ANCIENT ATHLETES

A Statue of an ancient athlete	Two Athletes joking together.

These are some images of how the athletes would have looked in ancient Olympia. They trained and competed in the nude. They could wear their hair short, as here, or a little longer. Young men, like Alexander and Hephaistion, did not wear beards, but some older athletes and most older men did.

Athletic Training and Equipment

These images from a vase show some typical athletes in training. Note the kind of equipment they are using - javelins (spears), weights, etc. The older men with beards who are wearing cloaks, are trainers or Olympic officials.

Here is an image of a statue of an athlete using a heavy ball to lift weights.

This is the kind of oil jar Hephaistion would be carrying. It would go on a chain or ribbon around his wrist. The items below it are used after exercising to scrape the oil off the athlete's body.