Olympic Games

396 BCE , Olympia, Greece

Cynisca was a Spartan woman whose brute mannerisms spoke less of her princess stature, and more to her tomboy nature. She was born shortly after the First Peloponnesian War between Sparta and Athens, and the Second War, which lasted twenty-seven years, consumed her adolescents and adulthood.

The Spartans were masters of combat—Sparta hailed itself a militaristic city-state where men underwent military training beginning at age seven, and the livelihood of women focused on fitness so they could easily handle childbirth and readily rear more soldiers. Cynisca had a natural aptitude for fitness—on account of her royalty and wealth, she spent her days riding horses, hunting, and practicing gymnastics and dance—though she breathed a great sigh of relief every four years when Sparta and the rest of the Greek-speaking world took pause from war to attend the Olympic Games.

“At last, we can take rest!” Cynisca exclaimed.

“But not you!” her brother teased. “This time, you must enter the games! I insist it be so!”

The Olympic Games, held every four years in Olympia, Greece, were first recorded in 776 BCE, though legend speaks to its existence well before. Sporting events—such as footraces, boxing, wrestling, equestrian events, and a pentathlon consisting of a jumping event, discus and javelin throws, a foot race, and wrestling—accompanied a day-long festival in honor of the mighty Zeus. In 680 BCE, the event of chariot racing was added to the games, and the Olympics became a two-day affair.

“The strength and gait of your horses is unparalleled!” her brother boasted, jostling Cynisca’s shoulders to galvanize her.

“Do not gloat on my behalf, dear brother. For words mean little,” she said, throwing his hands from her back. “Let me prove to the world that I am, indeed, a master of horses,” she said with a grin.

“So you are willing? You shall enter the games?” he asked with excitement.

“Yes! I shall enter a four-horse chariot team, run by the finest horses I have bred, with our most fit slave at the reigns!”

Cynisca’s brother gave her a stiff pat on the back before exiting the room, a nefarious smirk running across his face, for his encouragement had been motivated by deceit. He secretly hoped a woman’s win would discredit the sport of chariot racing, rendering it unmanly and unworthy of the Olympic Games. He detested the sport because its winners—those who received the laurel wreath prize and the great esteem that accompanied it—were not the men who drove the horses, but the wealthy patrons who owned them. Victors won based not on their own bravery and skill, but on the bravery and skill of others.

Women were not allowed to be athletes, let alone attend the games. The chariot race offered Cynisca the only means of participation, and she was overjoyed at the opportunity. As with each opening of the Olympic Games, the day’s events began with a lavish ritual slaughtering to the great god Zeus. Cynisca wore her most luxurious tunic for the festivities. When the sports themselves began, and all the women returned to their homes, Cynisca reported to the hippodrome to prep her chariot driver.

Her driver wore a long-sleeved tunic fastened with a simple belt. Two straps crisscrossed high on his back to prevent the material from ballooning during the race. It was due to the dangers of the sport that chariot racers wore a protective garment—it was the only Olympic event not performed in the nude.

Cynisca helped her driver get situated on his chariot, a sturdy, wooden cart with two wheels and an open back. Once the horses and cart were drawn behind their gate, she fastened the driver’s feet into place and bid him good luck.

“May my horses be swift-footed, and your dexterity unrivaled.”

“Praise Zeus!” the driver replied before fixing a stern gaze forward at the oblong racetrack.

When the starting gates dropped, which they did in staggered fashion so the inside lane did not receive benefit, the chariots bolted around the course, turning sharply around the bends. Some turned too fast, some too recklessly, causing spill after spill, but Cynisca’s driver remained unscathed until the end. When her chariot was first to cross the finish line, Cynisca lept for joy into her brother’s arms. He jumped in excitement too, believing his devious plan was on the cusp of fulfillment. But there was no truth to his plot.

Cynisca—the first woman to win at the Olympic Games—was honored by having a bronze statue of herself and a chariot placed in Olympia’s great Temple of Zeus. From that point on, she was worshipped as a hero and praised as having paved the road for other women victors at the Olympic Games.


The Truth of the Matter: Cynisca was indeed the first woman to win at the Olympic Games, and it was widely believed that her brother encouraged her entrance into the race to dishonor the sport. The description of people, places, and things is historical; this story’s fictional elements lie in its dialogue.