{"product_id":"the-ancient-olympics-9798235414204","title":"The Ancient Olympics","description":"\u003cp\u003e • Author(s): Shane L. Bryan\u003cbr\u003e • Publisher: Black Bell Books\u003cbr\u003e • Publisher Imprint: Black Bell Books\u003cbr\u003e • BISAC: Ancient - Greece\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eBefore medals, flags, and television ceremonies, the Olympics belonged to Zeus.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eAt ancient Olympia, men competed naked in the heat and dust before tens of thousands of spectators. They ran, wrestled, boxed, raced chariots, swore sacred oaths, endured brutal training, and fought for a prize that had no monetary value: a wreath of wild olive leaves.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eYet that crown could change a life forever.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThe Ancient Olympics\u003c\/strong\u003e uncovers the real world behind the most famous Games in history: a world of glory, sacrifice, scandal, politics, sacred violence, and human ambition. Far from the clean modern myth of peaceful sport, the ancient Olympics were a religious festival, a civic battleground, and a stage where cities, tyrants, athletes, priests, poets, and spectators gathered under the gaze of Zeus.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eInside this book, readers will discover: \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e- \u003cstrong\u003eWhy the Olympic Games were sacred to Zeus\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e- \u003cstrong\u003eHow athletes trained, dieted, oiled their bodies, and competed naked\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e- \u003cstrong\u003eWhat the Olympic truce truly meant, and what it did not mean\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e- \u003cstrong\u003eHow cheating, bribery, and shame statues became part of Olympic history\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e- \u003cstrong\u003eWhy chariot racing belonged to the rich and powerful\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e- \u003cstrong\u003eHow women were excluded, yet still found ways into Olympic memory\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e- \u003cstrong\u003eWhy victory at Olympia could make a man almost immortal\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e- \u003cstrong\u003eHow politics, war, religion, and fame shaped the ancient Games\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eFrom the sanctuary of Olympia to the brutal combat of the pankration, from the sacred altar of Zeus to the bronze statues raised against cheaters, this is the ancient Olympics stripped of modern myth and restored to its original power.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThe Games were never just sport. They were glory, blood, worship, rivalry, and the hunger to be remembered.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Black Bell Books","offers":[{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":47892613169303,"sku":"9798235414204","price":1762.0,"currency_code":"INR","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0666\/3471\/1191\/files\/9798235414204.webp?v=1781187747","url":"https:\/\/atlanticbooks.com\/products\/the-ancient-olympics-9798235414204","provider":"Atlantic Books","version":"1.0","type":"link"}