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Sport in ancient Greece and China

 1 What do Greece and China have in common with each other, in both ancient and modern times? The two nations are separated by nearly 8,000 kilometres of mountains and desert, and in the past, there were no relations and hardly any communication between them. Yet both bear comparison with each other in the role of sport in their societies. 

2 It is true that in the ancient period, the Silk Road served as a channel of trade and cultural exchange between the East and West, which may have allowed an awareness of the ancient Olympic movement to pass from Greece to China. Yet sport appears to play a more fundamental and deeply-rooted role in national culture and socio-political life in all social communities at all times.

3  In fact, the origins of the Olympic Games can be found in the frequent conflicts between the city-states of Greece. Every four years, it was agreed that the Olympic Games would act as a temporary ceasefire. But once the Games were over, fighting would resume.

4 Yet historical research and studies in sociology suggest that sport is not simply a substitute for conflict. It seems that wherever there are human activities, there is sport. One reason for this is the need to keep fit for both survival and for amusement. From the time humans began to make tools from stone, they knew that greater physical strength would allow them to use the tools with greater efficiency. Running, swimming, jumping and throwing were not simply skills which needed to be developed to catch more game and fish. They were enjoyable as well. In due course, these same skills were called into play not just in the Olympic Games but also in the sporting events which were held in China and elsewhere. For example, the skill of shooting with a bow and arrow appears in the myths of many nations. Odysseus was said to have killed rivals for his wife’s attention with a bow and arrow. Similarly, during the Yao times, Hou Yi is said to have shot down nine of the ten suns in the sky which had burnt all the plants on Earth. Thus, the origin of sport appears to lie in human instinct, and not in human invention.

5 There are further similar features between sport in Greece, in China, and other nations. Sport was used as a form of military training, to improve an army’s ability to beat the enemy with or without weapons. In China this included fighting without weapons, horse racing, stone throwing, hunting, and swimming. During the Spring and Autumn Period, swimming pools were built and prizes were awarded to good swimmers among the water troops. Similar sports were also common in ancient Greece, especially in Sparta, where military training was part of the formal education of both boys and girls.

6 Sporting activities in both nations were often combined with dancing. Because of periods of bad weather, China was hit by rain and flooding. In order to relax stiff joints and muscles and to get rid of gloomy moods, people would dance vigorously. Military training in Sparta included dancing, and the ancient Olympic Games included dancing competitions. In the modern era, this form of movement and rhythm can be still seen in figure skating and gymnastics.

7 Furthermore, in both ancient China and Greece, sport was integrated into the education system. During the Xia, Shang and Zhou dynasties, all places of learning taught traditional forms of fighting. Confucius was a fine athlete, highly skilled in shooting with a bow and arrow, fishing, hunting, and hill-climbing. He introduced the Six Noble Arts into education: music, ancient rituals, mathematics, handwriting, driving a horse-drawn vehicle and shooting with a bow, all of which paid attention to the moral, physical and intellectual development of pupils. The Greek philosopher Plato advised that physical training and health education should be included in the school curriculum, alongside philosophy, music, literature and gymnastics. One common Western term for a school, gymnasium, comes from this broad view of education.

8 Sports in both ancient China and Greece were combined with military training, dancing and the whole educational system. So is it surprising that China should embrace modern Olympic ideals which were deeply rooted in ancient  Greek society?

1. It is true that in the ancient period, the Silk Road served as a channel … from Greece to China. Yet sport appears to play a more fundamental and deeplyrooted role … at all times. (Para 2)

Ancient China could have been influenced by ancient Greek ideas on sport with the help of the Silk Road. However, it is more probable that sport was important as a natural result of human activities and played a key role in all aspects of human life.

2. In due course, these same skills were called into play not just in the Olympic Games … (Line 13, Para 4)

As time went by there were other sporting events other than the Olympic Games in China and other places, which required people to show their running, swimming, jumping and throwing skills. 

in due course: at some time in the future when it is the right time, but not before

e.g. Please wait – I will give you the answers in due course.

be called into play: to become useful, to be made good use of, to come into action

e.g. In that dangerous situation all his experience and skill as a pilot were called into play. 

3. Thus, the origin of sport appears to lie in human instinct, and not in human invention. (Line 23, Para 4)

Many aspects of sport arose before civilization; it shows that sport comes from man’s basic nature and is not a product of culture.

4. So is it surprising that China should embrace modern Olympic ideals which were deeply rooted in ancient Greek society? (Line 3, Para 8)

You might think it would be hard for China to understand the Olympic Games as they were the product of an entirely different culture, but the history of sport in China is very similar to that of sport in ancient Greece. So it is easy for China to appreciate the ideas behind the Olympic Games. They are not new or strange.