THE FOUNDATION OF TRITON
In 1956, a group of Scout leaders who did not hold administrative positions decided to establish a new club in Thessaloniki, so that they could gather at its clubhouse and organize excursions, always outside the formal framework of Scouting, of which they were already active members. Most of them were involved only in Scouting, while only three were engaged in both Scouting and sports: Michail Giannoukakos, Konstantinos Margaropoulos, and Stylianos Giannoukakos.
Michail Giannoukakos, who was active in the sports club Aetos, was the key figure who managed to persuade the others that the club they were planning to found should also include athletic activities. On April 3, 1957, the founding minutes of the association, under the name: Educational, Excursionist and Athletic Association ‘TRITON’, were drafted and signed by the founding members and submitted, together with the statutes, to the Court of First Instance of Thessaloniki for approval. The Court approved the establishment of Triton, and therefore 1957 is considered the official year of the club’s foundation.
According to its statutes, the purpose of the association was “the promotion of the intellectual level of its members, as well as the dissemination and cultivation of excursionism and sport in general, in our city.” The members of the association would pursue this goal through the maintenance of a library and reading room, the organization of intellectual events such as lectures, the publication of a magazine, film screenings, as well as the organization of excursions and social gatherings. Sport would be cultivated “through participation in all branches of athletics, by individuals or teams of both genders, regardless of nationality or religion, as well as through participation in individual or team competitions throughout Greece and abroad.”
The first Board of Directors of Triton was formed as follows:
Michail Giannoukakos (President), Nikolaos Panagiotopoulos and Konstantinos Leontaridis (Vice Presidents), Theodoros Kamilieris (General Secretary), Charilaos Arvanitidis (Special Secretary), Richard Kotzamanoglou (Treasurer), Polykleitos Lefopoulos (Head of Athletics), Panagiotis Kokovinis (Clubhouse Officer), Vasileios Theofilou (Equipment Officer), Nikolaos Koparanidis (Table Tennis Officer), Georgios Alamaniotis (Team Sports Officer), Dimitrios Samaras (Cycling Officer), and Konstantinos Margaropoulos (Swimming Officer).
Mr Margaropoulos awards a commemorative plaque to mr Giannoukakos (right), the first President of Triton, during the event for the club’s 20th anniversary (Source: mr. Margaropoulos archive).
Mr K.Margaropoulos at an event for the 20th anniversary of Triton (Source: mr K.Margaropoulos archive).
THE ACTIVITY OF MEAS TRITON
The first years of Triton’s existence were marked by the efforts of its members to organize the various departments of the club. The first of the team sports sections to operate was that of women’s basketball. However, financial demands and prevailing stereotypes regarding the position of women in society soon led to the suspension of the women’s basketball department. Triton immediately activated its excursions department and subsequently the track and field department. In athletics, the contribution of Iraklis coach Nikos Zachariadis was significant; for many years, together with his Iraklis athletes, he also trained Triton athletes.
From its early years, Triton also cultivated table tennis, initially more as a recreational activity for its members. However, in 1967 Triton became a member of the Hellenic Table Tennis Federation (E.F.O.Ep.A.), and at the same time the first official team was formed. The table tennis department experienced significant growth during the 1980s.
The men’s volleyball department of Triton began operating in the mid-1960s, reaching its peak with the team’s participation in the First National Division during the 1972–73 season. Alongside the men’s team, a women’s volleyball department was also established in 1985.
Meanwhile, in 1971, the club’s chess department was founded, and shortly thereafter, in 1977, the handball department was established. The handball team competed for extended periods in the First National Division as well as in the A2 and B National divisions. During the 1983–84 season, the women’s handball department was also founded.
The puzzle of the club’s athletic departments was completed with the establishment of the weightlifting department in 1985. The department’s athletes achieved distinctions both at national and international level. Unfortunately, the financial difficulties faced by Triton led to the suspension of most of its departments. By decision of the club’s administration, some departments were dissolved, while others were merged with corresponding departments of other clubs.
Today, the only active department of Triton is track and field. Athletics constitutes the club’s most dynamic department, bringing numerous distinctions. From its early years, Triton organized an annual cross-country race, which in 1983 was replaced by the “Lambrakeia.” In 1998, the “Lambrakeia” evolved into the International Olympic Track and Field Meeting, held in memory of Grigoris Lambrakis. Since 2006, Triton has organized its most prominent and nationally significant sporting event, the International Marathon “Alexander the Great.”
Beyond Triton’s own sporting events, its male and female athletes have achieved — and continue to achieve — numerous distinctions, establishing the club as one of the leading track and field teams in Northern Greece and in Greece overall. In particular, Triton’s men’s and women’s relay teams consistently excelled at the Panhellenic Championships, simultaneously setting various records.
Athletes from all over the world run on the streets of Macedonia in Greece, during the great athletic event of the International Marathon Race “Alexander the Great”, made a reality by Triton in 2007 (MEAS Triton archive).
Athletes from various clubs and Triton officials at the starting point of the cross-country race, at Kerdinos Hill (Source: archive of mr Koukidis)
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