by Alyssa Candelaria

The Delta Zeta 10-legged team races to the finish line. (Photo by Alyssa Candelaria)

New Mexico State University Greek life culminates this time of  year, when students compete for the title of Greek Week Champions.

Greek Week is a two-week competition that lasted from April 11 -24, consisting of Pool Night, Greek Sing, College Bowl, Day of Service, Greek Olympics and a few other events that earn points for fraternities and sororities to claim this title, awarded to the Lambda Chi Alpha fraternity and the Zeta Tau Alpha sorority this year. 

Let the games begin!

“The competition gets really intense,” said Britni Gallegos, president of the Delta Zeta sorority.  Gallegos also said the six sororities at NMSU are all really strong competitors, so it is always a fight for which sorority is going to win.

Greek Week is also a time to show the Las Cruces community that Greeks do not just party and create havoc on campus and the city. 

“We are trying to make community service a main component of Greek Week this year,” said Tori Baron, a Day Chair for one of the service events.

Greek Olympics wraps up the Greek Week festivities.  It is a day-long event taking place at the NMSU football practice fields.  Ten-legged races, pyramid, tug-of-war, chariot, Mount Olympus, and spontaneous events are awarded points during the competition. Greek teams practice for months in advance to get ready for the competition.  

Events

Lambda Chi Alpha builds a pyramid before going on to win the title of Greek Olympic and Greek Week Champions. (Photo by Alyssa Candelaria)

• The 10-legged race consists of five people being tied together from the knee down and having to run together around a cone and back to beat the other team.  The sororities race against each other and then the fraternities take their turn.  

• Pyramid is 10 people racing across the field to build a human pyramid.  They have to hold the pyramid for a certain amount of time before the judges allow them to break the pyramid and race back to the starting point.  

• Tug-of-war is a competition of strength as teams set on a large rope to see which team can either hold out the longest or pull the other team the hardest. 

• Chariot consists of two girls pulling home-made chariots across the field with a person sitting in the chariot.  This is reminiscent of the real Greek Olympic of ancient Greece. 

• Mount Olympus is a relay race up the steepest side of the football stadium.

The Chi Omega sorority races across the football field during the chariot race. (Photo by Alyssa Candelaria)

“It was awesome,” said Michael Lynch, a member of the Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity.  Students, alumni, and parents all came out to cheer on the favorite fraternity or sorority.

NMSU athletes were on hand to judge the Olympics events.