The Rome of the Day
79 B.C.
All the News Romans Need to Know
The Colliseum
And They Are Off!!!!!
Ryanis Kirschnis
The horses are out of the gate and
they are off!!! We are sitting here in
the Colliseum where there is a live
chariot horse race going on right now.
Of course, I am in my official gear
watching the game in a toga. All males
who want to watch the race must
wear a toga. It is the official wear.
Here is some background information.
For the racers to leave the gate, the
official of the race would have to drop
a white handkerchief and that is the
sign for the horses to start running.
The horses need a lot of stamina. The
race is about six miles long so it is a
very long, but enjoyable (for the fans)
race. The racers who rode the
chariots were usually from the lower
class because they needed the money.
There were four chariots per each
race and it was very competitive. The
colors were red, green, blue, and
yellow for the horses.
When you are at the race, the
viewers get to see about 10-12 races
per day, so it is a very fun day at the
Colliseum. The most historical chariot
racer was this lower classman named
Dicoles. This amazing man won about
3,000 races. There was another place
where events happened, this place is
called the amphitheatre. Usually you
would see about three major events in
one day. Chariot races are probably
considered the most popular sport in
Rome and are very fun to watch. This
sport is actually so popular that the
Greeks had these kind of events also
where you got to see chariot races and
everybody just loved them. There
were usually a coupe of chariots per
team and they all worked together to
win. There were usually lots of
accidents, such as the horses falling
then unfortunately getting hit by
another chariot. They were a lot of
fun to watch and a great experience.
Chariot Race at Circus Maximus.
Source: Everyday Life in Ancient
Rome by F.R. Cowell