Ioannis Lavrentis

Ioannis Lavrentis (Greek Ιωάννης Λαυρέντης ) was a Greek athlete, who participated as a marathon runner in the Olympic Games in Athens in 1896.

Since before the first Olympic Games of the modern era no marathon runs were performed, a test run was organized with eleven Greek athlete and won by Charilaos Vasilakos in 3 hours, 18 minutes and 0 seconds on 10 March 1896. On March 24 of this year, just days before the start of the Olympics, the Greeks led by a new test run for 38 runners, which was officially announced as qualifying run for participation in the Games. Lavrentis won and improved the unofficial " marathon world record " (at that time but still over 40 km run ) to 3 hours, 11 minutes and 27 seconds.

In the Olympic race in the afternoon of April 9, from Marathon to Athens, Lavrentis belonged as one of 13 Greeks to 17köpfigen Start field and was in a group with three compatriots a place in the fourth to seventh position, and then, after about 52 minutes walk initially, keep as the fastest Greek fifth position. On 24 kilometers but Lavrentis gave up and was thus one of the eight runners ( including three of the four foreigners) who did not reach the goal. The winner was the Greek Spyridon Louis (see there for a description of the race ).