'Pentathlon' tested the complete Greek warrior — five disciplines proving total physical readiness since antiquity.
An athletic contest comprising five different events; in antiquity, a competition at the Olympic Games consisting of the long jump, javelin, discus, stadion race, and wrestling.
From Greek 'pentathlon' (a contest of five exercises), from 'pente' (five) + 'athlos' (contest, struggle). The ancient Greek pentathlon was introduced at the 18th Olympiad (708 BCE) and was considered the most prestigious individual event because it tested the broadest range of abilities. Greek 'pente' descends from PIE *penkwe (five), one of the fundamental Indo-European numerals. The modern pentathlon, created by Baron de Coubertin for the 1912 Olympics, replaced the ancient events with fencing, swimming
The PIE word for 'five' (*penkwe) is believed to derive from the word for 'fist' — the full hand. English 'five,' 'fist,' and 'finger' all descend from the same root, as does Latin 'quinque' (five), which looks different but underwent a regular sound change. The pentathlon thus literally means 'the fist-struggle' at its deepest etymological level.