Ergoteles ( grc, Ἐργοτέλης) or Ergotelis, was a native of

Knossos Knossos (also Cnossos, both pronounced ; grc, Κνωσός, Knōsós, ; Linear B: ''Ko-no-so'') is the largest Bronze Age archaeological site on Crete and has been called Europe's oldest city. Settled as early as the Neolithic period, the na ...

and Olympic runner in 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. ...

. Civil disorder (ancient Greek: Stasis) had compelled him to leave

Crete Crete ( el, Κρήτη, translit=, Modern: , Ancient: ) is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands, the 88th largest island in the world and the fifth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, after Sicily, Sardinia, Cyprus, and ...

. He came to

Sicily (man) it, Siciliana (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = Ethnicity , demographics1_footnotes = , demographi ...

and was naturalized as a citizen of

Himera Himera (Greek language, Greek: ), was a large and important ancient Greece, ancient Greek city, situated on the north coast of Sicily at the mouth of the river of the same name (the modern Imera Settentrionale), between Panormus (modern Palermo) ...

. He won the Olympic dolichos ("long race") of 472 BC and 464 BC, as well as winning twice in both Pythian and Isthmian Games. A four-line inscribed epigram of c. 450 BC found in

Olympia The name Olympia may refer to: Arts and entertainment Film * ''Olympia'' (1938 film), by Leni Riefenstahl, documenting the Berlin-hosted Olympic Games * ''Olympia'' (1998 film), about a Mexican soap opera star who pursues a career as an athlet ...

commemorates the six Ergotelian victories. The base of an inscribed statue at Olympia, which was seen and exploited by the geographer

Pausanias Pausanias ( el, Παυσανίας) may refer to: *Pausanias of Athens, lover of the poet Agathon and a character in Plato's ''Symposium'' *Pausanias the Regent, Spartan general and regent of the 5th century BC * Pausanias of Sicily, physician of t ...

, was rediscovered in 1953.

Pindar Pindar (; grc-gre, Πίνδαρος , ; la, Pindarus; ) was an Ancient Greek lyric poet from Thebes. Of the canonical nine lyric poets of ancient Greece, his work is the best preserved. Quintilian wrote, "Of the nine lyric poets, Pindar is ...

honoured Ergoteles with the following

Epinikion The ''epinikion'' or ''epinicion'' (plural ''epinikia'' or ''epinicia'', Greek , from ''epi-'', "on," + '' nikê'', "victory") is a genre of occasional poetry also known in English as a victory ode. In ancient Greece, the ''epinikion'' most often ...

hymn:

Namesake

The

Gymnastics Club Ergotelis The Gymnastics Club «Ergotelis» Heraklion Crete ( el, Γυμναστικός Σύλλογος «O Εργοτέλης» Ηρακλείου Κρήτης, Γ.Σ. Εργοτέλης), also known simply as Ergotelis (Greek: Εργοτέλης), is a ...

established in 1929 in

Heraklion Heraklion or Iraklion ( ; el, Ηράκλειο, , ) is the largest city and the administrative capital of the island of Crete and capital of Heraklion regional unit. It is the fourth largest city in Greece with a population of 211,370 (Urban A ...

, was named after Ergoteles, in commemoration of the first Olympic champion native to the modern

Heraklion prefecture Heraklion ( el, Περιφερειακή ενότητα Ηρακλείου) is one of the four regional units of Crete. The capital is the city of Heraklion. Geography The regional unit of Heraklion borders on the regional units of Rethymno to t ...

.Ergotelis FC Official Website, Club History Section
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References

{{Ancient Olympic winners 5th-century BC Greek people Ancient Knossians Ancient Greek runners Ancient Cretan athletes Ancient Himeraeans Ancient Olympic competitors Ancient Pythian athletes