Chi Omega and Lambda Chi Alpha took first place at Greek Olympics on Saturday, Oct. 8 after a demanding set of challenges.
Each house on Greek row showed up to the soccer fields at 10 a.m. to participate in five competitions designed to test the athletic abilities of each team.
The competitions consisted of a rope pull, a 4×100 relay, a heavy ball throw, a dog sled pull and an obstacle course.
Chi Omega took first place in the women’s competition, followed by Zeta Tau Alpha and Kappa Delta.
Lambda Chi Alpha placed first in the men’s competition, followed by Sigma Alpha Epsilon and Alpha Tau Omega.
Tori York, Chi Omega intramural chair and junior athletic training major, spoke on the purpose of the Greek Olympics.
“So, obviously, like the very surface level point of Greek Olympics is just to have all the houses, both sororities and fraternities, to compete to see who has the best strength, speed, agility, overall athletic mentality, right? But I feel like it’s such a good time to see what God has gifted all the chapters with, and just to see how all of us are different.”
The day starts even earlier than 10 a.m. for the houses, each chapter taking time beforehand to gather and perform long-held rituals. Chants and cheers can be heard across campus as fraternities and sororities make their way from Greek row to the soccer field, many sporting paint and jerseys as they march.
“In my opinion, the most fun part of Greek Olympics is the before,” York said. “The painting up, the chance to get all together. It’s just so intense, so hype the whole time. There’s never a dull moment in Greek Olympics ever.”
Determining who competes in each event begins weeks in advance. Intramural chairs hold tryouts for each event, and many chosen to be on the roster continue practicing until the day itself.
“I think my favorite thing this year was just how hard the guys worked,” Tad Binkley, president of Lambda Chi Alpha and senior history major, said. “One thing that was cool is last year we didn’t do as well because there were a few transitional things we just hadn’t worked on. So, this year, we went back and worked on them, and I think it really showed.”
Win or lose, the Greek Olympics is designed for two things: to showcase the athletic talent of our Greek men and women and to give them the chance to enjoy themselves competitively.
“I had a ton of fun,” Binkley said. “This is one of the things I look forward to the most throughout the year. We’re just all about pushing people to be more, whether that’s academically, socially or athletically.”
Photo by Karley Hathcock
