International Student Painting Competition dedicated to the Rhodes Marathon

The International Marathon of Rhodes and the Children's Gallery of Greece are organizing an International Student Painting Competition entitled:

"As a cradle of culture and sport throughout the centuries, Rhodes inspires paintings by children and young people from all over the world that celebrate the ideals of fair play and fair play", in view of the race to be held on 3 May and in the context of the 2020 training programme.

The competition is for the creation of paintings dedicated to the values and ideals of the Marathon. Through this process, students learn to think critically, collaborate, research, express themselves, create and communicate. At the same time, teachers are given the opportunity to try out new ways of teaching, while at the same time the school's connection with the social environment is strengthened. The focus on the ideals of the Marathon responds to the specific needs of our time and the strong interest of children and adolescents in sport. Particular emphasis is placed on the correlation between human values and the principles and ideals of the Marathon, in the context of encouraging actions to strengthen a healthy, open and tolerant society. 

The children are invited to draw inspiration from the most glorious festival of antiquity, the "Aliia" dedicated to the God Sun, the patron saint of the island of Rhodes and its glorious Rhodian athletes.

Rhodes has been at the forefront of sports and culture for centuries. Numerous Olympic champions of Rhodes origin were numerous during Antiquity, the most famous being Leonidas of Rhodes, who is mentioned as the most prominent runner by ancient writers. His twelve victories made him the most polymathic athlete in the history of the ancient Olympic Games. His total of victories was surpassed after 2,168 years in the modern Olympic Games.

Following in the footsteps of other great ancient Rhodian athletes, such as Dorotheos, Nicagoras, Diagoras, Acousilaos, Eucles, Claytostratus, the International Marathon of Rhodes is the largest sporting event of the South Aegean, which has now become an institution for the running movement in Greece and abroad.

"One of the main missions of the Rhodes Marathon is the promotion of fair play and sports participation, the "education" of the runners of tomorrow, the promotion of the historical and architectural heritage of the island and its natural beauty. That is why we decided to organize this year, in cooperation with the Children's Gallery of Greece and its president Mrs. Aikaterina Leggou, a painting competition for children and young people. We are particularly happy about this cooperation, as the headquarters of the PAC is located in Rhodes and is housed in a space that was granted during the previous term of the Regional Authority.

We therefore invite all students and teachers to take part in the competition and we look forward to the works that the children will create, inspired by the historical sporting past of Rhodes", said the president of the O.E. of the Rhodes International Marathon, regarding the competition, Marietta Papavassiliou.

For her part, the president of the Children's Gallery of Greece, Catherine Leggou stated the following: "The Children's Gallery of Greece aims to encourage children's art and artistic creation among the new generation of our country. By organizing a variety of educational programmes, thematic competitions, painting exhibitions and artistic events, we release children's expression through their mother tongue, art. It is therefore with great pleasure that we co-organise this special educational programme with the Organising Committee of the Rhodes Marathon and invite the international student community to delve into the rich history of our island and create works that honour its artistic and sporting journey, learning from yesterday, living today and looking forward to tomorrow".

The competition started on 20 January and ends on 5 April 2020. It is international and open to students from kindergarten, primary, secondary and high school. It is a Good Practice competition that has at its core universal values through the principles and ideals of sport and art.

Information and Participation on the website of the Children's Gallery of Greece: https://sites.google.com/site/paidikipinakothikielladas

The award ceremony for the young artists will take place in May 2020 at a special event during the Marathon.