Spyridon Louis, commonly known as Spyros Louis, was a Greek water carrier who won the first modern-day Olympic marathon at the 1896 Summer Olympics.
10 Facts About Spyridon Louis
2.
Outside of his athletics career, Spyridon Louis was arrested for forgery, of which he was acquitted after spending a year in jail.
3.
Spyridon Louis was born in the town of Marousi, north of Athens, into a poor family.
4.
Louis's father sold mineral water in Athens, which at the time lacked a central water supply, and Spyridon helped him by transporting it.
5.
Spyridon Louis participated in the second qualifying race, two weeks later, and placed fifth.
6.
Spyridon Louis was greeted with cheers after entering the Panathenaic Stadium for the final part of the marathon.
7.
Spyridon Louis ran with Crown Prince Constantine and Prince George of Greece during the last lap, finishing with a time of 2:58:50.
8.
Spyridon Louis's victory set off wild celebrations, as described in the official report of the Games:.
9.
Third place finisher Spyridon Louis Belokas was later found to have covered part of the course by carriage and was disqualified; third place was awarded to the Hungarian Gyula Kellner.
10.
In 1926, Spyridon Louis was arrested on charges of falsifying military documents and was imprisoned.