Nearly 2,500 years ago, the Ancient Greek wrestler Milo of Croton was considered the strongest man in the known world.
A man of incredible strength and athleticism, he taught us three basic principles for muscle development: starting with very light weights, consistency in training, and gradual increase in intensity.
Milo, from Crotona in Magna Graecia (present-day southern Italy), was probably the most successful wrestler of his time. He won the wrestling championship at the ancient Olympic Games six times. In 540 BC he won the boys' category and later prevailed five consecutive times in the men's category. He also dominated the Pythian (seven victories), the Isthmian (ten victories) and the Nemean (nine victories).
His legendary strength is attributed to a simple but effective training method. According to tradition, one day he found a newborn calf and decided to lift it on his shoulders. He repeated this process every day as the calf grew, until after four years he was lifting a full-grown bull.
Many legends surround his strength. It is said that he ate 9 kilos of meat, 9 kilos of bread and drank 10 liters of wine every day. One story says that he himself carried his bronze statue to Olympia. Another says that he held a pomegranate without breaking it, while others tried to open his fingers. It is also claimed that he could break a band around his head simply by bulging his veins.
His death is surrounded by myth. According to tradition, he found a tree with a split trunk and tried to break it with his bare hands. However, the wedges fell, the trunk closed and he was trapped. Unable to free himself, he was torn apart by wolves.
Η ιστορία του ενέπνευσε τη νεότερη τέχνη. Ο θάνατός του απεικονίστηκε σε γλυπτά, όπως το έργο του Pierre Puget (1682), και σε πίνακες του 18ου αιώνα, όπως αυτά των Joseph-Benoît Suvée και James Barry.
