Ancient athletes: Diagoras' sons against Griffa
Pankration champions Damagetos and Akousilaos , the sons of the legendary athlete Diagoras of Rhodes, won boxing and wrestling matches at the games of Olympia, Delphi, Isthmia, Nemea and Athens. They ranked amongst the most popular fighters and athletes of antiquity. Their fame and popularity stretched from Magna Graecia in the West to Anatolia in the East. Famous sculptors had copied their extremely muscular bodies and handsome looks to model for gods and heroes. It had become known within the Greek world that the brothers were looking for their ultimate challenge. This came to the attention of a wealthy Anatolian nobleman, who owned the most eccentric monsters, like a white elephant from Africa, an aurochs from the forests of Hyperborea, and a peculiar humanoid called Griffa. This Nordic monster of dubious human breed and exceptional strength had a double chest and four arms. Because of its aggressive temperament and extreme eagerness to attack and strangle both men a...
