Gods,Heroes,Myths Greek Mythology Homer's epics,Expeditions

Pelops was the son of Tantalus, who was king of Lydia or Phrygia. He married Hippodamia, and they had children including Atreus, Thyestes, Chrysippus, and others.

When Pelops was young, his father decided to test the gods. Thus, Tantalus cut him into pieces and offered the parts to the gods as a meal. All the gods immediately recognized the abominable act, except for Demeter, who was distraught over the abduction of her daughter and ate a part of the shoulder. When the gods resurrected him, they replaced the missing part of the shoulder with a piece of ivory.

Subsequently, the gods banished Tantalus from his homeland, and Pelops followed his father into exile. They arrived in Elis, where Pelops competed against King Oenomaus in a chariot race. With the help of Poseidon and Hippodamia, the daughter of Oenomaus who had fallen in love with Pelops, he managed to defeat Oenomaus. Pelops then became the king of Elis and married Hippodamia. Thus, he became the ancestor of the tragic family of the Pelopidae and the founder of the Olympic Games