The Olympiacos youth team made history on Tuesday, qualifying for the semi-finals of the UEFA Youth League after defeating Bayern Munich 1 – 3 in the quarter-finals.
Olympiacos, already the first Greek quarter-finalists, went a step further thanks to a burst of three goals in nine first-half minutes.
Bayern had much of the early play but Olympiacos went ahead just past the half-hour when home goalkeeper Max Schmitt was caught in possession and his intercepted clearance was turned in by Christos Mouzakitis for his fifth goal of the campaign.
Five minutes later it was 2-0 as Antonios Papakanellos cut in from the left on the byline and beat Schmitt from a tight angle.
It was 3-0 almost immediately, Charalampos Kostoulas pouncing on a loose ball just outside the box and lashing in a half-volley to join Mouzakitis on five Youth League goals.
In the 63rd minute, Robert Ramsak pounced on the rebound from a parried Lovro Zvonarek shot to pull one back. Zvonarek then headed against the post but Olympiacos held on to become the first team from their club to reach any UEFA competition semi-final.
Olympiacos will face Nantes in the semi-final on Friday, April 19 in Nyon, Switzerland.
The event began with an official blessing by Father Michael from the local St Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church.
The blessing.
On the day, there was also live entertainment by Tommy Tsonis on the bouzouki and Niko from Zeibekiko Journey. Panagia Soumela Sydney’s musicians and young dancers also took part.
This celebration was enjoyed alongside some delicious food by the Souvlaki Boys, including souvlakia and loukanika (sausages).
Tommy Tsonis provided entertainment.The Alepidis family with John Loukadellis.
The Alepidis family, who own the shop, thanked all for attending on the special day.
“A big thank you to everyone for their help and support,” a Facebook post read.
The Panipirotiki Enosis of New South Wales celebrated the 111th anniversary of the Liberation of Ioannina on Saturday, March 9 with a dinner dance at Mytilenian House in Canterbury, Sydney.
The venue was filled with fellow Epirotes and many of their friends, such as the Pan-Macedonian Association of NSW and its President Anastasia Karakominakis.
The Vice President of the Panipirotiki Enosis, Vicki Tomaras was constantly involved in the organisation of the evening. She, along with President Nicholas Siafakas, were commended for their speeches on the night.
“This evening will stay with us,” Mr Siafakas said.
George Tsitsos, Assistant secretary.
President Nicholas Siafakas.
The night ended with entertainment by popular Greek band, IHO NYX.
Commemorations for the liberation anniversary were also held on Sunday, March 3, with a memorial service at All Saints Greek Orthodox Church in Belmore.
For 23-year-old Kayla Nassis, she’s always hoped to turn her dreams into a lifestyle.
The Sydneysider from Cronulla is a pro Muay Thai fighter and told The Greek Herald her fighting journey began when she was only 13 years old.
“I started off with a type of martial arts called Hapkido, which is like a mix between karate and taekwondo,” Kayla said.
“I continued it for seven to eight years until I got my black belt. Then I decided to move into Muay Thai, which is a bit more of a physical competition kind of sport that originated in Thailand. It’s very similar to kickboxing, except you also use your elbows and knees.”
Destined to be a fighter
Kayla said she always wanted to be a fighter.
“I saw the value that it gave me and loved the discipline of having to train every day and the rewarding feeling I get when I do it,” she said.
“I get to push myself too. Now I can’t really like imagine my life without it.
Kayla Nassis.
“I also didn’t know anyone who had pursued fighting before, so it felt nice to take a different path than say my parents and other families did and to find so much joy in it.”
The 23-year-old said to commence Muay Thai, there was a certain age requirement.
Kayla Nassis training.
“I waited until I turned 18 to commence Muay Thai,” Kayla said.
“Within a year I had already turned pro, and I had my first fight in March 2022. At first, it didn’t feel like I was at that level, but I had been training nonstop from when I first started, so I improved pretty quickly.”
Student by day, fighter by night
Kayla trains more than 20 hours per week, as well as studying engineering at the University of Sydney.
“When I’m training for a fight, during fight camp, most days I will be training twice a day. I’d do my Muay Thai training every night and then I do extra training in the morning like strength and running,” Kayla explained.
Kayla Nassis fighting.
Focused on the fight.
“Outside of fight camp, I’m training Muay Thai every day, and most sessions are 2 to 2.5 hours each, so it’s quite a lot.
“This year I also went back to full time uni as well, so I’ve kind of got to balance that, as well as work a couple days a week, so I’ll be able to live.”
Kayla said although there is not enough money in the sport as of yet, she hopes to gain some sponsors this year to continue pursuing her dream as a pro fighter.
Women in sport
Although there aren’t as many women involved in Muay Thai, Kayla said it was definitely growing.
“I think that a lot of women may feel intimidated or too scared to start training, which I totally get, so that’s definitely something that I want to show to other young women, that you really can do anything you put your mind to,” she said.
Showing her strength.
“It doesn’t have to be as intimidating as it seems and there’s lots of opportunities out there for young women as it is becoming bigger.
“For me, starting at a young age definitely helped me build a lot of confidence in knowing I could do these kinds of things and that’s one of the main things you can gain as a woman starting in this sports industry.”
Kayla said she encourages all young women interested in fighting to be brave and put themselves out there.
Future plans and life advice
The 23-year-old fighter said she had big plans over the next few years, including completing her degree and receiving a state or national title in Muay Thai.
“I would also love to fight internationally a little bit more,” Kayla said.
“I fought in Thailand a couple of times in the past, which was amazing, and on a professional level which was actually on TV too, and I just hope I can do that again.
“My end goal would be to gain a world title or to fight on ONE Championship, which is probably like the pinnacle of Muay Thai.”
In 2023, Kayla had 3- 4 fights at a professional level, and in 2022, she fought in 8 different fights as an amateur.
“This year, I’m planning to have around four to six fights,” she said.
“My next one is in six weeks on the 15th of March.
“It’ll be my first fight since last May because I had one cancelled in December. It’s been a while out of the ring, so I’m really excited to get back into the fold.”
First generation Australian of Greek Cypriot heritage Helena Kidd has won in the ‘Literature’ category at this year’s Cyprus Diaspora Awards 2024.
The awards were part of this year’s Cyprus Diaspora Forum in Limassol, which aimed at bringing together Cypriot diaspora communities, influential figures from the public and private sectors in Cyprus, media, academia and civil society.
Helena said she became an ‘accidental’ author a few years ago when she found her mother Maria Avraam’s secret diary and with her permission, Helena gave a voice to its buried contents in her novel, When The Past Awakens.
Helena said she became an ‘accidental’ author a few years ago when she found her mother Maria Avraam’s secret diary and with her permission gave a voice to its buried contents in her novel.
The novel was shortlisted for The Victorian Community History Awards in 2020. Maria passed away eight months later on 16 November 2021 aged 98.
From 2022 to 2024, Helena was compelled to write a companion novel, When The Past Is Left. Finalising Maria’s long life with her heartfelt emotional story, encompassing topics of grief and caring for an ageing mother.
Following her award win, Helena told The Greek Herald she was honoured.
“Being nominated then winning the award has made me realise I represent Australia in literature for all writers of the Cyprus diaspora. We are important in the community in telling our stories in our own ways and expressions,” Helena said.
“Cyprus as a small island is thriving today and so is its Cypriots and its Diaspora. I am proud of Maria Avraam for taking the chance and traveling to Australia in 1957 when Cyprus was not what it is today and giving us, her children, a chance at a better future than she had. With this, Maria has been successful in taking herself from thinking she was ordinary to being ‘Extraordinary’.”
Mr Kostoulias said he will be resigning from the position due to health reasons.
John Koustoulias (left) at the Stars International Reception Centre in Preston, where the Federation of Greek Elderly Citizen Clubs in Melbourne and Victoria held a Christmas celebration in honour of members and volunteers.
In response, the Federation will be holding an Annual General Meeting (AGM) to elect a new board of directors on April 5 at 7 Union Street, Brunswick from 11am.
For those who are interested in running for candidacy, it is requested that you submit a nomination by March 20.
Maria Sakkari has beaten France’s Caroline Garcia in straight-sets, 6-3, 6-4, to secure her spot in the next round of the BNP Paribas Open.
According to tennis.gr, this was Sakkari’s fourth consecutive win over Garcia, who she had lost to in their first three meetings but has since overturned the score between them to 4-3 in her favour.
Sophie Mitropoulos, 61, a public servant from the Brisbane riverside suburb of Balmoral, has seen her insurance premium go from $1,189 to over $5,000 in just five years – including a staggering 54 per cent increase between 2022 and 2023.
These figures are consistent with industry data supplied to the ABC, which suggest that in the most flood-prone locations, rates for home insurance are normally set at roughly 4% of the home’s value, while contents insurance is broadly set at 13% of the total insured.
Sophie Mitropoulos has seen her insurance premium go from $1,189 to more than $5,000 in just five years. Photo: ABC News/Christopher Gillette.
According to ABC News, Mitropoulos argues that because her property is constructed on stilts with nothing beneath, she should not be required to pay more just because other homes in the vicinity are more prone to flood damage.
“I think honestly it would be disastrous for lower income people and it would get to a point where we just cannot afford insurance at all,” Mitropoulos says.
“If I get flooded [in a house] on two-metre stilts, the whole suburb is under.”
Insurers and local communities alike are aware of which houses are most vulnerable to floods, and with enough effort and persistence, resulting property damage can, more often than not, be prevented.
The Heartbeat of Football Foundation has announced a grant of $50,000 from the NSW Government to deliver its community sport focused heart health initiatives across regional NSW sporting grounds.
The “Heart Health Matters – Community Sport” project will leverage the undeniable power of sport to tackle cardiovascular disease and cardiac arrest across sporting communities in NSW.
Sport acts as a catalyst for community development, that brings communities together, builds character, drives social change (Integration & inclusion), inspires future generations, and promotes a healthy lifestyle.
The “Heart Health Matters – Community Sport” project leverages the undeniable power of sport to tackle cardiovascular disease (CVD) & cardiac arrest across sporting communities in NSW;
The role of sport and active recreation in society has become increasingly important over the years, not only for the individual but also for public health – it’s at the heart of every community!
The project will deliver Heart Health Awareness & Screening Days across NSW with a focus on regional NSW and those local government areas (LGAs) identified as high-risk heart hotspots (80% regional and 20% metro): Hunter/Central Coast; Illawarra/South-East; New England/North West; Central West/Orana; and Riverina plus South-West/Western Sydney;
The impact of CVD is greater for those living in regional and rural areas and underserved population groups including First Nations; Women and Multicultural communities.
The education, awareness, training, and preventative screening provided as part of this project provides people the knowledge, reassurance and confidence to continue to enjoy the many benefits of participating regularly in sport, irrespective of age, ability, gender or background.
This project supports other NSW Government initiatives, including the Local Sport Defibrillator program, championing the opportunity to make NSW the safest state to play sport.
NSW Sports Minister Steve Kamper said, “The benefits of sport are the cornerstone for communities across regional NSW and our support of this initiative is not only an investment in the health and wellbeing of residents but also in the prosperity and vitality of the region as a whole.”
“Personally, I was at the 2016 launch of the Heartbeat of Football Foundation and have cheered from the sidelines as have they continued to grow their reach and impact at community sporting grounds across NSW and major events such as FIFA Women’s World Cup Fan Festival site in Sydney/Gadigal.”
Minister Kamper.
The Foundation has now delivered over 10,000 nurse-led preventative heart health screening tests across Australia, as well as provided over 1100 people with CPR & AED confidence sessions – growing the bystander network willing and able to respond to an emergency cardiac situation.
“I’m delighted the NSW Office of Sport is supporting our mission with our first ever Government grant in NSW,” HOF Founder Andrew Paschalidis said.
“We will be utilising 80% of the funding to deliver free heart health checks in regional NSW knowing the current access and inequity issues that exist. Community sport provides great opportunities to also get the important message out far and wide with regards to #KnowYourNumbers and #PreventionistheBestDefence and ensuring all of us try to get a regular check up.”
Andrew Paschalidis (front left) and his team.
The “Heart Health Matters – Community Sport” project will be delivering heart health checks to as many people as possible for key modifiable risk factors – Blood Pressure, Blood Sugar and Cholesterol at their local sports ground.
In addition, it will be holding CPR and AED confidence sessions to build a stronger and more diverse network of bystander confidence as every minute counts when a person is in cardiac arrest – as the chance of survival decreases by 10 percent every minute.
This announcement is timely and coincides with the recent launch of the 2024 #MakeitRed which is a national campaign to raise awareness as well as funds for more heart health research, education and prevention programs. Clubs across all sports are invited to sign up and support this initiative by visiting https://makeitred.org/.
