For Greece, the Olympics have offered little relieffrom its long-running economic crisis. Instead, the crisis is casting a shadowover the Greek athletes at the Olympics.
Greece — the ancestral home of the games — only has one bronze so far inLondon, and some athletes are saying it's because of the budget cuts manyfederations have seen amid the government bailouts.
This year, the country doesn't even have the customary national house in London— where athletes and fans can gather to celebrate success — because it can'tafford one. Instead, a group of investors stepped up to fund a private one —dubbed the "House of Hellenes" — although even that was forced toclose on Friday because they could only afford a one-week lease.
So for the Greeks, it's hard to stay positive lately — even for Iliadi Iliadis,who won the country's only medal so far in judo.
"This bronze medal was not so nice because I can't say it is the same asAthens (in 2004). Everyone is having a difficult time in Greece so at leastit's still good if people can watch TV and see us winning medals in OlympicGames," Iliadis, who won gold in 2004, told The Associated Press."(But) this is a moment when Greece needs medals more than any othertime."
Iliadis was speaking at House of Hellenes in central London, which paid tributeto him and Vassiliki Vougiouka, who finished fifth in the women's saber.
Families, friends and the "high priestess" of Ancient Olympia — or atleast the actress who plays the part during lighting ceremonies for the Olympicflame — were among those on hand at the Carlton Club, which was turned into amakeshift Greece House. The Carlton Club is where former British primeministers like Benjamin Disraeli and Winston Churchill came to discuss anddecide on issues of the day, and the British Hellenic Chamber of Commerce saidthe Greek investors chose the club for its historic significance.
"It is a big achievement just for a Greek athlete to take part and be ableto prepare for the Olympics," four-time Olympian Vasileios Polymeros, whowon silver and bronze in rowing, told a crowd of about 75 people. "Whatthese athletes have achieved is really heroic. If I was in their place I'm notsure I would be able to do it, to be so focused. The Olympics is so big, youhave to be 150 percent focused, not 100 percent. And if you just turn on the TVin Greece and watch the news, watch what is happening, to be able to stayfocused after that is amazing."
Vougiouka, who studies dentistry when not competing, said the past years hadbeen very tough with the future being so uncertain.
"It's very hard because I'm alone with just my coach and we have nosupport, no doctors or teammates when I travel, we don't have anything. Ourfederation doesn't have the money to pay for much," said Vougiouka, whohas been competing alone for two years now. "I worry very much for mycoach because he is Romanian, so maybe he leaves. They don't pay himmuch."
Harris Ikonomopoulos, the president of the Hellenic Chamber of Commerce, saidthe group of private investors pooled together to pay for the weeklong stay atthe Carlton Club because they felt "shame that because of the crisis inGreece we were going to be absent from the Olympics."
"This is a place where from 1842 many critical decisions concerning Europehave been taken, so it felt like the place for us to meet and to celebrateOlympic success but also talk about the future," said Ikonomopoulos, whoselast act was to hold a conference to discuss Greece's future as an investmentdestination.
Olympic traffic restrictions also meant the Chamber of Commerce had to closeone day early so it could move its few desks and big screen TVs out before itsweeklong rental expired on Saturday.
"It's all very frugal," Ikonomopoulos said of the site where Greece'sOlympic committee is also conducting business. "My duty is to try and helpand work toward making Greece a place to invest again.
"We're trying to save ourselves."
Iliadis' bid to inspire and reward his countrymen will not stop at bronze,however. He plans on delivering his medal to the famed Mount Athos monastery inthe northeast of the country, a site where he prayed at with London in mind inthe buildup for the games.
"Everyone outside Greece says Greeks don't like to work, that they arelazy and just like to party. We like to work, we like to train, we work toimprove Greece," he said. "We're like a family here because you knoweveryone and we're not all bad people."