Greece’s flagbearers for Paris Olympics announced

The Plenary Session of the Hellenic Olympic Committee decided that Giannis Antetokounmpo and Antigoni Drisbioti will be the flag bearers for Greece at the Opening Ceremony of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.

The decision for Antetokounmpo was unanimous, while Drisbioti, the race-walking champion, was chosen after a vote among four female athletes: Maria Sakkari, Antigoni Drisbioti, Evangelia Platanioti, and Margarita Plevritou.

The Hellenic Olympic Committee, following the customary procedure for selecting the flag bearer, contacted Olympic medalists before the session. However, both Miltos Tentoglou and Katerina Stefanidi requested not to be flag bearers to avoid disrupting their preparation schedules for the Olympic Games.

After the vote, HOC President Spyros Capralos stated, “From the beginning, together with the mission leader Mr. Petros Synadinos, we proposed having two flag bearers at the Olympic Games. There was a significant discussion about whether there should be one or two, and we ultimately followed the directive of the International Olympic Committee for two flag bearers, embracing the spirit of the times and maintaining the effort for gender equality. There was unanimity for Giannis, but for the women, there was a vote among particularly distinguished champions who have honored Greece, as mandated by the democratic process. Ultimately, Antigoni was chosen, and I want to congratulate both her and Giannis for their selection. I am confident they will represent our country with pride. I also want to congratulate the other three champions who participated in the vote.”

Additionally, the schedules of the athletes competing the next day were taken into consideration to ensure they were not exhausted before their events.