Georgios Averof was a Greek merchant, resident in Egypt, who acquired enormous wealth as a trader in Alexandria. Averof’s donation of almost one million drachma for the excavation and rebuilding of the ancient Panathenaic stadium for the 1896 Games ensured that the first Modern Olympics were staged in an appropriate setting. A dedicated patriot, he had already given several schools and a military academy to the nation but as a man of a shy, retiring nature, he declined an invitation to be a guest at the Olympic Games that he had personally financed. His generosity was marked by the erection of a life-size statue that was unveiled shortly before the Games opened. His nephew Giorgios was a member of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) from 1926 to 1930.
Greece