Diaulos ( Greek: Δίαυλος, English translation: "double pipe") was a double- stadion race, , introduced in the 14th Olympiad of the

ancient Olympic Games The ancient Olympic Games (Ὀλυμπιακοὶ ἀγῶνες; la, Olympia, neuter plural: "the Olympics") were a series of athletic competitions among representatives of city-states and were one of the Panhellenic Games of Ancient Greece ...

(724BC). The length of each foot race varied depending on the length of the stadium. This was because the Greek foot varied widely from one locality to another, for example the stadium at Olympia was but at

Delphi Delphi (; ), in legend previously called Pytho (Πυθώ), in ancient times was a sacred precinct that served as the seat of Pythia, the major oracle who was consulted about important decisions throughout the ancient classical world. The orac ...

it was long. Scholars debate whether or not the runners had individual "turning" posts for the return leg of the race, or whether all the runners approached a common post, turned, and then raced back to the starting line. Although at Delphi an inscription referenced "turning-posts" as opposed to "turning-post", which suggests each runner had their own turning post, to prevent an outside runner from losing . These were called ''kampteres''. Archaeological evidence at

Nemea Nemea (; grc, Νεμέα; grc-x-ionic, Νεμέη) is an ancient site in the northeastern part of the Peloponnese, in Greece. Formerly part of the territory of Cleonae in ancient Argolis, it is today situated in the regional unit of Corinth ...

also shows that there were individual turning posts.Sweet p. 30

Notes

References

* Miller, Stephen G., Ben Schmidt, ''Ancient Greek Athletics: the events at Olympia, Delphi, Nemea, and Isthmia''. Yale University Press, 2004. * Golden, Mark. ''Sport in the Ancient World from A to Z''. Routledge, 2003. * Gardiner, E. Norman. Athletics of the Ancient World. Oxford: Clarendon. Print. . * Sweet, Waldo E. Sport and Recreation in Ancient Greece a Sourcebook with Translations. New York: Oxford UP, 1987. Print. . {{authority control Ancient Greek units of measurement Ancient Olympic sports Extinct sports