The Prestige of Olympic Winners Was Way Greater in Ancient Greece Than Today
The ancient Greeks dated events based on four-year Olympiad cycles. Because of that, the winner of the stadion race – the only competition in the first half century of the Olympic Games – achieved extraordinary fame and prestige. Since the Olympiad was named after him, from then on out, people would include his name whenever they referred to anything that happened in the four year cycle of his victory. For example: “such and such happened in the first (or second, or third, or fourth) year of [Olympic Winner’s Name] Olympiad“.
Eventually, more athletic events were added to the competition, such as wrestling, boxing, javelin, discus, long jump, and chariot racing. However, the stadion remained the most prestigious competition, and the four-year Olympiad cycles continued to be named after its victor. Because of that, historians today are able to name just about every stadion winner. The first of them – and thus the first Olympic Games victor, was a cook from the city-state of Elis named Koroibos, who won the stadion in 776 BC.