Physical education and sport in Greece 


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Physical education and sport in Greece



 

Physical education as well as sport experienced a “golden age” in ancient Greece.

The Greeks strove for physical perfection, and this objective affected all phases of their life. It influenced the political and educational systems, sculpture and painting, and the thinking and writings of that day. It was a unifying force in Greek life, playing a major part in national festivals and helping to build strong military establishments. No country in history has held physical education or sport in such high esteem as did ancient Greece.

Evidence exists of physical education and sport activities being popular in Creatan

culture as early as 2 500 B.C. Archeological investigations at Mycenae and other centers of Aegean civilization have unearthed buildings, pottery, and other artifacts that point to the importance placed on education and sport in this ancient culture. Literature, such as Homer’s Iliad and Odyssey, also is a source of this information. Lion hunting, deer hunting, bull grappling, boxing, wrestling, dancing, and swimming are commonly referred to by historians who have written about these ancient civilizations.

Physical education was a vital part of the education of every Greek boy. Gymnas-

tics and music were considered the two most important subjects – music for the spirit, and gymnastics for the body. “Exercise for the body and music for the soul” was a common pronouncement. Gymnastics, it was believed, contributed to courage, discipline, and physical wellbeing. Furthermore, gymnastics stressed a sense of fair play, development of the individual’s aesthetic values, amateurism, and the utilitarian values inherent in the activity. Professionalism was frowned on. Individuals ran, wrestled, jumped, danced, or threw the javelin not for reward but for what it would do for their bodies. Beauty of physique was stressed, and boys and men participated in the nude, which motivated development of the “body beautiful.”

Because of the topography of the land and for various political reasons, Greece was composed of several city-states, each exercising its own sovereignty and existing as a separate entity. It waged war and conducted all its affairs separately from the other city-states. This situation influenced not only the political aspects of each city-state but also the objectives of physical education and sport within each state. Sparta and Athens exemplify two such city-states.

In Sparta, a city-state in the Peloponnesus district of Greece, the main objective of physical education and sport was to contribute to a strong and powerful army. The individual in Sparta existed for the state. Each person was subservient to the state and was required to help defend it against all enemies. Women, as well as men, were required to be in good physical condition. It was believed that healthy and strong mothers would bear healthy and strong sons. Spartan women may have begun their physical conditioning as early as 7 years of age and continued gymnastics in public until they were married. Newborn infants, it found to be defective or weak, were left on Mount Taygetus to die. Thomas Woody, an educational historian, points out that mothers bathed babies in wine to test their bodies and to temper them for future ordeals. A boy was allowed to stay at home only for the first six years of his life. After this he was required to stay in the public barracks and entered the agoge, a system of public, compulsory training, in which he underwent an extremely vigorous and rigid training schedule. If he failed in this ordeal, he was deprived of all future honors. A major part of this training consisted of physical activities such as wrestling, jumping, running, throwing the javelin and discus, marching, horceback riding, and hunting. This Spartan conditioning program developed a strong army that was second to none.

Athens, a city-state in eastern Greece, was the antithesis of Sparta. Here the democratic way of life flourished, and consequently it had a great bearing on the objectives of physical education and sport. Athens did not control and regulate the individual’s life as rigidly as Sparta. In Athens the people enjoyed the freedom that is characteristic of a truly democratic government. Although the military emphasis was not as strong as in Sparta, the emphasis on physical education and sport was just as great or greater. Athenians engaged in physical activity to develop their bodies, for aesthetic value, and to live a fuller and more vigorous life. An ideal of Athenian education was to achieve a proper balance in moral, mental, physical, and aesthetic development. To the Hellenes, each person was a whole and was only as strong as his or her weakest part.

Gymnastics for the youth were practiced in the palaestra, a building that provided rooms for various physical activities, for oiling and sanding of bodies, and an open space for activities such as jumping and wrestling.

Some of the more noted palaestras were those of Taures, Timeas, and Siburtios. The paidotribe, or proprietor of the palaestra, was similar to a present day physical educator. He taught many activities, understood how certain exercises should be adapted to various physical conditions, knew how to develop strength and endurance, and was an individual who could be trusted with children in the important task of making youthful bodies serve their minds. As a boy approached manhood, he left the palaestra and attended the gymnasium.

Gymnasia became the physical, social, and intellectual centers of Greece. Although the first use was for physical activity, men such as Plato, Aristotle, and Antisthenes were responsible for making gymnasia such as the Academy, Lyceum, and Kynosarges outstanding intellectual centers as well. Youths usually entered the gymnasium at about 14 to 16 years of age. Here special sports and exercises received the main attention under expert instruction. Although activities that had been engaged in at the palaestra were continued, other sports such as riding, driving, racing, and hunting were added. Instruction in the gymnasium was given by a paidotribe and also a gymnast. The paidotribe had charge of the general physical training program, whereas the gymnast was a specialist responsible for training youth in gymnastic contests. The chief official at the gymnasium, in overall charge of the entire program, was called a gymnasiarch. In keeping with the close association between physical education and sport and religion, each gymnasium recognized a particular deity. For example, the Academy recognized Athena; the Lyceum, Apollo; and the Kynosarges, Hercules.

The national festivals were events that were most important in the lives of the Greeks and were also important in laying the foundation for the modern Olympic Games. These national festivals were in honor of some hero or deity and consisted of feasting, dancing, singing, and events involving physical prowess. Although many of these national festivals were conducted in all parts of Greece, four of them were of special importance and attracted national attention. The first and most famous was the Olympia festival in honour of Zeus, the supreme god, which was held in the western Peloponnesus district. The second was the Pythia festival in honor of Apollo, the god of light and truth, held at Delphi, which was located north of the Corinthian Gulf. The third was the Nemea festival in honor of Zeus held in Argolis near Cleonae. The fourth was the Isthmia festival in honor of Poseidon, the god of sea, held on the isthmus of Corinth. Athletic events were the main attraction and drawing force at each festival. People came from allover Greece to see the games. The stadium at Olympia provided standing space for approximately 40,000 spectators.

During the time of the games were held, a truce was declared by all the city-states in Greece, and it was believed that if this truce were broken, the guilty would be visited by the wrath of the gods. By the middle of the fifth century this truce probably lasted for 3 months.

A rigid set of requirements had to be met before anyone could participate as a contestant in the games. For example, the contestant had to be in training for 10 months; he had to be a free man; he had to have a perfect physique and be of good character; he could not have a criminal record; he had to compete in accordance with the rules. The contestants, as well as their fathers, brothers, and trainers, had to swear to an oath that they would not use illegal tactics to win. Once enrolled for a contest, the athlete had to compete. Physical unfitness was not a good excuse. Events included foot racing, throwing the javelin, throwing the discus, wrestling, broad jumping, weight throwing, boxing, and horse racing.

The victor in these events did not receive any material reward for his victory. Instead a wreath of olive branches was presented. However, he was a hero in everyone’s eyes and had many receptions given in his honor. Furthermore, he had many privileges bestowed on him by his home city-state. To be crowned a victor in an Olympic event was to receive the highest honor that could be bestowed in Greece. The Olympic games were first held in 776 BC, and continued every fourth year thereafter until abolished by the Romans in AD 394. However, they have since been resumed and today are held every 4 years in a different country.

Physical education and sport in ancient Greece will always be viewed with pride by members of this profession. The high ideals that motivated the various gymnastic events are objectives that all persons should try to emulate.

 

3.1. Read and translate the text “Physical Education and Sport in Greece”.

 

3.2. Answer the questions on the text:

 

1. What was the primary purpose of physical activity, physical education, and

sport in ancient Greece? 2. Was it for the purpose of survival, health benefits, religious reasons, nationalist reasons, military preparedness, contribution to education, recreational pursuits, or for some other reason? 3. Did the objectives emphasize education of the physical or education through the physical? 4. What were the significant contributions of the time period to the profession? 5. What events served to promote the growth of physical education and sport in that society? 6. What served as a deterrent to its development? 7. What parallels and similarities may be discerned between the events of that time period and today?

 

3.3. Find the English equivalents for the following:

 

“золоте століття”, прагнути фізичної досконалості; сила, яка об’єднує; грати головну роль; в жодній країні світу фізичне виховання та спорт не користувалися такою повагою як у Стародавній Греції; наявне; предмет матеріальної культури; гончарні вироби; поєдинок з биком; античні цивілізації; життєво важлива частина; дух; душа; сприяти; надавати особливого значення; дивитися несхвально; нагорода; у голому вигляді; міста-поліси; є прикладом; існувати; фізичне загартування; новонароджені; загартовувати; суворе випробування; обов’язкова підготовка; верхова їзда; контраст; суворо регламентувати; користуватися свободою; дійсний; особлива увага; жити повним енергійним життям; досягти потрібної гармонії у; моральний, розумовий, фізичний та естетичний розвиток; занятия на відкритому повітрі; кому можно довірити детей; важлива задача як навчити молоді тіла підкорятися; змужніння; відвідувати; основна увага приділяється окремим видам спорту та вправам; під керівництвом фахівця; нести відповідальність; програма із загальної фізичної підготовки; головний керівник; відповідно до тісних зв’язків; у кожного гімназія було своє божество; закладати; на честь; заходи з демонстрації фізичної доблесті; верховне божество; перешийок; основна приманка; рухальна сила; приблизно; на стадіоні могли поміститися; перемирря; винного покарають боги; до середини; висувалися суворі вимоги; відмінні фізичні дані; кримінальне минуле; змагатися з; дати клятву; заборонені прийоми; зареєструвавшись для участі у змаганні; фізичне нездужання не є виправданням; замість того вручався вінок з оливкових гілок; на його честь влаштовувалися прийоми; більше того; йому надавалися великі пільги; отримати лаври переможця в олімпійському виді програми; вважалося великою честю, яка надавалася у Греції; включно до їх відміни; були поновлені; з гордістю розглядати; високі ідеали, які надихають різні спортивні змагання; є метою прагнень всіх людей

 

 

3.3. Open the brackets and put the verbs into proper tense form.

 

1. In respect to physical education and sport the average Roman (believe) that exercise was health and military purposes. 2. He (not, see) the value of play as an enjoyable pastime. 3. During the period of conquest when Rome (be) following its strong imperialistic policy and before the time of professional troops, citizens between the ages of 17 and 60 years (be) liable for military service. 4. Consequently, during this period of Roman history army life (be) important, and physical activity (be) considered essential to be in good physical shape and ready to serve the state at a moment’s notice. 5. Soldiers (follow) a rigid training schedule that (consist) of activities such as marching, jumping, swimming, and throwing the javelin and discus. 6. However, during the last century of the Republic, mercenary troops were used, with the result that objectives of physical training (not, be) considered as important for the average Roman.

 

IV. Listening comprehension text.

 



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