• Ancient Olympics had naked participants. • They did not win medals – only one olive branch.

• Ancient Olympics had naked participants.

• They did not win medals – only one olive branch.

• The ancient Olympic games were originally a celebration in honour of Zeus, the father of Greek Gods and Goddesses.

• The first Olympic game was traditionally dated back to 776 BC in Olympia, Greece.

• Initially it was a one-day event until 684 BC, when they were extended to three days.

Nudity was fundamental to the Greece culture. They believed it promoted sexual degeneracy. In the sixth century, there was an attempt to make the athletes wear loin clothes but this proved to be unpopular and soon nudity regained its status as fashion in Olympics. The truth was that no one knows. According to one story, it began when a runner lost his loin cloth and tripped over it. Everyone took off their loin clothes after that. But ancient historians have traced it back to initiation rites.

The ancient Greeks had a tradition of doing things nude. Indeed the word gymnasium came from the Greek word gymnos, which means naked.

Why naked? Well to appreciate and celebrate the male physique, of course, and as a tribute to the Gods.

Only men participated in the Olympics. Women were not even allowed as spectators. 

The games included running, long jump, shot put, javelin, boxing and Pankration.

• The Marathon was not an event of the ancient Olympic games.

• The athletes were all male citizens from every corner of the Greek world, coming from as far as Iberia (Spain) in the west and from black sea (Turkey) in the east.

According to some literary traditions, 600 ft long race was the only athletic event of the games for the first thirteen Olympic festivals until 724 BC. The games were held in Olympia every four years for almost 12 centuries.