Callipateira, an immensely proud mother, watched as her son trained for the Olympics and of course, she helped to make him into the man he was that day. She helped him in becoming a strong athlete, the best athlete. As the Olympics were approaching, they prepared, they trained, and did everything they could to be in the best shape possible. As the pair arrived near Alpheios on the road to Olympia, Callipateira could not bear the thought of waiting outside. Married women were forbidden from attending the games under threat of death. However, this was everything she and her son had worked for. She could not stay out and the only question was, how to get in?
As it did every four years, Olympia saw a surge in visitors coming for the Olympic games. Known for the biggest athletic competition in Greece, Olympia held the sacred athletic competitions in honour of Zeus. The organizers watched as athletes, trainers, and spectators arrived. While everyone present spoke Greek, this was certainly not a unified people, they might have been bound by language and religious beliefs, but that did not stop them from constantly being at war with their neighbours. Thankfully, the games at Olympia were so revered religiously that every single city-state was in full agreement to enact a strict peace some months before and after the games. This would enable any and every willing competitor the opportunity to make the long trip and arrive safely. As the organizers watched this parade of people flow into the city, they couldn’t help but to study the faces (and the bodies) before them. A great many of them were athletes in peak shape, others had clearly seen better years, and many were only there to spectate. The organizers may have caught a glimpse of a somewhat odd-looking man wearing a trainer’s outfit, but before they knew it he was gone. It did not matter. After all, there was no rule against looking odd.
As the games proceeded, the day was filled with cheers and screams of despair as spectators’ chosen athletes won or lost. As the day went on, everything seemed normal, everything was on schedule. Until it was not.
As the final two boxing competitors were facing each other, the stakes were high. The boxer Peisidorus dodged a few blows, and managed to hit his opponent a few times. Then, he saw an opening. He threw a punch as hard as he could and found his target. His opponent fell to the ground and Peisidorus won. In that moment, he became an Olympic victor. Overwhelmed with joy, his trainer jumped over the barrier to run to him, and the cheering from the crowd instantly morphed into gasps. The trainer's breasts fell out. A woman had snuck in dressed as a trainer. At this moment, chaos broke loose.
“A disgrace! An insult to the gods! Put her to death! Throw her off Mount Typaeum!”
Overwhelmed with joy, the woman confidently stepped forward, addressing the men: “I am the daughter of an Olympic winner, I am the sister of an Olympic winner, and now, I am the mother of an Olympic winner. Do what you will.”
Her words hung heavy in the air. Clearly, this was not going to be a simple solution. The law called for her death, but could they truly put this woman to death when her blood was the blood of several Olympic victors? This family was clearly favoured by the gods. They couldn’t risk angering the gods. They looked down at the opponent still on the ground… they didn’t dare to anger Peisidorus either.
“Leave, just leave. We won’t put you to death. But you cannot stay here. And don’t come back!”
And so, she left. Floating on a cloud of pride. Pride for her father, her brother, and her son, all Olympic victors.
4 years later, at the next Olympic games, the organizers met the athletes and their trainers to sign them up.
“Ok, everything seems to be in order. Now is this your trainer? Yes? Ok, I’ll need you to take off your clothes. Yes, here and now. Yes it’s a new rule. We can’t risk having another woman sneaking in like the last time! Now strip!”
The moral of this story is that a mother will do anything for her children, and when the gods clearly favour your family, it’s a lot easier to get away with breaking sacred laws.
Text: Cindy Levesque. MENAM Archaeology. Copyright 2023.
Image: Wikimedia Commons
Further Reading
Pausanias 5.6.7-8
Lehmann, C. M., 2009. Early Greek Athletic Trainers. Journal of Sport History, 36(2), pp. 187-204.
Reznik, J., 2016. The essence of sport. In: H. L. Reid & E. Moore, eds. Reflecting on Modern Sport in Ancient Olympia. s.l.:Parnassos Press, pp. 95-104.
Verdenius, W. J., 1976. Pindar's Seventh Olympian Ode: Supplementary Comments. Mnemosyne, Volume 29, pp. 243-253.
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