The east pediment depicts the mythical chariot race between the Lydian prince Pelops and the king of Pisa, Oinomaos. According to the myth, Oinomaos had agreed to marry his daughter Hippodameia to the first who could beat him in a chariot race. The artist here presents the main figures of the story.

At the centre of the pediment is Zeus who judges the outcome of the contest. He is flanked by the two main figures, Pelops and Oinomaos. Next to them, on each side, stand Hippodameia and Steropi, Oinomaos' wife.

Next to them, lie two figures sitting on their knees, a young man on the left side, and a young woman on the right. Two groups of horses carrying chariots follow. The old man on the right side is thought to depict Oinomaos' diviner who foresees the king's death. Next to him lies a young man who has not be identified.

The two lying young figures at the end of either sides are identified as the personifications of the rivers Kladeos (right) and Alpheos (left) by Pausanias, who visited the site in the 2nd century AD