Who won the first gold medal to be awarded at the modern Olympic Games?

mibmob

Leonidas Pyrgos http://www.ana.gr/olympics/English/pages/Historic/Biographies.html [Jul 08 04 11:31 AM] mibmob writes: "One of the greatest fencers of his time, Leonidas Pyrgos was born in 1871 in Mantineia, in the Peloponnese , the son of the well-known fencing instructor in Greece . At an early age, Leonidas Pyrgos became a member of the Athenian Club. He won the first gold medal at the Olympic Games of Athens in 1896 and was therefore the first Greek champion of the modern Games. During the finals of the foil, which took place on the second day of the Games, he faced French champion Maurice Peronet in a duel of evenly matched opponents. A 1-0 win by Pyrgos thrilled local spectators so much that they carried Pyrgos on their shoulders around the streets of Athens. He was later honored by the palace and became one of the most distinguished personalities in turn-of-the-century Athenian society." Jul 08 04, 10:12 AM