Apostolos Nikolaidis (athlete) facts for kids
Nikolaidis with Panathinaikos in 1922
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| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Apostolos Nikolaidis | ||
| Date of birth | 19 April 1896 | ||
| Place of birth | Plovdiv, Bulgaria | ||
| Date of death | 15 October 1980 (aged 84) | ||
| Place of death | Athens, Greece | ||
| Position(s) | Defender, midfielder | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1914–1928 | Panathinaikos | ||
| International career‡ | |||
| 1920 | Greece | 1 | (0) |
| Managerial career | |||
| 1923–1927 | Panathinaikos | ||
| 1929 | Greece | ||
| 1934–1935 | Greece | ||
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 14 June 2024 ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 14 June 2024 |
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Apostolos Nikolaidis (Greek: Απόστολος Νικολαΐδης; 19 April 1896 – 15 October 1980) was a famous Greek athlete, football manager, and businessman. He was a very important leader and president of the Panathinaikos A.O. sports club.
A Life of Sports and Leadership
Apostolos Nikolaidis was born in Plovdiv, Bulgaria. He was part of the Greek community there. After finishing school at Robert College in Istanbul, he moved to Thessaloniki. There, he competed as an athlete for Aris.
In 1917, he moved to Athens and joined the Panathinaikos club. He was an amazing athlete! He was good at many sports, like decathlon (which combines ten different track and field events), football, basketball, and volleyball. He was even a successful racing driver.
Nikolaidis was so talented that he was part of the Greek team at the 1920 Summer Olympics. He competed in both football and track events. He played football for over ten years. He also helped all the different sports teams at Panathinaikos. Later, he became the manager of the Greece national football team.
Leading Sports Organizations
Nikolaidis held many important leadership roles in Greek sports. From 1926 to 1927, he was chosen as the president of the Hellenic Football Federation. This organization manages football in Greece.
For more than twenty years, from 1945 to 1967, he was the president of the Hellenic Amateur Athletic Association. This group supports amateur athletes. He also led the Automobile and Touring Club of Greece.
For many decades, he was a board member of Panathinaikos A.C.. In 1974, he became the president of the club. He played a huge part in making Panathinaikos a successful club with many different sports, not just football.
From 1974 to 1976, he was also the president of the Hellenic Olympic Committee. This committee helps prepare Greek athletes for the Olympic Games. Besides sports, he was also a businessman. He owned a company called Softex.
Remembering Apostolos Nikolaidis
When Apostolos Nikolaidis passed away, he was honored in a special way. Eight athletes from different Panathinaikos sports teams carried his coffin. These athletes included famous football players like Ikonomopoulos, Kamaras, and Antoniadis.
In 1981, the home stadium of Panathinaikos, located on Alexandras Avenue, was named after him. It is now called the Apostolos Nikolaidis Stadium. This was a big ceremony led by the Prime Minister at the time, Georgios Rallis. It was a lasting tribute to his incredible contributions to Greek sports.
