because the added distance will wear out those who might do good with just 180 meters to run.

Of course, we all know that The Olympics were first established by the Ancient Greeks, so you can only expect that some of the events that we have included in the Olympics today have roots from the original events of the period. One event from the past that is similar to one of the events in the modern-day Olympics is the Stadion. The stadion is named after the building in Olympus in which the Ancient Olympics were being held, and is considered to be one of the major events of the Ancient Olympics. It is so important that the person who actually wins this competition is considered to be the big winner of the entire Olympics. While this is the most known and the most important event in the Ancient Olympic Games, it was also a part of a series of competitions that make up the Pentathlon, the main event of the games at the time.

The Stadion is actually a short sprint race, where the runners will have to race in a 180-meter track. Like today’s running event in the Olympics, there are markers at the starting line to ensure that no one cheats at the start of the game, and their goal is to get to the end of that 180-m track first. There are judges who determine whether or not the win of a person is legitimate. The runners raced naked and was given glory if they won. It is very similar to the event we have today, except today we don’t let our athletes race naked. Still, it was a measure of speed and stamina, and so it is no surprise that it was a very big deal at the time.