Hellenic Federation of Body Building

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The World's First Bodybuilders were Ancient Greeks The Greeks prized philosophy and other intellectual endeavors, but they clearly understood the value of a strong healthy body as well. In fact, noted a recent article in the Olympic Review, "Plato and Aristotle established their schools in two famous and longstanding gymnasiums, the Academy and the Lyceum, and even today in Greece the state primary education centres are called gymnasiums, not schools." None other than Socrates coined the phrase "A sound mind and a sound body", which could easily serve as the motto for the worldwide fitness movement as it entered the 21st century. The Greeks' fascination with body sculpting likely arose from the environment in which they lived. The mountains that surrounded them were filled with hard, workable stone and timber; nearby waterways enabled them to acquire, via trade, any other materials they might have lacked. Fire from mountain timber enabled them to smelt metals into tools, in turn allowing them to sculpt marble and other materials into images depicting not only gods but human forms. Greek craftsmen and artists increasingly viewed the human body as both tool and raw material, to be shaped either by others or themselves. continue to the next page ...

GFBB Officials
The most important and well known official is .....

2001 IFBB Amateur Calendar of Events
Selected events for GFBB participation.

GFBB Officials

The most important and well known official is Mr. Jordan Leventelis, who is now the President of GFBB. Jordan has been the master mind of the Greek federation for more than 15 years. He was competing in IFBB contests since 1979, he was the Greek Champion in middleweight category (-80 kgr.) for 8-year-in-a-row and he was the runner-up (silver medallist) during IFBB Mediterranean Championships in 1987. He is the president of the active and pioneering athletic Guild "Health & Power" which, every year, collects many golden, silver and bronze medals during national and international bodybuilding events.

In his capacity as GFBB President, Jordan has struggled against the prejudice concerning our sport, by organizing informative seminars and TV-radio-Press interviews. For many years he kept trying to transmit the "athletic mentality" to many athletes who used to compete here and there in other, non-athletic and so-called professional bodybuilding contests in Greece. Some of these athletes had a high-level potential and finally entered the GFBB family. Jordan has inspired many people to form athletic guilds all over Greece - according to the Greek Athletic Law - in order to control and organize their athletes in the most lawful and effective way.

Jordan is, for many years and so far, the most reliable, rightful, and accurate international judge, among IFBB's judges panel, and he is very much respected and appreciated by judges and competitors, too.

Penny Leventeli, the Gen. Secretary of GFBB since 1985, is a professional graphic
designer and artist (graduate of "Vakalo''School of Applied and Graphic Arts), graduate of "Saint George" English Commercial College (Business and Secretarial Studies), and she is also a professional translator and journalist (member of International Federation of Journalists).

She has designed the GFBB's logo, posters, informative leaflets, athletes' participation diplomas and numerous artwork concerning our sport and activities. In her capacity as an editor and translator, Penny has supplied all sporting and state authorities, newspapers, magazines etc with articles, press-release and every information available to support the development of bodybuilding in Greece. Penny has translated and published (having the valuable support of the Greek-American Professor John H. Fournier, M.D., F.A.C.S., who is Ben's best friend) the book "The Murder of Napoleon' '(written by Ben Weider and already translated into 16 foreign languages).

Ben Weider .C.M., Ph.D., President of IFBB, and one of the world's foremost authorities on the life of Napoleon Bonaparte, was recently awarded the Legion of Honor by the French Government for his research into the true nature of the famous emperor's death. His Imperial Highness Prince Charles Napoleon had traveled from Paris to witness the event.

2001 IFBB Amateur Calendar of Events

14th Greek National Championship, May 26 2001
Stadium Of Peace And Friendship
(Melina Merkouri Hall)

Events	Place	Time
Heracles Super Cup VI	Ottignies, Belgium	April 7
Balkan Championships	Istanbul, Turkey	April 13-15
European Men's Championships	Baku City, Azerbaijan	May 4-7
European Women's, Mixed Pairs and Fitness Championships	Kiev, Ukraine	May 18-21
Mediterranean Championships	Gaziante, Turkey	June 8-10
World Games	Akita, Japan	August 18-19
President's Belgian Fed Cup XXIII	Ottignies, Belgium	October 20
World Women's Bodybuilding and Women's Fitness Championship	Rio de Janeiro, Brazil	October 26-29
Gold's Gym Grand-Prix de Charleroi XXIII	Marcinelle, Belgium	November 17
World Men's Championships and International Congress	Yangon City, Myanmar	November 21-26
World Juniors and Masters Championships	Valencia, Spain	December 1-3

In 1992, during the Greek National Cup in Athens, Ben Weider President presented Jordan Leventelis with the IFBB Silver Award ... "for his support for bodybuilding in Greece, and among peoples of the world regardless of race and culture.

In 1994, during the IFBB World Bodybuilding Championships in China, Ben Weider presented Jordan with Gold Metal Award Ribbon "...for except contributions, made towards the develope Bodybuilding in Greece

Jordan runner-up and silver medallist winner of middleweight category, IFBB Mediterranean Championships 1987.

Penny Leventeli and Ben

Weider, a life-long friendship