The hippodrome was an immense oval structure constructed to the east of the Altis and to the south of the
stadium. The hippodrome was flanked by an embankment to the north, east and south, and by the Stoa of Agnaptos to the west. Although nothing remains of the Hippodrome today, scholars have made an effort to reconstruct the racecourse from descriptions left by ancient texts, including the writing of Pausanias and the Seraglio manuscript. It may be reasonably assumed that the total length of the Hippodrome was 900 meters and the width 64 meters (P. Valavanis). The track itself only stretched about 550 meters in length, making the total racetrack approximately 1200 meters around. Depending on the event, the track would be lapped 3 to 12 times in the course of a race (P. Valavanis). Two pillars stood at either end of the arena to mark the turns; these pillars were topped with bronze statues of Hippodameia crowning Pelops (J. Swaddling). There was likely a gated barrier around the perimeter of the track through which injured athletes and broken equipment could be removed (J. Swaddling). Perhaps the most important feature of the hippodrome at Olympia was the hippaphesis, a starting mechanism for the horses designed by Kleoetas, son of Aristokles. The hippaphesis staggered the chariots into a prow-shaped starting gate. Using a mechanical starting system, the chariots at the back of the gate were released first, followed by the chariots spaced in front of them, and so on until the chariots at the front of the prow were finally released (Pausanias). When all the competitors had formed a straight line, a trumpet blew to signal the beginning of the race (Pausanias). The staggered gate was likely designed for spectacle as well as fair starts.
References
Biers, William R. The Archaeology of Greece. Cornell University Press, Ithica; 1996
Gardiner, E. Norman. Olympia: Its History and Remains. Clarendon Press, London; 1925
Pausanias. Description of Greece with an English Translation (by Jones, W.H.S.) Harvard University Press, Cambridge; 1918
Schobel, Heinz. The Ancient Olympic Games. D. Van Nostrand Compay, Princeton; 1965
Swaddling, Judith. The Ancient Olympic Games. British Museum Press, London; 2004
Valavanis, Panos. Games and Sanctuaries in Ancient Greece. Getty Publications, Los Angeles; 2004
Yalouris, Nikolaos. Olympia: Altis and Museum. Verlag Schnell & Steiner Munchen, Zurich; 1976
Greek Archaeology
