Stefanos Tsitsipas continued his impressive start to 2021 on Tuesday with a 7-6(4), 7-5 victory against Egor Gerasimov in the first round of the ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament.
The second seed remained calm throughout the one-hour, 54-minute match, battling through the Belarusian’s hot patches to make the second round in Rotterdam for the second consecutive year.
“I had to play more consistently and also what I increased in the [key] moments was the speed of my ball, which felt kind of floppy before. He had a solid game, he was serving well at times. He wasn’t missing a lot, so it was difficult,” Tsitsipas said. “I think once I put in my head that I needed to fight and I [couldn’t] take [any] single moment for granted, things changed and I felt the confidence.”
Tsitsipas will next play Hubert Hurkacz, who defeated Frenchman Adrian Mannarino 6-3, 7-6(6) earlier in the day. The second seed leads the Polish No. 1 5-1 in their ATP Head2Head series, in which their past four meetings have gone to a deciding set.
Residents are demanding a western Sydney Mayor be sacked over “racist” and “offensive” comments, according to The Daily Telegraph.
However, Cumberland Mayor Steve Christou has called the petition with almost 11,000 signatures “insulting”.
The petition on change.org, which started almost one month ago, was created by a local Muslim woman who said she was “hurt and upset” after public statements were made by Clr Christou over a Cumberland mosque rejection.
In January, plans for a mosque in Factory St, Granville were dumped after Cumberland Council won an appeal against the development in the Land and Environment Court, arguing that the residents would be exposed to unreasonable noise and traffic.
On January 19, Clr Christou called the rejection for the 300-worshipper mosque a “fantastic win” on social media, and issued a press release that said the rejection “serves the greater betterment for the Granville community”.
The post received much scrutiny, with some calling his words “a disgrace” on social media.
He later told SBS Arabic24 he should have worded the Facebook post “better” and that he would help them find an alternative location for the mosque “that works well for everybody”.
The petition also cites Clr Christou’s criticism of a State Government coronavirus-exemption for Eid-al-Adha prayers organised for up to 400 people at the Auburn Gallipoli mosque in August last year.
People have commented on the petition, calling his behaviour “disgraceful”, “causing divide” among the Muslim community and “insulting the people”.
But the mayor said the petition was “grossly incorrect”.
The ‘Greece 2021’ committee on the bicentennial of the declaration of the Greek War of Independence announced on Monday they would donate 18 intensive care unit beds to the National Healthcare System.
The acquisition of the beds followed a tender for suppliers who are active in the field of ICU supplies and have proven experience and reputation in their field, the committee explained.
The donated ICUs are mobile and can be installed in containers or transferred to other hospitals in case of emergency.
President of the ‘Greece 2021’ Commitee, Angelopoulos-Daskalakis said the new ICUs will be delivered fully functioning, to immediately support the national health system and explained that the Committee will strive to use “every euro” of the money donated through their events and initiatives, for the common good.
Ministers of Health Vassilis Kikilias and Environment Costas Skrekas, have announced that the mobile ICU beds will be placed at Thessaloniki’s Papanikolaou Hospital.
In a video conference on Monday, Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis noted that the end of the pandemic crisis was now in sight and pointed out that vaccinations in Greece will soon exceed the one-million mark.
While acknowledging that the health system -especially in Attica- is under pressure and people fatigued from the ongoing lockdown, he appeared confident that the situation is being handled well.
Hundreds of people marched through central Athens on Tuesday evening to express their solidarity with a convicted terrorist whose health is failing after being on hunger strike for 54 days.
The protesters shouted slogans and held banners with the phrase “There should be no dead hunger striker,” referring to Dimitris Koufodinas, who stopped eating on January 8 to protest his transfer from a rural penitentiary in Volos to a high-security prison in central Greece.
He is serving 11 life sentences plus 25 years for his role as the main hitman in the terrorist group November 17. His protest has been linked to a spate of attacks and targeting of police stations and politicians.
Convicted terrorist Dimitris Koufodinas
SYRIZA MP remarks on terror group causes backlash
SYRIZA MP Thodoris Dritsas provoked a backlash on Tuesday after stating that the November 17 terror group, of which jailed terrorist Dimitris Koufodinas was a leading member, had not intimidated anyone.
“I do not think anyone has been intimidated by the actions of these organizations. No one has been intimidated by November 17. On the contrary, the Greek people have been terrorized by many other policies,” Dritsas told One TV, adding that the government’s stance toward Koufodinas, who is on a hunger strike to demand a prison transfer, is vindictive.
“The government is acting in a retaliatory and illegal manner because most of the victims of November 17 and Dimitris Koufodinas belonged to the right wing,” Dritsas said, while denouncing the government, claiming that it is not complying with the law.
In response, ruling New Democracy called on SYRIZA leader Alexis Tsipras to take a stand on the statements by Dritsas, calling them “inadmissible for a representative of a parliamentary party.”
*Source: With information from Kathimerini, Reuters
Just over three weeks from taking the reins at Fronditha Care, CEO Faye Spiteri Tsolakis, has made vital inroads in recalibrating the organisation, with a focus on ensuring sustainability and an eye to future growth. In collaboration with the Board of Directors and Executive team, she is progressing a longer-term strategy for framing the way forward to turnaround the business and realign operational plans to sustain success into the future.
Spiteri Tsolakis said: “Fronditha Care is shaping the future of the organisation and its service delivery, securing financial viability and sustainability whilst maintaining the highest standards of clinical care and care oversight.”
Spiteri Tsolakis noted, given the 2019/2020 deficit, it was critical to take immediate action and review the entire organisation’s operations to look for efficiencies. This included a review of workforce costs alongside all other expenditure.
The first stage of the change process began with an organisational restructure at a corporate level. Spiteri Tsolakis said: “This decision was not taken lightly but it was important to review how we function. Importantly, we made a deliberate decision to lessen the impact on service delivery and stayed true to our service promise with no reduction in numbers of staff across community or residential services.”
Spiteri Tsolakis continued: “In consultation with Residential Managers, we reviewed and changed our master rosters across all facilities and adjusted these with regard to each facility.
In concluding remarks, Spiteri Tsolakis said: “Change is sometimes hard to accept but it’s a constant in life and we need to rise to our responsibilities and ensure Fronditha Care gets through this difficult time to become a bigger and better organisation. The Board, Executive and I have accepted the challenges we face head on because we know it is incumbent on us to be the agents of change that will see the organisation thrive once more.
The Board and I want to reassure the community that we will continue to provide the highest standards of clinical care – as that is the reason for our being. We will also continue to support the health, safety and wellbeing of our staff because they are the backbone of Fronditha Care. In tandem, we are reframing our financial performance and have taken this tough course of action now to ensure we are here in service of the community for at least another 44 years.”
Dimitrios Jim Krallidis’ family-run business, DSK Kitchens and Furniture, has been named as a finalist in this year’s Ethnic Business Awards. These awards recognise the outstanding accomplishments of migrant and Indigenous entrepreneurs.
Mr Krallidis tells The Greek Herald that he’s ‘very happy’ to be an award finalist, as it is a recognition of all his achievements ever since he arrived in Australia from the Greek island of Mytilini in 1969.
“When I arrived in Australia with my parents at 14 years of age, I was already in the trade because I worked in Greece as a furniture maker from the age of nine,” Mr Krallidis says.
“I didn’t know any English though, but I was hard working. Instead of going to clubs and playing poker, I was concentrating on cabinet making. I just wanted to do better.”
The 67-year-old business man quickly put his experience to good use and took a job at a Jewish-owned cabinet making business, where he went from foreman to general foreman to production manager within 10 years.
Later, Mr Krallidis moved into insulation work as a subcontractor for three years, followed by a successful business partnership with some friends. In 1992, he decided to start his own business with his wife and two sons, called DSK Kitchens and Furniture.
“Everything we do is custom made with individual designs. Most of our work incorporates kitchens, laundries, wardrobes and study rooms,” Mr Krallidis says proudly.
“We also have a factory with a fully computerised and operational system, as well as one of the most upgraded showrooms in Sydney.”
With such a successful building career under his belt, it’s no surprise then that Mr Krallidis has no plans to slow down any time soon.
“I’m a very proud Greek but I’m also a very proud Australian. I live and work here and I’m very happy to have achieved what I have together with my family. And I still have good strength and power to continue for years to come,” Mr Krallidis says.
The 32nd Ethnic Business Awards will be available to view on Facebook Live, SBS, NITV or Aurora. Date is To Be Confirmed.
We take a look back at the incredible life achievements of Greece’s first ‘Masterchef’ and teacher of cooking and confectionery, Nikolaos Tselementes.
Early Life:
Nikolaos Tselementes was born in 1878 in the village of Exabela in Sifnos and grew up in Athens, where he finished high school. Initially, he worked as a notary and then as a cook, working in his uncle’s restaurant. He studied cooking for a year in Vienna and on his return, worked as a chef in various embassies.
Career as a Chef:
Greece’s first ‘Masterchef’ and teacher of cooking and confectionery, Nikolaos Tselementes.
Nikolaos became famous with the magazine “Cooking Guide,” which began publishing in 1910 and contained recipes, dietary advice, international cuisine and news about cooking.
In 1919, he became the director of the “Hermes” hotel. The following year he left for America, where he worked in some of the most expensive restaurants in the world, while also studying cooking, confectionery and diet.
In April 1926, Nikolaos’ book “Cooking and Confectionery Guide” was published, making it the first complete cooking guide in Greece. The book was a great success and was reprinted more than fifteen times in the following decades.
Nikolaos returned permanently to Athens and founded a small school of cooking and confectionery. In 1950, he published a book in Greek about Greek cooking called “Greek Cookery.”
Nikolaos was heavily influenced by French cuisine.
Influenced by French cuisine, Nikolaos was a moderniser of Greek cuisine, as through him Greek housewives learned béchamel, pirozhki and bouillabaisse, which according to some was tantamount to falsifying Greek cuisine.
Death and Legacy:
Nikolaos died on March 2, 1958 in Athens, at the age of 80. His name is now synonymous with cooking guides, and is also used as a joke to someone who knows how to cook very well.
Honoring his memory and contribution to Greek gastronomy, the journalist, playwright and academic, Spyros Melas, dedicated a commendation to him in the newspaper “Eleftheria” in the issue of March 5, 1958.
Alleged Kingston Hotel murderer, Kerry Kourpanidis, will soon learn whether prosecutors will push on with a murder charge over the bashing death of tradie, Warren Hordpenko.
Mr Kourpanidis, 35, briefly faced the ACT Magistrates Court on Monday, where he has previously pleaded not guilty to Mr Hordpenko’s murder.
The court heard Mr Kourpanidis’ legal team had written to prosecutors since the case was last in court and that prosecutors will respond this month.
The courts have repeatedly heard Mr Kourpanidis’ lawyers have been locked in negotiations with prosecutors about whether they might accept a guilty plea to a lesser charge of manslaughter.
Ever since Mr Kourpanidis first appeared in court, his lawyers have argued that manslaughter, rather than murder, was a more appropriate charge for prosecutors to lay.
A painted wall of Greek Revolution heroes, including Theodoros Kolokotronis, Laskarina Bouboulina and Grigorios Papaflessas, has been vandalised by graffitti in Argyroupoli, Greece.
The faces of the heroes, which had been painted by Greek artist Evrutos to mark the bicentenary anniversary of the 1821 Greek Revolution, were covered by black paint, including on the eyes and mouths.
The wall of Greek heroes has been vandalised. Photos: Facebook / Evrutos.
Greek politician, Giannis Konstantatos, confirmed on Facebook that the wall would be restored by Tuesday.
“We were not surprised by the desecration of the Heroes of 1821, which we had crafted to honour their struggles,” Mr Konstantatos wrote.
Photo: Facebook / Evrutos.
“By tomorrow we will have restored the works. And we’ll do it as many times as we have to no doubt.”
Evrutos’ paintings use bold, thick outlines and splashes of color to bring the heroic figures to life and send a message to Greek society, reminding them of the contributions these great men made to Greek history.
*WARNING: This story contains references to sexual assault.
More stories of sexual assault in school communities were published by Greek Australian, Chanel Contos, on Monday night as part of a growing movement to improve sex and consent education in Australian schools.
According to The Sydney Morning Herald, Contos has received more than 4,000 graphic allegations of sexual assault since she launched an online petition calling for earlier sexual consent education across Australia.
Her new website has already published over 1000 of these anonymised student stories, while hundreds of other testimonies which Contos originally shared via a confronting 70-page Google document will also be migrated to the new site.
Chanel’s new website.
Thousands more testimonies will be added in the coming weeks after they are screened for identifying details, the Sydney Morning Herald reports.
“The point of this is to scale it, take it nationwide. I want this to continue to be at the forefront of everyone’s mind, the government’s mind, because we need educational reform and societal reform. Everyone needs to be conscious of their contribution to rape culture,” Contos told the Australian media outlet.
The testimonies published so far have described in detail young women’s experiences of their male school peers forcing them to perform oral or anal sex, or raping them while they were asleep or unconscious. Individuals are not named, but most women have chosen to identify themselves by their school or graduating year.
Greek Australian, Chanel Contos.
Dozens of private schools in both Sydney and Melbourne have now vowed to take stronger action on consent education in response to these claims, with many school principals labelling the testimonies “disturbing, bleak but essential reading.”
Contos said she wanted to retain the sobering effect of that Google document on her website.
“The point of it is to have the dramatic endless scroll, the thousands of testimonies and the thousands of signatures. It is so prevalent in our lives – I want everyone to be shocked, and stunned,” she told the Sydney Morning Herald.
Going forward, Contos’ website (teachusconsent.com) allows people to submit their own stories, sign the petition for better sex education and download templates for emailing their schools or MPs. She also plans to add educational resources for parents and students, as well as resources for victims of sexual assault.
This website comes as both school circles and Parliament House have been reckoning with sexual assault claims over the past month. Prime Minister, Scott Morrison, has been urged to sideline a federal cabinet minister accused of raping a 16-year-old girl in 1988 as authorities investigate, while former Liberal staffer Brittany Higgins has taken her formal complaint over an alleged rape to the police.
