Ioannis Frangoudis (; 1863 – 19 October 1916) was a Greek Cypriot Military officer, athlete and Olympic shooter. He served in the

Hellenic Army The Hellenic Army (, sometimes abbreviated as ΕΣ), formed in 1828, is the army, land force of Greece. The term Names of the Greeks, '' Hellenic'' is the endogenous synonym for ''Greek''. The Hellenic Army is the largest of the three branches ...

reaching the rank of Colonel, and represented the kingdom of Greece in the

1896 Summer Olympics The 1896 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the I Olympiad () and commonly known as Athens 1896 (), were the first international Olympic Games held in modern history. Organised by the International Olympic Committee (IOC), wh ...

in Athen. Frangoudis is the only Greek athlete who has won a gold, a silver and a bronze medal in a single Olympic.

Biography

Frangoudis was born in

Zakynthos Zakynthos (also spelled Zakinthos; ; ) or Zante (, , ; ; from the Venetian language, Venetian form, traditionally Latinized as Zacynthus) is a Greece, Greek island in the Ionian Sea. It is the third largest of the Ionian Islands, with an are ...

, Greece, while his family originated from

Limassol Limassol, also known as Lemesos, is a city on the southern coast of Cyprus and capital of the Limassol district. Limassol is the second-largest urban area in Cyprus after Nicosia, with an urban population of 195,139 and a district population o ...

, Cyprus, which was under

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...

at that time. He graduated from the

Hellenic Military Academy The Hellenic Army Academy (, ΣΣΕ), commonly known as the Evelpidon, is a military academy. It is the Officer cadet school of the Greek Army and the oldest third-level educational institution in Greece. It was founded in 1828 in Nafplio by Io ...

in 1885, and worked his way up the ranks of the

Greek army The Hellenic Army (, sometimes abbreviated as ΕΣ), formed in 1828, is the land force of Greece. The term '' Hellenic'' is the endogenous synonym for ''Greek''. The Hellenic Army is the largest of the three branches of the Hellenic Armed F ...

, being a captain at the time of the 1896 Olympics. After the

Greco-Turkish war of 1897 The Greco-Turkish War of 1897 or the Ottoman-Greek War of 1897 ( or ), also called the Thirty Days' War and known in Greece as the Black '97 (, ''Mauro '97'') or the Unfortunate War (), was a war fought between the Kingdom of Greece and the O ...

, he had become a colonel, and a friend of King

George I of Greece George I ( Greek: Γεώργιος Α΄, romanized: ''Geórgios I''; 24 December 1845 – 18 March 1913) was King of Greece from 30 March 1863 until his assassination on 18 March 1913. Originally a Danish prince, George was born in Copenhage ...

. Frangoudis is also known for having been present at the assassination of the King, and for having taken his assassin, Alexandros Schinas, into custody. Frangoudis died by an

electrocution Electrocution is death or severe injury caused by electric shock from electric current passing through the body. The word is derived from "electro" and "execution", but it is also used for accidental death. The term "electrocution" was coined ...

accident in 19 October 1916, while visiting

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

for an ammo supply mission of the Greek army.

Olympics Career

Frangoudis competed in four of the five shooting events as well as serving as secretary of the Sub-Committee for Shooting. He began his sole rifle event, the free rifle, with a lead in the competition after the first string of 10 shots. However, his shooting was inconsistent and his second and fourth strings were far below the scores of his first and third strings. Frangoudis finished second behind Georgios Orfanidis, with 1,312 points to his countryman's 1,583. Viggo Jensen in third place was only 7 points behind Frangoudis. In the rapid fire pistol, Frangoudis was the victor, defeating Orfanidis, along with two other competitors, 344-249. He added another top three finish in the free pistol, behind Sumner Paine (silver medallist in the military pistol) and

Holger Nielsen Holger Louis Nielsen (18 December 1866 in Copenhagen – 26 January 1955 in Hellerup) was a Danish fencer, sport shooter, and athlete. He competed at the 1896 Summer Olympics in Athens. He is probably best known for drawing up the fir ...

(bronze medallist in the rapid fire pistol). Frangoudis also competed in the military pistol, finishing fourth.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Frangoudis, Ioannis Shooters at the 1896 Summer Olympics 19th-century Greek sportsmen Greek male sport shooters ISSF pistol shooters Greek Cypriots Olympic shooters for Greece Olympic gold medalists for Greece Olympic silver medalists for Greece Olympic bronze medalists for Greece Hellenic Army officers Olympic medalists in shooting 1863 births 1916 deaths Sportspeople from Limassol Medalists at the 1896 Summer Olympics Accidental deaths in New York (state) Date of birth missing United States of the Ionian Islands people