What are you doing with that torch?

August 12, 2004 3:21 PM

The Naked Olympics
Sex, nude sports, violence, boozing; a scholar's view of ancient Olympic practices.
posted by moonbird (4 comments total)

Then there are the Princeton Nude Olympics. [probably nsfw]
posted by caddis at 6:21 PM on August 12, 2004

I found out just today that "gymnasium" literally means "a place for naked exercise."

Kewl!
posted by uncanny hengeman at 9:10 PM on August 12, 2004

Excellent article, very informative.

I think he's wrong about the hand-weights being ineffective at helping with the long-jump though ("Newton showed that this does not work"). There was a study recently which suggested they do work.

If Newton really said that, then Aristotle's physics was right and Newton's was wrong...
posted by TheophileEscargot at 11:13 PM on August 12, 2004

The CBC had a show on this, discussing what the various events would have looked like originally.

Supposedly, one runner's loincloth fell off during a race. When he ended up winning the race, others attributed his success to the lack of encumbrance and they went naked thereafter. Is there a Greek version of "cum grano salis"?
posted by GhostintheMachine at 7:06 AM on August 13, 2004