2014 Greek Games opened up Monday afternoon with a brand new event: The Olympiad. For a first time endeavor, the event got mostly positive reviews from the athletes of Argos, Athens, Sparta and Troy. “It worked out pretty good for a first time,” voiced Brandon H.
“I did the marathon, which was quite tiring,” said Lili, “but the whole event is a great idea.”
In an Olympics featuring running, throwing, jumping and a city-state cheer, the marathon was the signature event. The race, staged as a relay and not quite covering the requisite 26.2 miles, was won by Papouto and Eve from Athens. “My strategy,” said Eve, “was to lightly jog the whole way, so I could stay strong.” Papouto concurred: “We tried to conserve out injury at the beginning to save it to the end.”
Other events included the hammer throw, shot put, discus throw, javelin, 100-meter dash, hurdles and relay. “I did the shot put, hurdles and relay,” said Caroline. “I did the 100-meter hurdles and running race and did OK,” said Megan. “For the first time, it (The Olympics) was OK. It can get better.”
A lot of campers are already coming forward with suggestions on how to improve for next year. “Too much running,” reviewed Amelia. “It puts you at a disadvantage if you don’t like to run, or are no good at it.” Jeremy added that the Olympics were “pretty fun, but a little all over the place. Maybe next year they should also have a triathlon.”
In the end, the young Olympians had a good time, on a warm sunny afternoon, and Alberto got to the pulse of what the event was really about: “The races were good, my teammates did well, and I had fun with my friends.”
Sparta took first place at the Olympiad. See updated Greek Games results and City-State team photos and roster HERE