Stylianos kyriakides biography of william

  • Stylianos Kyriakides

    Greek distance runner (–)

    For the Greek sailor, see Stylianos Kyriakidis.

    NationalityGreek Cypriot
    Born15 January
    Statos, near Paphos, Cyprus
    Died10 December (aged 77)
    SportAthletics
    Eventmarathon

    Stylianos "Stelios" Kyriakides (Greek: Στυλιανός «Στέλιος» Κυριακίδης; 15 January – 10 December ) was a Greek Cypriot marathon runner who came first at the Boston Marathon in , with the aim of raising money to provide food and shelter to the Greeks, who were experiencing severe poverty after the Second World War and Greek Civil War.

    Biography

    Kyriakides was born in the mountain village of Statos, near Paphos, Cyprus on 15 January

    The youngest of five children, born prematurely,[1] he left home to find work and help his poor farming family. Following a variety of jobs he ended up as a ‘house-boy’ for Dr Reginald Cheverton, a British medical officer.[2] (Cyprus was still under British rule at the time.) An athlete himself, Cheverton encouraged the year-old Kyriakides to start running, coached him, gave him his first running gear, and taught him to speak English.

    At his first Pan-Cyprian games in , Kyriakides won both the 1, and 10, metres on Friday, followed by both the 5, and 20, metres on Sunday. Hailed as a great talent, he was asked to run in the national championships in Greece, where he came first in the Marathon. Kyriakides finished second behind Bert Norris in the marathon event at the British AAA Championships.[3][4][5]

    Kyriakides competed for Greece in the Summer Olympics, placing eleventh.

    He was invited by his friend and fellow Berlin marathoner, Johnny Kelley, to participate in the Boston Marathon in the late s.

    Stylianos kyriakides Hailed as a great talent, he was asked to run in the national championships in Greece, where he came first in the Marathon. Kyriakides competed for Greece in the Summer Olympics , placing eleventh. His story has inspired generations of runners, and he is remembered as one of the greatest figures in the history of the Boston Marathon and American sport. His triumph evoked the glory of ancient Greece, while helping save the modern war-torn nation.

    On the day of the marathon, he wore new shoes, which injured his feet and caused him to drop out of the race. He took a taxi to the finish line, but told The Boston Globe, "Someday, I'm going to come back and win this race."[1]

    He returned to Greece, and survived the German occupation during World War II.

    Between and , Kyriakides was part of the Greek resistance. With the Greek Civil War raging, he returned to win the Boston Marathon. In order to get there, he had to sell his furniture, enabling him to buy a single ticket. According to a newspaper report[citation needed], he was running with Johnny Kelley near the end, when an old man shouted from the crowd, 'For Greece, for your children!', inspiring him to pull away and win the race in , the fastest marathon time of , and 14 minutes faster than his previous best time.[6] According to Life magazine, he shouted 'For Greece' as he crossed the finish line.[7] He begged America for its help—and Americans responded.

    When he returned to Greece, he arrived with 25, tons of supplies in American aid, including $, in cash.[8] Over one million Greeks from all over the country lined the streets of Athens to greet him. Johnny Kelley purchased the shoes that Stelios Kyriakides used in his victory.

    In , Kyriakides finished eighteenth in the Olympic marathon at the London Games.

    He died in Athens in

    A sculpture of Kyriakides called 'The Spirit of the Marathon' was unveiled in , at the 1-mile mark of the marathon in Hopkinton. It was commissioned by the Hopkinton Athletic Association and was dedicated in to mark the 60th anniversary of Kyriakides' victory in the race.

  • "The Stylianos Kyriakides Story - Winner of the 1946 Boston ...
  • Stelios Kyriakides - Logicom Marathon Cyprus
  • Biography – Stylianos Kyriakides
  • Stylianos Kyriakides - Wikiwand
  • Documentaries – Stylianos Kyriakides

    • 'The winner of the 50th Boston Marathon, Kyriakides used his victory as a call to action to aid his war and famine-ravaged homeland. Kyriakides, who narrowly escaped execution during World War II during the Nazi occupation of Greece, hadn't run in six years when he came to Boston in , with the help of Greek-American benefactors (George Demeter and Spear Demeter).

    He was emaciated from the lack of food in war-ravaged Greece, and at one point was told by doctors in Boston he wouldn't be allowed to run because they were afraid he would die in the streets. That backdrop only added to the almost mythic race performance, in which Kyriakides came on at the end to defeat the defending champion and set the best time in the world for Nearly a million people greeted him on his return to Athens in May , when he came back with boat loads of food, medicine, clothing and other essentials donated by Americans who read of his victory.'[9]

    The "Package Kyriakides"

    Following the Boston Marathon, Kyriakides stayed for about a month in America, gathering economic aid for Greece.

    Settings: This assistance was called " Package Kyriakides". In May , a year after his victory and as a result of the publicity that was given to the economic problems of Greece, as a result of the Boston Marathon, the US government send an amount called the Marshall Plan. Contents move to sidebar hide. When he returned to Greece, he arrived with 25, tons of supplies in American aid, including in cash.

    As his victory raised sympathy from Americans and Greeks, he eventually managed to reach an amount of Dollars while the Livanos family sent two ships with basic necessities (food, clothing and medicine). This assistance was called 'Package Kyriakides'.[10] In May , a year after his victory and as a result of the publicity given to the economic problems of Greece as a result of the Boston Marathon, the US government sent an amount of Dollars before the Marshall Plan.

    On 23 May , Kyriakides returned to Greece, where about one million Greeks greeted him as a hero. Then, a formal ceremony was held at the Temple of Zeus, where Kyriakides stating 'I am proud to be Greek', which moved the crowd.

    For the first time since the Nazi's Occupation, the Acropolis was illuminated in his honor. Read Edit View history. Nevertheless, Kyriakides ran and won the Marathon. He begged America for its help and they responded.

    For the first time since the Nazi Occupation, the Acropolis was illuminated in his honor.

    Honours

    Overall, Stelios Kyriakides was a time winner in Pancyprian games (two in a marathon) and Greek champion 11 times (three in a marathon). In , in his first participation in the Balkan races, he finished second behind Romanian Gal.

    In in Zagreb he won the first gold medal out of six in the Balkan games (4 in a marathon). With the Greece national team scored a total of 36 best national performance and has participated in two Olympic Games in Berlin in and London in

    Stelios Kyriakides was awarded the Grand Cross of the Phoenix by King of the Greeks.

    He has also been honored for his contribution from the municipalities of Athens, Piraeus, Filothei, Patras, as well as the Governor of Massachusetts, the Olympic Committee of USA, and others. In the Sports Museum in Massachusetts there is a permanent exhibition in honor of Stelios Kyriakides, with the title 'Stylianos Kyriakides - Running for mankind'.

    In —after an award from the Athletic Federation of Hopkinton—the City of Hopkinton ( MA ) unveiled a statue called 'The Spirit of the Marathon' on the route of the Boston Marathon, one mile from the starting point.

    He begged America for its help and they responded. Lyriki performs Raymonda tale. In in Zagreb he won the first gold medal out of six in the Balkan games 4 in a marathon. Hailed as a great talent, he was asked to run in the national championships in Greece, where he came first in the Marathon.

    The sculpture presents Stelios Kyriakides running besides Spyros Louis, who shows him the way to victory. In , the statue was dedicated on the 60th anniversary of his victory. A copy of the same sculpture has been placed in the Municipality of Marathon in Greece.

    In he was commemorated by a stamp from the Cyprus post.[10]

    See also

    References

    1. ^ abThe Stylianos Kyriakides Story: NBC, 8 December , archived from the original on 17 December , retrieved 7 March
    2. ^Tsiotos, Nick; Dabilis, Andy ().

      Running with Pheidippides: Stylianos Kyriakides, the Miracle Marathoner (1st&#;ed.). Syracuse, NY: Syracuse University Press. pp.&#;20– ISBN&#;.

      Stylianos kyriakides biography of william In the Sports Museum in Massachusetts there is a permanent exhibition in honor of Stelios Kyriakides, with the title 'Stylianos Kyriakides - Running for mankind'. The exhibit, «Kyriakides… Running for the Human Race,» is to be inaugurated in conjunction with the presentation of the Greek edition of the book at the American College of Greece next Wednesday, April Greek distance runner — Article Talk.

      OCLC&#;

    3. ^"AAA titles". Daily Herald. 13 July Retrieved 16 January &#; via British Newspaper Archive.
    4. ^"Lovelock Beaten in Mile". Sports Argus. 13 July Retrieved 16 January &#; via British Newspaper Archive.
    5. ^"AAA, WAAA and National Championships Medallists".

      National Union of Track Statisticians. Retrieved 16 January

    6. ^Higgins, Bill. "Unsung hero". . Retrieved 7 March
    7. ^"Boston Marathon: Greek flies from Athens to win distance race". Life. Vol.&#;20, no.&#; 6 May p.&#;
    8. ^"Greek American Cancer Survivor Conquers World's Oldest Marathon".

      . 18 April Retrieved 7 March

    9. ^"Marathon Greece". . Retrieved 7 March
    10. ^ ab"Marathon runner Stelios Kyriakides". Cyprus Post.

    Sources

    • Nick Tsiotos and Andy Dabilis, Running With Pheidippides: Stylianos Kyriakides, the Miracle Marathoner (Syracuse University Press, ).
    • listing for Running With Pheidippides
    • [1] Documentary about Kyriakides that aired before the Closing Ceremonies to the Olympics in Athens.

    Video