Demetrius Vikelas, also known as Bikelas (February 15, 1835 – July 20, 1908) was a Greek businessman and the first president of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) from 1894 to 1896. February 15 is the 46th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ... | Come and take it, slogan of the Texas Revolution 1835 was a common year starting on Thursday (see link for calendar). ... July 20 is the 201st day (202nd in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian Calendar, with 164 days remaining. ... 1908 (MCMVIII) was a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will take you to calendar). ... The International Olympic Committee is an organisation based in Lausanne, Switzerland, created by Pierre de Coubertin on June 23 1894 to reinstate the Ancient Olympic Games held in Greece between 776 BC to 396 AD. Its membership is 202 National Olympic Committees. ... 1894 (MDCCCXCIV) was a common year starting on Monday (see link for calendar). ... 1896 (MDCCCXCVI) was a leap year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ...

Born in Ermoupoli, on the island of Syros in Greece, he was often sick as a child. Because of his ill health, he had a spotty education. He left home at 17 to work for his uncle in London, first as a bookkeeper, and then as a partner. In London, he met and became friends with Charilaos Trikoupis, the son of the Greek ambassador, who later became Prime Minister of Greece. Ermoupoli (Greek: Ερμούπολη - Ermoúpoli), also known as Syros is a town in eastern Greece. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... This article is about the British city. ... Charilaos Trikoupis - Athens, Photographic Archive of Hellenic Literary and Historical Museum Charilaos Trikoupis (July 11, 1832 (O.S.) – 1896) was a Greek politician who served as a Prime Minister of Greece seven times from 1875 until 1895. ... Note on Greek names: There is no firm convention for the rendering of Greek personal names into English. ...

Vikelas represented the Pan-Hellenic Gymnastic Club at the 1894 Paris congress convened by De Coubertin, where the modern Olympic Movement was founded. Baron Pierre de Coubertin Pierre de Coubertin (January 1, 1863 – September 2, 1937), born as Pierre de Frédy, was a French pedagogue and historian, but is best known as the founder of the modern Olympic Games. ...

Originally, it had been De Coubertin's idea to hold the first celebration of the modern Olympics in Paris in 1900, but Vikelas convinced him and the newly created IOC that they should be held in Athens. As the constitution of the IOC at that time required the IOC president to be from the country which would host the next Games, Vikelas became the IOC's first president. Athens (Greek: Αθήνα, Athína (IPA: )) is the capital of Greece and one of the most famous cities in the world, named after goddess Athena. ...

After these first Olympics, which proved a success, Vikelas withdrew from the IOC and turned his attention elsewhere. He died in Athens, aged 73. The 1896 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the I Olympiad, were held in 1896 in Athens, Greece. ...

External links

• Works by Demetrius Vikelas at Project Gutenberg

Project Gutenberg (often abbreviated as PG) is a volunteer effort to digitize, archive, and distribute cultural works. ...