Anti-athletic Olympic Games
Despite the Greek government receiving more than generous funding from Evangelis Zappas, back in 1856, for Athens to host athletic Olympic Games at the Panathinaiko Stadium, in perpetuity, members of the Greek government, notably Trikoupis and Stephanos Dragoumis, were resoundingly against them being athletic games. Trikoupis preferred an agro-industrial Olympics instead. The Zappeion, built to honor Zappas, was intended, by Trikoupis, to host agro-industrial competitions. Despite Trikoupis' anti-athletic politics, the Zappeion not only was the first indoor Olympic arena, hosting fencing in 1896, it also became the first Olympic Village in 1906. Coincidentally, Trikoupis died during the first week of the Athens 1896 Olympics.
Read more about this topic: Charilaos Trikoupis
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