naure.com
HistorySurprise 5/5Difficulty 2/5Reviewed on December 3, 2025

Ancient Olympic athletes competed completely naked.

Why it is true

The word 'gymnasium' comes from the ancient Greek word 'gymnos', meaning naked. Athletes competed nude to celebrate the human form and prevent cheating.

Source: Sports History

Would you rather be asked first?

This is the reading side of the site, so the answer is in the sentence above — that is the whole point of it. Test yourself works the other way round: the question comes on its own, and the fact and the explanation only appear once you have answered.

Test yourself →10-question challenge

Related facts

More in History

See all →