DISCOVERING THE ANCIENT PENTATHLON THROUGH A PROJECT 19th International CESH Congress, Florence (It), G. Raptis, University of Western Macedonia, 2. G. Delimpanidou, University of Ioannina 3. Z. Raptis, University of Thrace 4. P. Raptis, University of Cyprus & 5. A. Tsapakidou, University of Western Macedonia.

Edessa We come from…. 2

The presentation.... will guide us to the magic world of the ancient pentathlon … … with the help of seven 11year-old pupils …. 3

.. of a Greek Primary School.. (Apsalos Primary school).. who took part in a three-month project. 4

Aim of the project To help students learn about the ancient pentathlon in an experiential way (learning by doing). 5

Methodology Starting Point: Τhe journey started when the pupils examined two Olympic torches, A reproduction of an ancient torch & An original one from the Olympic Games of Athens

The pupils were asked: ‘’Οlympic torch, Athens 2004: what does it look like?’’ They thought, looked up and discovered: it looks like a leaf from an olive tree! The holy tree of ancient Greeks. 7

They worked in groups, designed learning units, looked up historical sources, observed, benefited from their mistakes, going through the following stages: 8

Stages 1. They investigated their prior knowledge. They made use of written sources, photographs, laptops, tablets, projector, camera and videos on the internet. 2. They recorded their experiences, thoughts and propositions. 3. They implemented the new knowledge by training in the events of the ancient pentathlon. 4. They re-enacted the event with the help of ‘ancient’ olympic instruments -dumbells, javelin with α loop, discus from a plinth e.t.c.-. 9

.. when looking up for information, the pupils were led to discover clues (of the ancient Olympic events and finally of the pentathlon). At a certain point … Νike of Samothrace 10

Finally... … through talking and experiencing they discovered that they became richer in knowledge as they had learned the following… 11

The ancient pentathlon 12

Pent athlon: A combination of the words pente (five) + athlos (sport) 13

The roots of the pentatlon rest in mythology and its birth place is Lemnos. It first appeared in the 18 th Olympiad in 708 B.C. According to mythology, it was invented by Jason. 14

A complex sport There were two types of events: Light and Heavy. Light: long jump, running (stadion) and javelin. Heavy: discus and wrestling. 15

What was the order of the events? The order of the events has been under question and has caused controversy among historians and scholars. 16

It probably began with the long jump… 17

.. continued with discus, running, javelin.. 18

.. and ended with wrestling, which appointed the final victor. 19

Long jump In Olympia, it took place in the stadium, in a pit 16m. long, full of soft soil. 20

After the jump, a ‘point’ was placed on the trace that the athlete’s feet left on the soil. Then his record was measured with a wooden stick called ‘the canon’. 21

The jump was always in length, probably simple. 22 Music was played during the event to provide rhythm to the jumper.

The athletes used the Halteres. Those found weighed approximately 1,5 – 4,5 kilos 23

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Discus throw was introduced in the Olympics of 632 B.C. and was always part of the ancient pentathlon. Discus throw 25

They pinpointed the performance with nails or sticks called ‘semeia’ (points). Then they measured the length of the throw with a stick or a rope. The athletes used the same discus in the Games. The records of the discus throwers. 26

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The discus It was round, made of stone and later of copper, lead or iron. The illustrations on the amphorae & the statues show that they used the same technique as today. 28

Running The oldest and most important event of the Olympic Games. Inventors of the event: different mythical figures like Hercules. The runners used to run barefoot. They used to wear a girdle which was later abolished. 29

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The ‘stadion’ Sprint event of the length of a stadium (it corresponds to the modern event of 200m). The victor of the stadion race gave its name to the Olympiad. 31

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Javelin throw It comes from warfare and hunting. There were two types: ekivolos (throw in length – event of the pentathlon) & stohastikos (aim towards a target). 33

The javelin It was a wooden pole about 1,5-2m long, with a pointed end. A leather strap, called ‘angili’ formed a loop at the centre of gravity of the javelin, where the athlete placed his index and middle fingers to perform the throw. 34

Wrestling A very popular event in Greece. Inventor of the event: Theseus & Hercules. 35

Types of wrestling The upright wrestling & the ground wrestling. The upright wrestling: the victor was the one who would throw down his opponent for three times (τριακτήρ). 36

Ground Wrestling: after the fall the fight continued until one of the two opponents accepted to surrender, in other words perform the ‘apagorevein’ (he raised one or two fingers). 37

The wrestlers competed naked, with their bodies covered in oil, in a pit. 38

One of the most famous wrestlers, Milo of Kroton (he won five times in Olympia, seven in Pythea, nine in Nemea, and ten in Isthmia). Training: rule of progressive overload. 39

How was the victor appointed? It remains unanswered. It seems almost impossible for an athlete to win in all five events. Supposition: in order to win, it was enough for an athlete to be first in three of the five events (one of the three should be wrestling). 40

What did the pupils ‘win’? They developed kinetic abilities, they used New Technologies during the P.E. class, they cultivated their imagination and ingenuity. 41

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The jump in the ancient pentathlon & the students years later. 776 B.C A.D. Has anything changed? 49

It is shown that … the pupils discovered an ancient event, they learned, they tried and they felt happiness and joy, as we can detect in the words of a girl student who exclaimed: ‘’Sir, for a moment I thought I was flying!’’. 50

The students presented the pentathlon events in a teachers’ meeting (Edessa, ), where they enacted images of the book ‘Once upon a time in Olympia..’ (Raptis-Delimpanidou, 2002). 51

They also took part in the ‘Olympic Day’ in Edessa, 5/5/2015. Κωνσταντίνος, Σοφοκλής, Δημήτριος, Χριστόφορος, Κυριάκος, Ηλιάνα, Χριστίνα. Κος Ιωάννης Κοροσίδης 52

Happy moments after the events. 53

And happy moments of their P.E. teacher in the place where sport was born: Ancient Olympia, stadium. 54 Thanks a lot!