ART EXHIBITION AND AWARDS FOR TRUCE AND “FAIR PLAY” WITHIN THE EVENTS OF THE “ROUTE OF TRUCE 2020”
ART EXHIBITION AND AWARDS FOR TRUCE AND “FAIR PLAY” WITHIN THE EVENTS OF THE “ROUTE OF TRUCE 2020”
World Olympic Day is celebrated on June 23, and the Federation of Olympia dedicated its events, the art exhibition and the awards, to “Fair Play”.
At the opening of the art exhibition, during a splendid ceremony at the Foyer of the War Museum, the following were honored: the President of the International Olympic Academy, Mr. Isidoros Kouvelos, for the promotion of Olympic Education in Greece and the dissemination of Olympic values to young people worldwide; the Vice Presidents of the International Olympic Truce Centre, former Prime Minister Mr. G. Papandreou and former Minister Ms. Fani Palli-Petralia, who have worked to advance the idea of Truce globally; as well as Greek Olympians Ioannis Melissanidis, Valerios Leonidis and Spyros Gianniotis, who honored the Greek flag and filled Hellenism with pride, having associated their names with “Fair Play”.
The event opened with a performance of the Olympic Anthem by singer-songwriter and actress Ms. Salina Gavala.
Guests were welcomed by Ms. Sofia Hintziou Kontogianni, President of the Federation of Olympia, who referred to the revival of the Ancient Olympic Games, spoke about the organization’s projects and actions to date, and outlined the upcoming events in Ilia and Athens within the framework of the “Route of Truce 2020”. It is noted that the Route of Truce, from Ancient Ilida to Ancient Olympia, will take place on August 30. Concluding her address, she emphasized that “perhaps the time has now come, by bridging the ancient with the modern, to restore harmony and balance between sport and culture, to remind ourselves why the Olympic Games were held, by each one of us—athletes, coaches, referees, spectators—redefining the universal values we have inherited and stating our own ‘Olympic struggle for salvation’.”
The awards began with the President of the International Olympic Academy, Mr. Isidoros Kouvelos, who was honored for the hard work he has carried out for many years to make the vision of implementing Olympic Education in Greece a reality and for educating young people from all over the world in the Values of Olympism at the IOA facilities in Ancient Olympia. In fact, former IOC President Dr. Jacques Rogge had described his work as an “Olympic Record”, as it included everything defined by the IOC as Olympic education. Mr. Kouvelos envisioned Ancient Olympia as a global education center and succeeded in securing from the International Olympic Committee the largest grant ever awarded to the IOA, approximately 13 million dollars, so that the IOA facilities in Ancient Olympia could be fully renovated.
During the award presentation, Mr. Kouvelos stated, among other things: “Thank you very much for the honor, however I believe I am doing nothing more than what is self-evident, and I would like to call on the leadership of the Ministry of Education to contribute to the implementation of Olympic Education in schools, because we are almost the only country where the values of Olympism are not taught in our schools. We have done a lot over the years and I hope this work will continue. At the same time, I believe that soon, in cooperation with the Ministry of Education, the International Olympic Academy will have the first English-taught undergraduate program in Olympic Studies.”
Mr. Kouvelos was honored by the Mayor of Ancient Olympia, Mr. Giorgos Georgiopoulos, and the President of the Federation of Olympia, Ms. Sofia Hintziou Kontogianni.
In his greeting, the Mayor of Ancient Olympia, Mr. Giorgos Georgiopoulos, stressed: “Congratulations to the Federation of Olympia for the excellent organization of yet another event which has now been established as an institution within the Olympic Movement and which this year is dedicated to ‘Fair Play’.
In these difficult times for the entire planet, at a moment when humanity is waging a great struggle against a tough opponent, I want to convey a message of optimism from the sacred land of Olympia. From Olympia, which elevated the struggle into the highest value of human life, we send a message of Victory. Humanity, united, with collective effort and discipline, will emerge victorious from this Struggle.”
Former Prime Minister and Vice President of the International Olympic Truce Centre Mr. George Papandreou expressed his support for the Federation of Olympia’s initiatives for The Route of Truce, during his award.
Among other things, he said: “Shortly after the selection of Athens for the 2004 Games, wishing the Greek spirit of the Games’ core purpose—namely Truce and Peace—to return, I approached the IOC with the aim of creating a stable structure for this idea.
Thus, in Nagano, Japan, the decision was taken for the Foundation and the Olympic Truce Centre. This ancient Greek idea gained ground once again.
It was established that every city seeking to host the Games must include in its bid file significant actions related to initiatives for the Olympic Truce.
With emotion I remember the moment Nelson Mandela signed the Truce Declaration, as did so many other important personalities from all continents. Even more so, when leaders of countries with rivalries or even conflicts co-signed that Declaration—such as Yasser Arafat and Shimon Peres.
To understand how far we have come, let us reflect on the recent appeal by the UN Secretary-General, António Guterres, for the pandemic to become an opportunity to end conflicts and achieve a global ceasefire.
The only war we should all wage together, he said, is against COVID-19.
His appeal found response from over 70 states and organizations, and also from opposing sides in conflict zones.
As the International Olympic Truce Centre, we embraced from the very first moment the initiative of the Federation of Olympia regarding The Route of Truce.
We have supported an effort that does not have merely local characteristics, although it seeks to highlight an area believed to have been followed in ancient times by participants in the Olympic Games, having first laid down their weapons.
Your effort, however—one for which I congratulate all contributors, with special mention to Sofia Kontogianni and her team—gained international resonance from the first year.
Thank you again, with the conviction that by joining forces we will be able to achieve much more, with the Olympic Games of 2021 on the horizon.”
The honorary plaque to the former Prime Minister was presented by the Board of the Federation of Olympia.
Former Minister and Vice President of the International Olympic Truce Centre, Ms. Fani Palli-Petralia, was honored for her longstanding contribution to Olympism and Sport. Congratulating the organizers in her greeting, she emphasized that “Olympic principles and values are not only athletic; they are universal and timeless values, and they unite people beyond race, religion and color—values humanity needs in order to move forward into the future.”
When we speak of “Fair Play”, every athlete’s mind goes to Spyros Gianniotis, who, through his stance at the 2016 Olympic Games, taught us what responsibility and respect for the rules truly mean.
He is an outstanding athlete with significant achievements and many medals. Two moments remain in our memory: his refusal to contest with an objection for the gold medal—respecting the rules of the competition—after he failed to touch the finish bar properly, which cost him the gold; and his moving apology to the Greek people at the 2012 Olympics in London, when he believed he could have achieved a better placing than 4th.
After presenting awards to Ms. Fani Palli-Petralia, Vice President of the International Olympic Truce Centre, and to the Olympic open-water swimmer Spyros Gianniotis, the Minister of the Interior Mr. Takis Theodorikakos stressed that the effort of the Federation of Olympia deserves support. Addressing Ms. Palli-Petralia, he described her as a “great lady of culture and sport, whose value is recognized across parties”, while he called Spyros Gianniotis a “Golden Greek”, the very definition of “fair play”, and wished that all Greek children would follow his example.
Among other things, Mr. Theodorikakos said: “Thank you for giving the Ministry of the Interior the opportunity to place your effort under its auspices. Congratulations for your consistent, long-term work. Let’s be honest: the struggle you are waging is a struggle against realism, because all these wonderful ideological and value-based frameworks come to mind every four years before the Olympic Games, and we end up having to beg someone not to bomb a region, at least during the Games. Even so, however, it is something important. It is worth supporting, worth offering ideas and values to young people.
Mr. Papandreou, I am very glad about what you said earlier. I believe that Greeks, in difficult times, did our best. Together we achieved it. With timely decisions, unity, democratic discipline, determination and solidarity, we achieved a lot—and united we can achieve even more in the future.
It is an honor for me to have the opportunity to honor the great lady of Greek sport and culture, Fani Palli-Petralia. She is an exceptionally creative person; she is a Lady with a capital L; a remarkable person who has offered so much to Greek sport and Olympic ideals, and her value is now recognized overall and across parties.
I want to say a huge thank you to Spyros Gianniotis, this remarkable young man. Spyros, you are forever a ‘golden’ Greek; you are the definition of ‘fair play’. May our children—every Greek child—be like you.
I believe Greeks are a dignified people, and you have emerged from this people—an illuminating and golden example that will shine forever. You did something unprecedented, and alongside ‘fair play’, of which you are the definition, you also told us something else: Never give up, never stop.”
Ioannis Melissanidis, the Olympian who made us all cry with pride at the Atlanta Olympic Games, winning Greece’s first gold medal in the floor exercises with 9.850 points—touching perfection and forcing even his opponents to applaud him.
At the age of 16, he donated the gold European medal he won in Prague to the family of his late Turkish teammate Murat Kanbas. With this act, Ioannis Melissanidis became an outstanding ambassador of “Fair Play”, proving that sport unites. The gold Olympian was honored by the Deputy Minister of Sports, Mr. Lefteris Avgenakis.
In his greeting, Mr. Melissanidis, visibly moved, referred to his friendship with his Turkish teammate and to the promise he made to himself when he learned of his death: that if he won the European Championship, he would give the medal to Murat Kanbas’ mother.
Mr. Melissanidis was honored by the Deputy Minister of Sports, Mr. Lefteris Avgenakis.
Valerios Leonidis gave us one of the most historic titanic battles in sports. His contests at the Atlanta Olympics, where he won the silver medal—especially his duel with Turkey’s Naim Süleymanoğlu in the 60 kg and 64 kg categories—went down in the history of weightlifting worldwide, as they successively broke five world records. After that thrilling contest, a strong friendship grew between Valerios and Turkey’s “Pocket Hercules”. When Süleymanoğlu passed away prematurely in November 2017, Valerios attended the funeral. His gesture of bowing before the coffin of his great rival and dear friend became headline news in Turkey and was broadcast worldwide—because Valerios Leonidis proved that sport can break down borders, politics, and religious or national rivalries.
Deputy Minister of Education Ms. Sofia Zacharaki, referring to the honoring of Valerios Leonidis, spoke about the strength of the Greek Olympian’s spirit, emphasizing that whoever discovers such inner strength realizes that they can lift not just a bar—but the whole world.
Among other things, she said: “Values such as ‘fair play’ remind us that the true winner is not only the one who stands on the podium, but also the one who, while striving for distinction, serves through example and ethos the universal values of the athletic and Olympic ideal—both on the field of play and beyond it.
Today’s award focuses on Valerios Leonidis as a person: the athlete who conveyed, in a way both moving and unforgettable, the spirit of ‘fair play’.
That scene will never leave our minds: November 2017—Valerios attends the funeral of his fellow athlete Naim Süleymanoğlu, who in the titanic battle of the Atlanta Olympics in 1996, where world records were being shattered one after another, won the gold medal while Valerios won the silver. Valerios kneels before Naim’s coffin and offers a final kiss to the former opponent—yet above all a fellow human and friend.
It is one of those moments that remain etched in collective memory and uniquely capture the power of sport to unite people and nations. And with that gesture, Valerios entered history as a symbol of this power—a power of the soul, which, when found within, allows a person to lift not merely a bar, but the entire world.
And for this reason, it is a great honor and joy for me to present the ‘fair play’ award to the athlete—and above all the human being—Valerios Leonidis.”
Due to commitments abroad, the President of the Hellenic Olympic Committee and Greek IOC member Mr. Spyros Kapralos was unable to attend the event and his award.
Mr. Georgios Patoulis, Regional Governor of Attica, was honored for his continuous support of the Federation of Olympia’s initiatives aimed at strengthening Olympism. The award was presented to Mr. Patoulis by Deputy Minister of Sports L. Avgenakis.
In his greeting, Mr. Patoulis warmly thanked the organizers for the honor and noted:
“We honor and support initiatives that convey a symbolic and meaningful message to all citizens and to people of sport—the message of Fair Play. It is our duty to create together the conditions that will shape a culture passing on to our children rules that say: I play fairly, I play clean, I respect the other person’s view, my teammates and my opponents.
The Region of Attica will continue to stand by organizations that contribute substantially and effectively to the dissemination and internationalization of Olympic values. Our goal is also to undertake further initiatives that promote dialogue, reconciliation, mutual understanding, solidarity and peace, which are the core Olympic ideals. As Local Government, we must highlight the spirit of humanism and culture—the Olympic spirit—which has been a timeless foundation of Western civilization. It is our duty to the younger generations.”
Curator Ms. Annita Patsouraki thanked all artists for their participation and dedicated her award to them for taking part in this multi-year effort and for promoting the ideas of Truce through their work.
Ms. Patsouraki was honored by Olympian and President of the Hellenic Olympians Association Ms. Evi Moraitidou, and Cyclades MP Ms. Aikaterini Monogyiou.
The visual artists who participated in the “FAIR PLAY” art exhibition were: Άγγελος, Πασχάλης Αγγελίδης, Μίνα Βαλυράκη-Παπαθεοδώρου, Άκης Βασιλόπουλος, Εριέττα Βορδώνη, Μάριος Βουτσινάς, Πηνελόπη Γαΐτη, Σπύρος Γεώργας, Κωστής Γεωργίου, Βασίλης Γκίζας, Χαράλαμπος Γκούμας, Όλγα Γουλανδρή, Γιάννης Γουρζής, Δημοσθένης Δαββέτας, Εύα Διβάρη, Κώστας Ευαγγελάτος, Πέτρος Ζουμπουλάκης, Μαρία Καλατζή, Εβίτα Κανέλλου, Kelly, Κωνσταντίνος Κερεστετζής, Αγγέλικα Κοροβέση, Μάγδα Κούρκουλου, Μαρία Κτιστοπούλου, Απόστολος Λάβδας, Γρηγόρης Λαγός, Κυριάκος Λαζαρίδης, Έλλη Λυραράκη, Jose Oriol Martinez (Consul of Cuba), Ηλ. Ματθαιόπουλος, Δημήτρης Μηλιώνης, Αντρέας Μητρόπουλος, Βαγγέλης Μήτσου, Στέλλα Μιμίκου, Μιχάλης Μιναριτζόγλου, Αλέξανδρος Μουστάκας, Βαγγέλης Μουστάκας, Νάντια Μπαράκου, Γιώργος Ξενούλης, Αλεξάνδρα Παλάσκα, Άγγελος Παναγιωτίδης, Αλέξανδρος Παπακωνσταντίνου, Νίκος-Γιώργος Παπουτσίδης, Ρούλα Πάππας-Τσιώτα, Ιωάννα Παρασκευά, Αλτιίν Πατσέλης, Γιώργος Ρούσσης, Γιώργος Σαμαράς, Παύλος Σάμιος, Παναγιώτης Σιάγκρης, Κώστας Σπυριούνης, Γιώργος Σταθόπουλος, Δημήτρης Ταλαγάνης, Άγγελος Τζιάρα, Γιώργος Τουρκοβασίλης, Δημήτρης Φόρτσας, Δημήτρης Χριστογιάννης, Ποτουρίδης Σταύρος (with a collection of memorabilia), Ζωή Σαββίνα (poetic–visual intervention).
The awards concluded with honors presented to AMKE AIGEAS and OPAP, supporters of the Federation of Olympia’s initiatives.
During the event, young kindergarten pupils from Ancient Olympia recited poems by Olympic Education teacher Dr. Ileana Klokoni: “Hand in Hand” by pupil Vasiliki Kladi and “Sacred Purpose” by pupil Paraskevas Flessas. The children were coached by kindergarten teacher Ms. Anna Papaioannou.
The event closed with Dr. of Philosophy Fotis Christou performing an excerpt from “Mythistorema” by Giorgos Seferis.
The awards were created by the exceptional sculptor Mr. Evangelos Moustakas (creator of the Alexander the Great statue on the Thessaloniki seafront).
Among those attending were: Minister of the Interior Mr. Takis Theodorikakos, former Prime Minister Mr. George Papandreou, Deputy Ministers of Culture & Sports Mr. Lefteris Avgenakis and of Education Ms. Sofia Zacharaki, Cyclades MP Ms. Aikaterini Monogyiou, the Ambassador of Japan Mr. Yasuhiro SHIMIZU with his wife Ms. Yoshimi SHIMIZU, Cultural Attaché Ms. Chiori Shintani, the Consul of Cuba Mr. Jose Oriol Marrrero Martinez (who also participated in the exhibition with photographs), the representative of Ms. Fofi Gennimata (PASOK President & Head of the Movement for Change), MP Mr. Dimitris Konstantopoulos, the Secretary General for Public Order Konstantinos Tsouvalas, the Mayor of Ancient Olympia Giorgos Georgiopoulos and Deputy Mayor for Technical Works Panag. Flessas, Dim. Kostarias (President of the Municipal Welfare Enterprise of Ancient Olympia), on behalf of the Hellenic Police the Commander of Y.F.A.A., Olympian in freestyle wrestling Heraklis Deskoulidis, the national coordinator of #BEACTIVE Dion. Karakasis, the Director of Athens 9.84 Niki Arampatzi, and Olympians: (award recipients) Spyros Gianniotis, Valerios Leonidis, Ioannis Melissanidis, and Stelios Mygiakis, as well as Pigi Devetzi, Voula Kozompoli (President of HSOA), Evi Moraitidou (President of the Hellenic Olympians Association), Dimitris Papanikolaou, Paralympian Giannis Kostakis, TAE KWON DO World Champion Maria Karpathaki, Sailing World Champion Konstantinos Tsigkaras, Deputy Director of the International Olympic Truce Centre Dora Palli, the President of the “Friends of the War Museum” and members Giorgos Tsoukalas and Giorgos Manikas, painter Thodoros Manolidis, art dealer Liana Skourli, President of the Eurasian Association Xenofon Lamprakis, publisher Dimitris Arnaoutis, Professor Ioanna Mastora, museologist Angelos Dendrinos, philology professor Aphrodite Gkenakou, criminologist Maria Kyriakopoulou, director Maria Tsaroucha (Member of the Union of Greek Physicists), friends of culture and sport, musician Alexandros Chachalis, and lawyers Dim. Chatzimichalis and Dim. Valasis.
The event was moderated and presented by journalists Chrysa Roumelioti and Spiridoula Irida Spanea.
The art exhibition and awards, as well as all actions scheduled for 2020 within the framework of the “Route of Truce 2020”, are organized by the Federation of Olympia, with co-organizers the Regions of Attica and Western Greece, the Municipalities of Ilida, Pyrgos and Ancient Olympia; Support Partner: the International Olympic Truce Centre; Institutional Support Bodies: the Municipality of Athens and the Municipality of Sparta; under the auspices of the Ministries of National Defence, Culture & Sports, Interior and Tourism; of the International Military Sports Council (CISM); the Hellenic Olympic Committee; the International Olympic Academy; GNTO; ETHNOA; the Hellenic Olympians Association; Technical Support Body: the Supreme Council for Sports in the Armed Forces (ASAED); and the Athens War Museum; with the support of #BEACTIVE; and media sponsors including ERT, Proto Programma, ERA SPORT, ERT Patras, ERT Pyrgou, the Panhellenic Sports Press Association (PSAT), RunningNews.gr, Athens 9.84, apopseis.gr, OVI magazine, GreekTeachers, Polis magazino.
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