Participation in the Ancient Olympics was limited to free Greek male amateur sportsmen (Herodotus V.22.2 . Non-Greeks, slaves, people accused of murder or blasphemy, and women (with some rare exceptions), were not allowed to compete.

However, these regulations did not put off scores of people from flocking to Olympia to watch the Games, travelling from all over the Greek city-states and colonies as far afield as Africa and the Iberian Peninsula. At its height, the Ancient Olympic festival probably hosted over forty thousand people.

https://www.open.edu/openlearn/health-sports-psychology/health/sport-and-fitness/the-ancient-olympics-bridging-past-and-present/content-section-2

Tags - Olympic Tradition, Ancient World Games, Ancient Olympics