Golf has started proceedings at the 5th Oceania Pan Hellenic Games, seeing young Greek Australians teeing up for their chance at glory.
Today hundreds of people will descend to Gold Creek Country Club in Canberra to follow a riveting match of golf. The best Greek Australians in the country will be given two chances to show their skills, competing for the Pan Hellenic title this week and traveling to Melbourne for the Australian Hellenic Golf Open the following week.
As an opening highlight to the games, a special veterans exhibition football match will be played, pitting some of the best players from NSW and the ACT. The match is a testament to the popularity of the sport in the Greek community.
Football has the lion share of athletes competing, with 16 teams taking to the pitch tomorrow.
Both women and mens teams will be starting their preliminary matches, with the deciding finals played tomorrow.
This year, the Pan Hellenic Games will see over 700 athletes compete in seven sports, including football, swimming, basketball, track and field and tennis.
All states except Western Australia and Tasmania will have athletes participating, with NSW, Victoria and Canberra making up the bulk of participants.
The unique thing about the Pan Hellenic Games is that each athlete doesn’t need to stick to one sport, with many picking up a second a third to try their hand at.
Saturday will see finals played for basketball, tennis, swimming and all track and field sports. As part of the festivities, the Greek community of Canberra will be joining forces with other Greek organisations and putting on festive event during the weekend.
The Hellenic Club will be hosting a special after party for the older athletes tonight, while a big paniyiri on Sunday is being organised to close the event.
The Games are an initiative by the World Council of Greeks Abroad of Oceania (SAE) and is mostly funded by generous members of the Greek community and Government grants.
President of SAE, George Angelopoulos, has seen the games get bigger and better over the years to become a benchmark of Hellenic sport in Australia.
“We started 10 years ago, every year it’s getting better and better with more athletes participating, we don’t always have the money to make bigger games,” he tells Neos Kosmos.
“We survive as SAE Oceania, because the government in Greece doesn’t help, for the previous one and the one in 2009, we have to rely on the Greek community in Australia.”
The location and timing of the games this year also coincides with Canberra’s centenary celebrations.
SAE noted just how important Canberra is to the Greek Australian story, saying the capital owes its thanks to the many Greeks who helped build it.
In terms of spectators, the Games won’t be short, with many people making the trip, and the organizers preparing buses from Sydney to bring people up. Over 180 athletes from Melbourne will be making the trip.
For more information and for the program list, visit www.canberra2013.com.au
