Tuesday, August 21, 2007
Monday, August 20, 2007
Holiday in Bulgaria via Kavala in Greece
By John Leonidou
SCORES of holidaymakers destined for Crete, have had their holidays cut short after not agreeing to an alternative flight when the Hellas Jet plane they were set to travel with broke down.
Meanwhile, in Greece, around 80 elderly couples were yesterday left stranded as Hellas Jet was unable to accommodate them with an alternative flight back to Cyprus.
The 140 passengers were initially set to depart on Wednesday with a Hellas Jet flight, but a technical problem left the plane grounded and the passengers stranded at the airport.
The passengers returned to the airport at 5am yesterday morning and were informed by airline officials that because the plane was still experiencing difficulties they would have to travel with a Ukrainian airline.
The majority of passengers refused, with some demanding a refund whilst other demanded that they be given another airline to travel with to Crete. The standoff meant the passengers were left a further seven hours at the departure lounge.
They were eventually taken by bus to the Hilton Hotel in Nicosia but returned to the airport at 5am on Thursday morning and were informed by airline officials that because the plane was still experiencing difficulties, they could still travel with the Ukrainian airline.
With their plane still grounded in its third day, the offer was again snubbed and by now tensions were mounting.
As of 11.50pm on Thursday night, it was announced that there would be no Hellas Jet flights. Yesterday’s departure monitors at the airports didn’t have any scheduled flight for Hellas Jet.
Meanwhile, 78 elderly couples who had flown with Hellas Jet for a holiday in Bulgaria via Kavala in Greece, have since Thursday been trying to get back to Cyprus.
Most of the passengers were still stranded at the airport in Greece.
Commenting on the saga yesterday, Commerce Ministry official Marios Droushiotis said that if the organiser was aware of alterations to flight schedules and did not notify the passengers, then the airline was to blame.
“In this case, legislation says that in instances where there are alterations to an organised trip and they know it, then they are obliged to notify their customers and give them the chance to exclude themselves from the changes or to propose them another change and to make them sign that they agree to that effect.”
Civil Aviation Transportation Operator Doros Theodorou added: “With regards to Hellas Jet, the details we got were that there was a technical problem to the aircraft and that it caused a delay. In these cases, European law offers protection to the passengers and, more specifically with regards to this incident, they are allowed compensation or a refund or an alternative flight.”
Theodorou went on to say that a passenger could refuse to fly with another aircraft, but could only then claim a refund if a complaint was made to the registrar at the Civil Aviation Department. The registrar would then examine complaint and see if the airline was at fault.
“If that is the case, then the passenger will be compensated,” he said.
Police nab migrant smugglers
Police nab migrant smugglers
A 52-year-old Piraeus resident believed to have been running a migrant-trafficking operation has been arrested after being caught transporting 10 Iraqis inland from the Turkish border, police said yesterday.
Border guards detained the 52-year-old, along with two suspected accomplices – a 32-year-old Syrian and a 28-year-old Iraqi – after stopping them for questioning on the Xanthi-Kavala national road early yesterday morning.
The three had allegedly picked up the Iraqi immigrants at some point on the Greek-Turkish border in two small trucks. Police seized the two trucks along with five mobile phones, believed to have been used by the suspects to coordinate their alleged migrant-trafficking activities.
The would-be migrants lacked any official documents, police said. It was unclear whether any money had changed hands for their transfer from Turkey to Greece.
The three suspects are due to face a Xanthi prosecutor on charges of people trafficking.
http://www.ekathimerini.com/4dcgi/_w_articles_politics_100010_20/08/2007_86929
Friday, August 17, 2007
Constantine Tzirtziris (Kavala, Greece) will join the rest of the Sycamores
Indiana State track signs six new athletes
The Tribune-Star With Indiana State track and field athletes preparing to return to campus this weekend, head men’s coach John McNichols has announced the signing of six new additions to his squad.
Cody Arnold (Bedford), Michael Disher (Indianapolis), Tykeen Fulton (Trenton, N.J.), Drake Sterling (LaPorte), Chauntez Tyus (Florissant, Mo.) and Constantine Tzirtziris (Kavala, Greece) will join the rest of the Sycamores’ returnees on the combined track and cross country squad as the new athletics season begins.
The Sycamores secured their third-straight Missouri Valley Conference cross country championship in 2006, then followed that up with second-place finishes in both the MVC indoor and outdoor track and field championships. However, several key contributors from those teams are now gone and McNichols believes his new recruits will help fill those holes well.
“Our goal every year when we recruit is to find the best possible athletes to fill in holes left by graduation,” said McNichols. “We had some significant losses including all-conference performers like Paladin Jordan, Corey Dowden and Jordan Fife. We think these new recruits will fill those spots well and that their futures will be bright in our program.”
Arnold and Sterling are transfers from Vincennes University and bring top-10 National Junior College Athletic Association championship finishes with them. Arnold placed seventh in the hammer throw in the 2007 indoor meet and also placed seventh at the outdoor championships in the weight throw. Sterling placed ninth in the 600-meter run at the 2007 NJCAA indoor meet and sixth in the decathlon with 5,707 points at the outdoor championships.
“Cody should really help us in the throws,” McNichols said. ”As for Drake, he’s really an all-around athlete so we’re not exactly sure how we are going to use him yet. But, he’s a talent and could help us in several events.”
A three-time state qualifier in cross country and in track, Disher should contribute immediately in the distance events for the Sycamores. The Southport High School graduate placed sixth in the state in cross county in 2004 and 2005 and followed that with a 19th place finish in his senior season in 2006.
“Michael had a good high career and will have an opportunity to help out immediately,” said McNichols. ”As he develops, he should fill the void left by Fife nicely and help us down the line.”
Fulton, a Trenton Central High School product, brings a distinguished resumé with him in the hurdles. He was the 2007 NJSIAA Group Four outdoor state champion in the 110 and 400 meter hurdles and added a third-place finish in the 200-meter dash.
“We think we got one of the best hurdlers in the nation in Tykeen,” said McNichols. ”One of our assistant coaches, Geoff Wayton, and his brother, who is a high school coach in New Jersey, discovered Tykeen and we owe a lot to them. ISU has a distinguished tradition in the hurdles and he has all the tools to help further that legacy.”
Tyus, a McCluer High School product, will try to contribute in the horizontal jumps. He placed fifth in the state championships in the triple jump in 2007 and fourth in that same event in 2006. Tzirtziris, who hails from Greece, rounds out the class and will contribute in the sprints.
“Our program is fortunate to have a top horizontal jumper like Tyus to fill the holes we lost by Jordan and Corey Dowden,” said McNichols. “He should be able to contribute immediately and we look forward to seeing what he can do.
“Usually, we don’t recruit international athletes but Constantine really peaked our interest,” McNichols continued. ”One of our faculty members overseas alerted us to him and we were impressed. He could be a good complement to our 800-meter runners and could also help in the relays.”
The Sycamores’ 2007-08 combined season officially kicks off with the annual Sycamore Pride Intrasquad and Alumni cross country meet Aug. 25 at the LaVern Gibson Championship Course. The event will begin at 10 a.m. at the Wabash Valley Family Sports Center, with current and former ISU runners participating in the event.
http://www.tribstar.com/collegesports/local_story_229230926.html
Saturday, August 11, 2007
Born in Kavala, Greece, Papadopoulos came to the United States at age 19 on a scholarship to attend Wofford..
Wofford graduate, longtime college trustee dies at age 76
C.N. "Gus" Papadopoulos, a 1954 Wofford College graduate and longtime member of the school's board of trustees, died on Aug. 2, the school said Wednesday. He was 76.
Papadopoulos spent the last 54 years of his life based in the Houston area, where he was an anesthesiologist before entering the real-estate business.
He was active in the Wofford community, and served on the Wofford board of trustees from 1979 until 1991, and then again from 1993 to 2005. During his lifetime, he donated more than $1 million to the school, establishing the Neofytos Papadopoulos Memorial Scholarship Fund, which aids students from Greece, and helping fund the construction of the Neofytos Papadopoulos Building on campus, both named for his father.
"Gus was a transformative figure in the history of the college," Wofford President Benjamin B. Dunlap said in a statement.
Born in Kavala, Greece, Papadopoulos came to the United States at age 19 on a scholarship to attend Wofford, from which he graduated in three years. He enrolled at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, and received his degree in 1958. While working as an anesthesiologist for 15 years, he also became a successful real-estate developer, a business he pursued full time starting in 1974.
He was the mayor of Hunter's Creek Village, Texas, from 1977 to 1983, and was chairman of the board of the First Bank of Houston from 1981 until 1996.
He was at his vacation home in the Cayman Islands when he died unexpectedly, the college reported.
Services will be held Saturday at Annunciation Greek Orthodox Cathedral in Houston. Honorary pallbearers include Dunlap and Roger Milliken.
http://www.goupstate.com/article/20070810/NEWS/708100313/-1/BUSINESS
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