The stadion, probably the original race, was a fast sprint over one length of the track (over 200 meters),
while the diaulos and the dolichos, both introduced somewhat later,
covered distances of approximately 400 meters and 1,400 to 3,800 meters, respectively.
The painter of this vessel has neatly fit five sprinters—five men and a youth—into the panel of the pot.
Notice the wealth of incised lines depicting musculature,
a preoccupation of Greek artists for centuries to come.