Page 26 - FindTominTimeAncientGreece

“That cat just won’t slow down!” gasped Tom, as he chased Digby out of the house and down a narrow street. Suddenly, he came to a halt. They were in an arena, full of men playing sport . . . stark naked!
A discus-thrower gave a shriek of alarm as Digby pelted across the gymnasium. Tom ran after him, dodging a javelin.
The gymnasium was an outdoor sports ground and it was sometimes used as a meeting place for philosophers and teachers. Athletes could only be men and they usually came from rich families. They competed without any clothes on and covered themselves in olive oil to keep the dust off their bodies.
Athletes trained for big competitions such as the Olympic Games, which took
place in Olympia and were part of a religious festival to honour the god Zeus. The main sports
were running, wrestling, and
were given an olive-leaf
received a lot of money when they returned home to their city-state.
-racing, boxing, . If an athlete won, they
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and they also