CHARIOTEERS

Te Awamutu Courier, Volume 62, Issue 4404, 19 March 1941, Page 3

CHARIOTEERS

IDOLS OF THE PUNTERS. In ancient Rome there were horse races in the form of chariot races, and successful charioteers were idolised. by the punters of ancient Rome almost as much as punters in New Zealand idolise successful jockeys to-day. An inscription discovered in Rome in 1878 gives details about the career of Crescens, a charioteer who began racing in A.D.115 when he was a boy of 13, and died nine years later. He won his first race in a chariot drawn by four hoses on August 1, 115. During the remainder of his brief life he took part in 668 races, of which he won 47 —19 against three competitors, 23

against seven, and five against eleven. He gained second prize 130 times and third prize 117 times. At the time of his death he had saved 1,558,396 sestertia, which is equivalent to about £12,500 stg.

Diodes, the prince of Roman charioteers toward the middle of the second century, retired at the age

of 42 with 4462 wins to his credit. Pompeius Musculus claimed 3558 victories, and Scorpius claimed 2048. Lists of the horses were circulated some days before each big race, and. there was a good deal of ante-post betting, with the result that charioteers were sometimes bribed tolose.