Short description of the style The term comes from the Ancient Greek παγκράτιον, literally meaning "all powers” or “all powerful” . It is also used to describe the sport's contemporary variations. Some tout it as the first all-encompassing fighting system in human history. It is also arguable that pankration competitions in antiquity were the closest an athletic event has come to outright, no-rules, empty hand combat. Modern mixed martial arts competitions have come to feature many of the same methods that were used in pankration competitions in the ancient Greek world Ancient Pankration In Greek mythology it was said that the heroes Heracles and Theseus invented pankration as a result of using both wrestling and boxing. They are credited as the two "inventors" of panmachia. Pankration was more than just an event in the athletic competitions of the ancient Greek world; it was also part of combat training for Greek soldiers - including the famous Spartan hoplites and Alexander the Great's Macedonian phalanx. Pankration, as practiced in the ancient world, combined elements of both boxing (pygmē/pygmachia - πυγμή/πυγμαχία) and wrestling (palē - πάλη) to create a broad fighting sport similar to today's mixed martial arts. A match was won by submission of the opponent or if the opponent was incapacitated. A contestant could signal submission by raising his finger, but sometimes the only form of submission was unconsciousness or death. Joint locks and choke holds were common techniques of accomplishing this. In fact, there were only two rules: contestants were not allowed to gouge eyes or to bite. There were neither weight divisions nor time limits. Referees were armed with stout rods or switches to enforce the rules against biting and gouging. The contest itself continued uninterrupted until one of the combatants either surrendered, suffered unconsciousness, or was killed. Although knockouts were common, most pankration battles were decided on the ground where both striking and submission techniques would freely come into play. Pankratiasts were highly skilled grapplers and were extremely effective in applying a variety of takedowns, chockes, and punishing joint locks. Strangulation was most feared during ground combat, and was the leading cause of death in matches. A fighter would immediately raise his arm in defeat once his opponent's forearm had secured a firm grip across the windpipe or carotid artery (though there are stories of fighters who chose to die rather than surrender). Modern Pankration In modern times Pankration could still be seen in cities like Smyrna and Constantinople even in the beginning of the 20th century. It was after the burning of the city of Smyrna by the Turks that caused many of the Athletic associations, including those who practiced and taught Pankration, to scatter to mainland Greece and other parts of the world and try to rebuild their lives. Of those pankratiasts that went to Greece, life was unmerciful given Greece's poor economic and political stability and providing for their families was the foremost priority. It was then that Pankration took a back seat to the reality of survival for the remaining pankratiasts. The original pankration would remain defunct for more than 1000 years. It is rumored that modifications would appear in Greece from time to time, but they paled in comparison. An attempt was made in 1896 to resurrect pankration for inclusion in the new Olympic games but it did not materialize. It was not until the late-1960s that a new derivative would undergo development by Greek-American combat athlete and martial arts innovator Jim Arvanitis. World recognized today as the "Father of Modern Pankration", Arvanitis made it his life's work to rebuild the concepts from the remnants of Greece's legacy. One of the earliest advocates of cross-training, he combined his extensive background in boxing and wrestling with techniques he extracted from other styles, most notably Muay Thai and combat judo. The integration of these conceptual and technical elements became the foundation of Modern Pankration.

 Links: http://www.spartanacademy.com/main/index.htm http://www.atlantamartialarts.com/styles/pankration.htm http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/Olympics/pankration2.html http://www.pankration.gr/history.htm http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pankration