Sport in Agrigento: a tradition since the time of Akragas

Through the words of Pindar, a lyrical poet of Theban origin (5th century BC), the deeds of the Akragantine athletes during some editions of the Panhellenic Games have been preserved.
Two Olympic odes celebrated the victories of Theron, ancient tyrant of Agrigento, in the quadriga competitions in Olympia, while a pious ode celebrated the victory of Xenocrates, the tyrant’s brother, in a triumph in Delphi with the family stables, the descendants of the Emmenidae, among the most famous in the Greek world.