An award ceremony for distinguished Armed and Security Forces athletes and teams for the year 2018 took place on Monday 25 February 2019, at the Athens War Museum. Along with the aforementioned ceremony, special awards were conducted to individuals who made great contributions in the athletic field of the Armed and Security Forces.

The ceremony was organised by the Supreme Sports Council of the Armed and Security Forces and was conducted in the presence of the Minister of National Defence Evangelos Apostolakis, the Alternate Minister of National Defence Panagiotis Rigas, the Chief of HNDGS General Christos Christodoulou, the Chief of HAGS Lieutenant General Georgios Kambas, the Chief of HNGS Vice Admiral Nikolaos Tsounis, the Chief of Port Authority – Hellenic Coastguard Vice Admiral Stamatios Raptis, delegations of members of the Armed and Security Forces and numerous veteran athletes.

The Minister of National Defence awarded all the members of the Hellenic Olympic Committee and of the Hellenic Athletics Federation as well as athletes who excelled in sports events. Addressing the attendants, the Minister of National Defence mentioned the following, among others:

• The excellent performance and distinctions of the Armed Forces athletes, in numerous events domestically and abroad.

• The particular importance of participation and “fair play” in sports as well as the values which sports promote, establishing role-models of team spirit, willpower, exertion and success.

• The promotion of athletic cooperation between the Armed Forces and state or community bodies, in the context of widening outreach, which constitutes a strategic goal for the Ministry of National Defence.