Although reflecting customs of the Mycenean period had been preserved by tradition, these poems also describe the practices and the values of the elites of the following Geometric era. In the Iliad , we are given long descriptions of the funeral games, organized by Achilles in honor of his beloved dead friend, Patroclus. By exercising and competing, the athlete demonstrates not only his physical strength, but his bravity and intelligence, therefore, his virtue. Odysseus, receiving his word as a great insult and dishonor against his arete , demonstrates his excellence in discus throwing. In many ways, the athletic spirit is equivalent to heroic spirit.
Every hero is like an athlete who tries to surpass the others and win.
The heroic society of Homer places high esteem on athletes who practice for superiority, and thus, the Phaiakians award Odysseus for his excellence, by acknowledging in public his superiority.