3. Lucius Septimius Flavianus Flavillianus
Lucius first gained fame in the Roman Empire as an athlete, winning championships as both a wrestler and in the rough and tumble sport known as pankration. The latter was a sport of man-to-man combat, with literally no-holds-barred. Participants kicked, gouged, boxed, choked and used any form of hand-to-hand combat to immobilize the opponent. The winner was, literally, the last man standing. The sport appeared in Ancient Greece in the Olympic Games in 648 BCE, and was common and popular throughout the Ancient World in the Mediterranean region. Lucius first won championships as a boy, and his fame spread throughout the Roman Empire.
In one of the earliest known instances of celebrity endorsement, Lucius used his fame during his Army service to induce new recruits to join Rome’s Legions. Lucius appeared throughout the region of modern-day Syria, demonstrating his skills and implying those who entered the military rolls could expect to develop similar prowess. An inscription on a statue in the Ancient Greek city of Oenoanda (in modern-day Turkey) describes some of his achievements. Although it is possible there were others before him, Lucius was likely the first athlete to use his fame to both benefit a third party, and at the same time extend his own celebrity.