ROUTE OF TRUCE 2021 - Ήλιδα - Ολυμπία: To Μονοπάτι της Εκεχειρίας

Route of Truce 2021 – Sunday, September 19, 2021, 6:15

Adapted to the new reality imposed by the conditions of the pandemic, the 6^th Route of Truce took place successfully on Sunday, with several international participants, from Ancient Ilida (the host city of the Olympic Games) to Ancient Olympia (the sacred site where the Games were held), with the residents of the fire-affected villages proving that hospitality is a way of life.

Alongside the Route of Truce, two more routes were held, honoring the pioneers of the Truce, which was a prerequisite for the ancient Olympic Games. The Route of Ifitos, honoring the King of Ilida, Ifitos, from the village of Ilida to the Old Museum at the Archaeological Site (distance 2 km), which was run by children from Primary School and Middle School. And the Route of Kleosthenis, from Ancient Pisa to Ancient Olympia (5 km race), honoring the King of Ancient Pisa, Kleosthenis (the third who signed the Truce was the King of Sparta, Lycurgus).

The participation of runners (Greeks and athletes from ten more countries) showed that the message of the Truce is strong and must be strengthened even further under today’s difficult and special circumstances.

The start for the “Route of Truce 2021” was given on Sunday, September 19, 2021, at 6:15 in the morning from Ancient Ilida, and the finish took place in Ancient Olympia at approximately 4:30 in the afternoon.

Approximately 200 runners took part. Of particular importance for the meaning and value of the Truce was the delegation of soldier-runners from Palestine, as well as members of CISM from Hungary, Lithuania and Brazil. Runners from Germany and the Netherlands also participated.

Wishing to honor a person whose effort went beyond ordinary human limits and was recorded in the Guinness World Records, the event appointed as leader of the Route of Truce Spyros Chrysikopoulos, who swam 350 km in a pool in seven days (100 more than the previous record holder). He was followed by Squadron Leader Jefferson Martinez Motzardin Couto (from Brazil), as an envoy of the Secretariat of the International Military Sports Council (CISM).

The 50 km route starts from Ancient Ilida, passes through 13 villages of semi-mountainous Ilia (Dafni, Keramidia, Dafniotissa, Peristeri, Cheimadio, Sopi, Karatoula, Magoula, Latzoi, Herakleia, Pournari, Pelopio, Platanos) and ends in Olympia.

Residents and associations of the areas the runners passed through welcomed them, as every year but with strict observance of the health protocols, offering them local delicacies.

The Route of Truce does not have a competitive character and unique numbered medals were awarded to everyone who successfully completed the entire 50 km route, as it is the organizers’ belief that completing this difficult route reflects the difficulty of reaching the longed-for peace through truce—something our ancestors achieved, since observing the Truce was a decisive condition for participating in the Olympic Games of antiquity.

As is well known, before the Olympic Games of antiquity the Truce was proclaimed. Athletes entering the Kingdom of Ilida laid down their weapons at the borders, and for one month in Ilida they trained together and followed a common diet. After the first assessment by the judges, the athletes, the Hellanodikai, the priests, etc., proceeded in procession from Ancient Ilida to Ancient Olympia for the celebration of the Games.

The organizing committee warmly thanks the residents and associations of the villages along the route who, under these difficult conditions for everyone, proved that hospitality lies at the heart of the local communities. All community presidents, as well as the Mayor of Pyrgos, Mr. Takis Antonakopoulos, together with his associate Giorgos Karastergios and adviser Charalambos Karantonis, and the Deputy Mayor of Ancient Olympia, Mr. Charis Spiliopoulos, were there to welcome the runners.

THE OPENING CEREMONY

On Saturday, September 18, 2021, the opening ceremony of Route of Truce 2021 took place in Ancient Ilida.

The event began with the national anthem of Greece and that of the International Military Sports Council (CISM).

Greetings were then delivered by the President of the Federation of Olympia, Ms. Sofia Hintziou Kontogianni, and the CISM Board Member and Director of the Supreme Council for Sports of the Armed Forces (ASAED), Captain Spyridon Andriopoulos.

Ms. Kontogianni referred to the need to establish the Truce as an Olympic value also in the modern Olympic Games and stressed: We are here to walk the Route of Truce, in an effort to remind that in the modern world we live in, all of us who believe in Olympism and the values it represents must highlight the fundamental Olympic value—the value of the Truce that leads to the longed-for peace.

Each of you who participates in the Route of Truce is an informal messenger of the Truce in the modern era.

Mr. Andriopoulos emphasized that this year the Route of Truce has been included in the “Sports and Peace” program of the International Military Sports Council (CISM), and that athletes from CISM member countries Hungary, Palestine, Lithuania and Greece, as well as the representative of the CISM General Secretariat, participated in the event.

Messages from the Deputy Minister of Culture and Sports, Mr. Lefteris Avgenakis, and the Governor of Attica, Mr. G. Patoulis, were read. Greetings were delivered by the Deputy Governor for Agricultural Development, Mr. Theodoros Vasilopoulos, as representative of the Governor of Western Greece, and the Deputy Mayor responsible for Agricultural Development, Tourism Development and Employment Support, Mr. Thanasis Georgopoulos, as representative of the Mayor of Ilida.

During the ceremony, Ms. Zoi Paraskeopoulou from Lechaina was also honored—Silver Olympic medalist in the mixed team event at the Youth Olympic Games held in Singapore. The mixed team event is an innovation with mixed gender and country. Zoi was accompanied by the Slovenian RAJHGREGOR.

Finally, an honorary plaque was presented to Spyros Chrysikopoulos and to the representative of the CISM General Secretariat, Squadron Leader Jefferson Martinez Motzardin Couto, who led the Route of Truce 2021.

Present were the heads of the Armed Forces teams of Hungary, Colonel Gavlik Peter; of Lithuania, Captain Modestas Lapienis; of Palestine, Brigadier Amal Khalil; of Greece, Lieutenant Colonel Sotirios Anyfantis; as well as the representative of the CISM General Secretariat, Squadron Leader Jefferson Martinez Motzardin Couto, together with the members of their delegations.

The event concluded with a concert by the band Banda Morena and with local treats offered by the Ancient Ilida Association, Ancient Ilida, and the Cultural Association of Kalyvia Ilidas “Ilida”.

The event was supported by numerous institutional supporters.
It is organized by the Federation of Olympia and co-organized with the Region of Western Greece, the Municipalities of Ilida, Pyrgos and Ancient Olympia, the Supreme Council for Sports of the Armed Forces (ASAED), the International Olympic Truce Center as a cooperating support body, and is held under the auspices of the Ministries of National Defence, Culture & Sports – GGA, Interior, Rural Development and Food, and Tourism, the Region of Attica, the International Military Sports Council (CISM), the Hellenic Olympic Committee (HOC), the International Olympic Academy (IOA), the Greek National Tourism Organisation (GNTO), the Panhellenic Association of Sports Journalists (PSAT), the Union of Olympians, the Association of Greek Olympians, with the participation of #BEACTIVE, volunteer support from the Hellenic Scouts and E.O.PY.D., and media sponsors ERT 3, ERT Pyrgos, Athens 9.84, RunningNews.gr, Ovi, apopseis.gr, GreekTeachers and others.

The organizers warmly thank our Official Supporters for their support: GNTO, AVANCErentacar, AIGEAS AMKE, LOUX, Krinos, Fargeco, Ethniki Asfalistiki, and our supporters–suppliers: bioilis, IL.VI.GAL. KALOMOIRIS, Enosi Agroton Ilia IKE, Agricultural Cooperative of Koryfi, the countless volunteers from all the villages along the Route of Truce, the Volunteer Samaritans, Rescuers and Lifeguards Corps of the Regional Branch of the Hellenic Red Cross in Amaliada, the doctors Eirini Christodoulou and Panagiotis Bourlidis and the volunteer doctors who supported them, the tireless and always supportive Mr. Spyros Tzoulekis and Pyrgos municipal councillor Mr. Vasilis Sotiropoulos, the EKAV crew and the Hellenic Police, whose traffic police officers were tirelessly alongside the runners throughout all our activities.

All actions of the Route of Truce were carried out with the approval of the health protocol by the General Secretariat of Sports (GGA) of the Ministry of Culture and Sports.

Among those attending the events were the Deputy Governor for Agricultural Development, Mr. Theodoros Vasilopoulos; the Mayor of Ancient Olympia, Mr. G. Georgiopoulos; the Mayor of Pyrgos, Mr. Takis Antonakopoulos; the Deputy Mayor of Ancient Olympia, Mr. Charis Spiliopoulos; the Deputy Mayor of Pyrgos, Mr. Babis Karantonis; the Deputy Mayor of Ilida, Mr. Thanasis Georgopoulos; former MP and Minister Mr. Giorgos Kontogiannis; the Dean of the University of the Peloponnese, Mr. Takis Alexopoulos; the associate of the Mayor of Pyrgos, Mr. Giorgos Karastergios; deputy mayors, municipal councillors and presidents of municipal districts and organizations.

You can see the detailed health protocol HERE.