What is "pythian games"

Pythian \Pyth"i*an\, a. [L. Pythius, Gr. ? belonging to Pytho, the older name of Delphi and its environs: cf. F. pythien.] Of or pertaining to Delphi, to the temple of Apollo, or to the priestess of Apollo, who delivered oracles at Delphi.

Pythian games (Gr. Antiq.), one of the four great national festivals of ancient Greece, celebrated near Delphi, in honor of Apollo, the conqueror of the dragon Python, at first once in eight years, afterward once in four.

The Pythian Games (; also Delphic Games) were one of the four Panhellenic Games of Ancient Greece, a forerunner of the modern Olympic Games, held in honour of Apollo every four years at his sanctuary at Delphi. They were held two years after (and thus also two years before) each Olympic Games, and between each Nemean and Isthmian Games. They were founded sometime in the 6th century BC, and, unlike the Olympic Games, also featured competitions for art and dance. The art and dance competitions pre-dated the athletic portion of the games, and were said to have been started by Apollo after he killed Python and set up the oracle at Delphi. Otherwise, the athletic events were the same as those at the Olympic Games.

The winners received a wreath of bay laurel, sacred to Apollo, from the city of Tempe, in Thessaly. Smaller versions of the Pythian Games were celebrated in many other cities of the Levant and Greece.