Chapter 1266
Sirius did not respond in time because he was in a daze, so the priest had to call him again. He quickly responded, "Yes!"
The priest glared at him but did not reprimand him. Then, he called out the names of the other contestants.
After the six contestants were confirmed, the priest led them to the track.
When the audience saw the contestants walking to the track, they realized that the race was about to begin and immediately began to cheer. Sirius, who was walking at the front, even heard someone shouting from the audience closest to him, "Look, isn't that the athlete who saluted His Majesty?"
Xilyte immediately felt countless gazes focusing on him, and his sharp eyes even noticed that there were young women among the crowd that were paying attention to him.
While Sirius sighed that the Diónia women were indeed as bold as the rumors said, he suddenly felt that it was necessary for the Diónia people to require them to wear shorts. At least, he would not feel embarrassed when facing the women's gazes.
Sirius, who was outgoing, not only did not feel nervous, but he also became excited. He strode forward with his head held high.
The sun shone down from the center of the arena, shining on him. Although Sirius was not very tall, he was handsome. His muscles were strong and well-proportioned, and the olive oil covering his skin reflected the sunlight. His whole body shone brightly, as if he was a god. Especially when he was running on his track to warm up, the strength and beauty of his muscles contracted and relaxed. Many male spectators could not help but admire him, and the eyes of a few female spectators lit up.
After the contestants got used to the track, they returned to the starting line, took a small shovel from the referee, and began to dig two small holes on the track.
"What are they doing?" Some spectators were puzzled.
Halpius looked at it for a while before saying, "In the past, there were starting slabs for running competitions. Not only was it used as a starting marker, but the dents on the slabs could also help the runners get off to a good start and prevent them from slipping. Although there are no starting slabs on this track, I think these small holes have the same effect … "
The spectators suddenly understood.
At this time, the contestants stepped their bare feet into the small holes in front and behind them to make them firm so that they could exert their strength at the start.
Two referees stood at both ends of the starting line. One was in charge of giving orders, while the other was in charge of monitoring whether any contestants committed a foul. At the end of the 100m race, a red ribbon was drawn, and the atmosphere on the field became heavy.
Feeling nervous again, Sirithaios looked at the contestant next to him. This was a foreign race contestant. He was not allowed to participate in other games, but he could openly appear in the sports field of Diónia. Moreover, the Diónia referees had specially stipulated that no discrimination was allowed between contestants. Otherwise, they would be disqualified from the competition!
That was why Sirithaus smiled at this contestant.
However, it was clearly the first time that this contestant from the Samonai Mountains had participated in such a competition. He was obviously a little nervous and did not pay attention to the goodwill that Sirithaios had conveyed.
Syltaios cursed under his breath as he asked for a snub. He then refocused his attention on the match that was about to begin.
At that moment, the referee shouted, "Attention, contestants!"
Sirithaios immediately tensed up. He bent his waist and leaned forward.
"Ready —" As the referee was about to give the order to start the race, a figure suddenly dashed out, causing the other contestants to follow closely behind.
The referees finally stopped the match and called the contestant who had violated the rules to the front of them. This contestant was Contestant No. 2, who was next to Sirius. Despite his pleas, the referees did not hesitate to send him off the field.
The referees of the Diónia Games were so strict with the contestants who had violated the rules. Not only did the contestants on the field feel terrified, but it also made the spectators who were waiting to see them make a fool of themselves realize that the Diónia people were serious when they announced that they would severely punish the athletes who had violated the rules during the games.
Sirithaios and the others returned to the starting line. They were a little dispirited. Not only was their physical strength depleted, but the contestant being sent off the field was also a big blow to them.
At that moment, there was a loud cheer from the spectators, cheering them on and cheering them on.
"Ready —" The referee raised his right hand again.
All the spectators' eyes were focused on the contestants on the starting line. They all had the same thought in their minds: The opening ceremony of the Diónia Games was exciting, but would the real race be just as exciting? They could immediately see the clues.
The referee waved his hand down forcefully. "Run!"
The contestants were worried that they would be sent off the field again. They did not rush out of the starting line until they heard the order clearly. They were almost half a beat slower.
However, after the race started, almost all the contestants immediately sprinted with all their might. That was because after some practice, many contestants like Sirithaus who had participated in previous sports games knew that the 100m race in the Dionysian Games was half as long as the shortest distance race in other sports games. If they did not give it their all at the start, they would not stand a chance of winning.
Sirithaios quickly waved his arms and moved forward quickly with his feet alternating with each other. The huge wind pressure that came from the front wrinkled the skin on his face. From the corner of his eyes, he could see the ferocious faces of the contestants who were running alongside him. The rapid breathing was like a sword that kept stabbing at his back, urging him to move forward with all his might …
Before he was halfway through the race, he felt a suffocating pain in his chest. It was as if a ball of fire was burning every part of his lungs. He could not help but roar, "Ah!!! … "
In previous games, it was rare to see such a scene. All the contestants were roaring at the top of their lungs, and as they continued to roar, their speed became faster and faster …
Almost all of the spectators were so excited by this blood-boiling scene that they all stood up and shouted. The sound waves that erupted from the arena resounded throughout the entire Tuliyi City, causing the Dionians outside the arena who were unable to buy tickets to feel an unbearable itch.
Arex, who had been sitting at the back of the royal stand, suddenly rushed to the front. He grabbed the railing with both hands and widened his eyes, staring at the contestants who were running with all their might. It was as if he wanted to engrave their figures in his mind. He muttered to himself, "Great! That's awesome! This is exactly what I want! … "
Xenophon and Plato also showed a look of amazement. It was too fast! He was even faster than the runners they had seen in the past! As the Devers said, the 100m race could fully display the sprinting ability of the contestants!
This display of the limit of human speed shocked the spectators in the arena. They did not even dare to blink their eyes as they stared at the sprinting contestants.
The spectators suddenly let out a cry of surprise.
It turned out that when he was about to reach the finish line, Sirithaios, who had exhausted all his strength, suddenly lost his footing. Under the push of the huge inertia, he hit the line first and his whole body fell forward to the ground.
The doctor who had been paying close attention to the situation on the field quickly rushed over and helped him up. After confirming that Sirithaios only had some minor abrasions and nothing serious, the referee on duty, Calsidis, walked over and raised his right hand, indicating that the winner of the first round of qualifiers was Sirithaios.
As there were no accurate timekeeping tools in this era, it was impossible to accurately measure the time needed for each contestant to finish the 100m race. Then, according to their results in the qualifiers, the top few contestants would advance to the finals. The only way that the Diónia Games could ensure fairness was to only allow the winners of each round of qualifiers to enter the semi-finals or finals. This was because there would only be one champion in the end, and there would be no runners-up or third-place contestants. This was in line with the tradition of sparse games.
When the other contestants who had been eliminated walked to the exit of the arena dejectedly, the spectators gave them a warm round of applause, thanking them for giving such a wonderful game.
Sirithaios, who was walking at the back, had a face covered in dust and a few bloodstains on his body. He looked a little disheveled, but the spectators gave him a warm round of applause. The young man from Crete had won the recognition of the people of Diónia through this game.
When dusk came, the competition for the day finally ended. When he saw that many spectators were still enthusiastically discussing the opening ceremony and the running race, the envoy from the Olympia had mixed feelings. Although he was picky, he had to admit that both the opening ceremony and the running race were novel and exciting to him. The Diónia Games had indeed made a good start!
When many of the spectators from Diónia walked out of the arena, they were surrounded by other Turís who were familiar with them. They asked them about everything that happened in the arena, and these spectators were happy to share their stories with them.
Therefore, when night fell, candlelight illuminated the entire city of Turís. The restaurants and pubs on the streets were crowded with guests. They drank wine, ate delicious food, and talked non-stop about the interesting things that happened in the main arena of Hatis. Laughter filled the air.
Such a lively scene also happened in the royal family of Diónia.
The Devers held a family banquet in their mansion on the hill to celebrate the success of the opening ceremony of the Diónia Games. But the most talked about thing at the banquet was the sensible performance of the two grandchildren, Cristos and Enon.
Faced with the constant praise from their families, the two teenagers were so shy that they wanted to escape from the banquet.
At this moment, the chief of the palace, Ribazot, quietly entered the dining hall. He came to the side of the Devers who was sitting in the main seat and whispered a few words in his ear.
The Devers's smile did not change, but he stood up.
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