Original Pankration as an Olympic sport may have died out. However, pankration is still honored in combat sports tournaments, with some adjustments to make it a safer competition. Does pankration still exist?
Full Answer
Should pankration be an Olympic event?
At the time of the revival of the Olympic Games (1896), pankration was not reinstated as an Olympic event. Neo-pankration (modern pankration) was first introduced to the martial arts community by Greek-American combat athlete Jim Arvanitis in 1969 and later exposed worldwide in 1973 when he was featured on the cover of Black Belt.
What does pankration stand for?
Pankration ( / pænˈkreɪtiɒn, - ˈkreɪʃən /; Greek: παγκράτιον) was a sporting event introduced into the Greek Olympic Games in 648 BC, which was an empty-hand submission sport with few rules.
What are the rules of pankration?
The pankration event for boys was established at the Olympic Games in 200 BC. In pankration competitions, referees were armed with stout rods or switches to enforce the rules. In fact, there were only two rules regarding combat: no eye gouging or biting.
What happens if you win a pankration competition?
In extreme cases a pankration competition could even result in the death of one of the opponents, which was considered a win.
What is pankration sport?
Pankration was a magnificently simple sport. “You could do pretty much anything you could possibly imagine in order to incapacitate your opponent,” Paul Christesen, Professor of Ancient Greek History at Dartmouth College, USA, explained. “And the Greeks thought this was the coolest thing ever.”.
How many athletes won the Pankration and wrestling?
Seven athletes won the heavy combat double of wrestling and pankration at the same Games, including the unfortunate Arrichion. But Theagenes of Thasos is the ultimate symbol of this brutal and wildly popular sport.
What is the meaning of pankration?
Pankration. ‘No biting and no gouging’ - but all else fair game in “brutal” pankration. A combination of boxing and wrestling with barely any restrictions, pankration was the wild, no-holds barred centre of the Ancient Olympic Games.
Why did the Greeks invent sports medicine?
“The Greeks invented sports medicine, probably in part because of all the injuries all the time ,” he said.
When did pentathlon become an Olympic sport?
The Pentathlon became an Olympic sport with the addition of wrestling in 708 B.C., and included the following:
What weights did athletes use to jump?
Athletes used stone or lead weights called halteres to increase the distance of a jump. They held onto the weights until the end of their flight, and then jettisoned them backwards.
What Is Pankration Fighting?
Pankration is the ancient Greek version of modern day MMA fighting. Famous Greek philosophers such as Plato, Aristotle and Socrates were all trained in the art. Plato even went as far to discuss and write about strategy in Pankration such as always attacking your opponent’s weaker side, something which is still relevant today. The sport was meant to have been discovered by Hercules after he used it to defeat a mythical lion.
What Is The Purpose Of Pankration?
There are weight classes and a couple of different rulesets. The idea is simply to outscore or submit your opponent in a controlled manner.
Is Pankration Effective in MMA?
Yes, if taught properly. Almost every form of fighting is effective in MMA if it is trained and sparred. Whilst it may not be the most effective style due to it’s modern day restrictive ruleset. It is still a brutal and challenging discipline with a mixture of striking, wrestling and ground fighting. Really if you were to close your eyes and walk into a Pankration gym, you wouldn’t really be able to notice a difference in the techniques and training compared to an MMA gym.
Overview
Modern pankration
At the time of the revival of the Olympic Games (1896), pankration was not reinstated as an Olympic event.
Neo-pankration (modern pankration) was first introduced to the martial arts community by Greek-American combat athlete Jim Arvanitis in 1969 and later exposed worldwide in 1973 when he was featured on the cover of Black Belt. Arvanitis continually refined his reconstruction with referenc…
History
In Greek mythology, it was said that the heroes Heracles and Theseus invented pankration as a result of using both wrestling and boxing in their confrontations with opponents. Theseus was said to have used pankration to defeat the Minotaur in the Labyrinth. Heracles too was often depicted in ancient artworks subduing the Nemean lion using pankration. In this context, pankration was also referred to as pammachon or pammachion (πάμμαχον or παμμάχιον), mea…
Structure of the ancient competition
There were neither weight divisions nor time limits in pankration competitions. However, there were two or three age groups in the competitions of antiquity. In the Ancient Olympic Games specifically there were only two such age groups:. men (andres – ἄνδρες) and boys (paides – παῖδες). The pankration event for boys was established at the Olympic Games in 200 BC. In pankration competitions, referees were armed with stout rods or switches to enforce the rules. I…
Techniques
The athletes engaged in a pankration competition – i.e., the pankratiasts (sg. παγκρατιαστής, pl. παγκρατιασταί – employed a variety of techniques in order to strike their opponent as well as take him to the ground in order to use a submission technique. When the pankratiasts fought standing, the combat was called Anō Pankration (ἄνω παγκράτιον, "upper Pankration"); and when they took the fight to the ground, that stage of pankration competition was called Katō pankration (κάτω π…
Preparation and practice
The basic instruction of pankration techniques was conducted by the paedotribae (παιδοτρίβαι, "physical trainers" ), who were in charge of boys' physical education. High level athletes were also trained by special trainers who were called gymnastae (γυμνασταί), some of whom had been successful pankration competitors themselves. There are indications that the methods and techniques used by different athletes varied, i.e., there were different styles. While specific style…
Ancient Olympic pankration champions and famous pankratiasts
• Theagenes of Thasos
• Arrichion
• Kleitomachos
• Polydamas of Skotoussa
• Dioxippus
See also
• History of physical training and fitness