Sotirios Versis ( el, Σωτήριος Βερσής, 1876 in

Athens Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Greece, largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh List ...

, Greece – 1919) was a

Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...

athlete An athlete (also sportsman or sportswoman) is a person who competes in one or more sports that involve physical strength, speed, or endurance. Athletes may be professionals or amateurs. Most professional athletes have particularly well-dev ...

and

weightlifter Olympic weightlifting, or Olympic-style weightlifting (officially named Weightlifting), is a sport in which athletes compete in lifting a barbell loaded with weight plates from the ground to overhead, with each athlete trying to successfully lif ...

. He competed at the

1896 Summer Olympics The 1896 Summer Olympics ( el, Θερινοί Ολυμπιακοί Αγώνες 1896, Therinoí Olympiakoí Agónes 1896), officially known as the Games of the I Olympiad ( el, Αγώνες της 1ης Ολυμπιάδας, Agónes tis 1is Ol ...

and the

1900 Summer Olympics The 1900 Summer Olympics (french: Jeux olympiques d'été de 1900, link=no), today officially known as the Games of the II Olympiad () and also known as Paris 1900, were an international multi-sport event that took place in Paris, France, from 1 ...

held in

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. ...

. Versis was born in

to a wealthy family, he studied at the Commercial Academy and worked as a stockbroker and was affiliated to Panellinios G.S. At the

Versis competed in three events, two in weightlifting and one in athletics, on 6 April, the first day of the athletics, Versis competed in the discus event, where after throwing 27.78 metres he finished in third place behind American

Robert Garrett Robert S. Garrett (May 24, 1875 – April 25, 1961) was an American athlete, as well as investment banker and philanthropist in Baltimore, Maryland and financier of several important archeological excavations. Garrett was the first modern Ol ...

and fellow Greek Panagiotis Paraskevopoulos, the next day he competed in two weightlifting events, the first event was the two hand lift, Versis lifted 90 kilograms and with having a better lifting style this gave him third place out of the six starters behind

Viggo Jensen Alexander Viggo Jensen (born 22 June 1874 in Copenhagen, Denmark; died 2 November 1930 in Copenhagen, Denmark) was a Danish weightlifter, sport shooter, gymnast, and athlete. He was the first Danish and Nordic Olympic champion, at the 1896 Summ ...

and

Launceston Elliot Launceston Elliot (9 June 1874 – 8 August 1930) was a Scottish weightlifter, and the first British Olympic champion. Biography Launceston Elliot was conceived in Launceston, Tasmania, Australia, after which he was named, but before his ...

, a little later that day he entered the one hand lift but he only managed to lift 40 kilograms and finished fourth out of the four starters. Four years later, Versis returned to the Olympic scene when he competed at the

held in

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan ar ...

, he was only entered in to one event which was the

shot put The shot put is a track and field event involving "putting" (throwing) a heavy spherical ball—the ''shot''—as far as possible. The shot put competition for men has been a part of the modern Olympics since their revival in 1896, and women's ...

, but unfortunately Versis wasn't able to register any distance in his three throws and therefore didn't advance to the final. After his athletics career finished he took up shooting and entered the 1912

Panhellenic Games Panhellenic Games is the collective term for four separate sports festivals held in ancient Greece. The four Games were: Description The Olympiad was one of the ways the Greeks measured time. The Olympic Games were used as a starting point, yea ...

. Versis died in 1919 with what was reported as Asian Influenza.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Versis, Sotirios 1876 births 1919 deaths Greek male discus throwers Greek male shot putters Greek male weightlifters Athletes (track and field) at the 1896 Summer Olympics 19th-century sportsmen Athletes (track and field) at the 1900 Summer Olympics Weightlifters at the 1896 Summer Olympics Olympic bronze medalists for Greece Olympic weightlifters of Greece Olympic athletes of Greece Olympic medalists in weightlifting Medalists at the 1896 Summer Olympics Olympic bronze medalists in athletics (track and field) People associated with physical culture Deaths from Spanish flu Date of birth missing Date of death missing Place of death missing Sportspeople from Athens Athletes from Athens