Aris Anagnos – Honorary Cultural Counselor of the
Greek Consulate in Los Angeles

ARIS ANAGNOS
Honorary Cultural Counselor
Of The Greek Consulate General Of LOS ANGELES

July 23, 2002

To whom it May Concern:

As the Honorary Cultural Counselor of the Greek Consulate of Los Angeles I wish to add support to the concept of creating an Olympia Monument, such as an obelisk, A temple or a wall etc., where the names of all the Olympic winners from antiquity to the present would be carved in marble.

This idea would greatly benefit the concept of the Olympic games, since it would show the continuity of the games from the times of antiquity to this day. It would also Greatly benefit Greece because of the publicity generated by the visit of the Olympic Winners to Olympia and the ceremony of carving their names in Pendelic Marble.

Currently, at the end of the games, Greece is forgotten until the Greek delegation leads the athlete’s parade at the next Olympics. The proposed ceremony at Olympia Will keep Greece in the forefront also at the end of the games.

The monument could also be tied in to the idea of the Olympic Truce, which has generated much favorable international publicity for Greece.

Mr. Makis Havadjias, a prominent Greek Cypriot American and leader in the Los Angeles Greek Community who originated the idea, believes that he has secured Commitments for the financing of the project; therefore, no appropriation of funds from the Greek government or the Olympic Committee is required. The Mayor of Olympia, George Aidonis, the member of Parliament from the area Takis Antonakopoulos and other local leaders have expressed their support for the project. We are asking for the support of the Ministry of Athletics, the Ministry of Culture and the Greek Olympic Committee so that the support of the I.O.C. may also be obtained.

Your support of this exciting idea will be greatly appreciated.

Sincerely,
Aris Anagnos