Ancient sports
Games people played before 500 AD — dated by earliest physical or written evidence, not legend.
TIMELINE · FIRST EVIDENCE
776 BC · MEDITERRANEAN · ATHLETICS
Stadion
A straight sprint of one stadium length, run naked on a dirt track. It was the only event at the first recorded Olympic Games in 776 BC.
648 BC · MEDITERRANEAN · COMBAT
Pankration
The ancient Greek fight that combined boxing and wrestling, with almost no rules. Only biting and eye-gouging were banned; a bout ended when one fighter gave up.
How we date these: earliest physical or written evidence, not legend. Each page lists its sources.