title: Pete Sampras

text: Sampras turned professional in 1988, at the age of 16, and finished the year ranked world No. 97 after starting the year at No. 893. His first professional match was a loss to Sammy Giammalva, Jr. at the February Ebel U.S. Pro Indoor in Philadelphia. However, just one week later, at the Lipton International Players Championships in Miami, Sampras defeated two top-40 players, before losing to No. 18 Emilio Sánchez. He did not defeat another top-40 player for almost six months, at which point he defeated No. 39 Michiel Schapers at a US Open warm-up tournament in Rye Brook, New York. In his first Grand Slam singles match, Sampras lost to No. 69 Jaime Yzaga of Peru in the first round of the US Open. Sampras did not advance past the quarterfinals in his next three tournaments, although he did record wins over No. 79 Jim Courier in their first career match-up, along with defeating No. 8 Tim Mayotte.


title: Pete Sampras

text: The following year, Sampras slightly improved his ranking to a year-ending No. 81. He lost in the first round of the 1989 Australian Open to Christian Saceanu and, at that year's French Open, won a Grand Slam singles match for the first time in his career; in the second round he lost to eventual champion and fellow American teenager Michael Chang in their first career match-up. A few weeks later, Sampras lost in the first round of Wimbledon to Todd Woodbridge. At the US Open, Sampras defeated defending champion and fifth-seeded Mats Wilander in the second round before losing to No. 13 Jay Berger in the fourth round. To end the year, Sampras lost in the first round in four consecutive tournaments.


title: Pete Sampras

text: He lost to Wilander in the quarterfinals of the tournament in Sydney. At the Australian Open, Sampras upset twelfth-ranked Mayotte in the first round before losing to thirteenth-ranked Yannick Noah in the fourth round in four sets. His first professional singles title came in February at the Ebel U.S. Pro Indoor in Philadelphia, where he defeated sixth-ranked Andre Agassi, eighth-ranked Mayotte, and eighteenth-ranked Andrés Gómez in the final. This title elevated his ranking into the top 20 for the first time. Sampras finished 1990 at No. 5, having started the year ranked No. 61 just prior to the start of the Australian Open.


title: Pete Sampras

text: Sampras did not play in the 1990 French Open and again lost in the first round of Wimbledon, this time to Christo van Rensburg. Sampras played seven consecutive weeks during the North American summer hard-court season. He defeated John McEnroe in the quarterfinals of the Canadian Open, but then lost to Chang in the semifinals. He also reached the semifinals of the tournament in Los Angeles, where he lost to No. 2 Stefan Edberg. He did not advance past the quarterfinals in his next three tournaments, losing to Chang, Richey Reneberg, and Goran Ivanišević.


title: Pete Sampras

text: In September, Sampras captured his first Grand Slam title, at the US Open. Along the way, he defeated sixth-ranked Thomas Muster in the fourth round and third-ranked Ivan Lendl in a five-set quarterfinal, breaking Lendl's streak of eight consecutive US Open finals. He then defeated 20th-ranked McEnroe in a four-set semifinal to set up a final with fourth-ranked Agassi. Sampras beat Agassi in straight sets to become the US Open's youngest-ever male singles champion at the age of 19 years and 28 days. He played five more tournaments and won the Grand Slam Cup to complete his year.


title: Pete Sampras

text: In 1991, Sampras captured the first of his five career titles at the year-end Tennis Masters Cup. Upon entering the US Open as the defending champion that year, he caused controversy when, after losing in the quarterfinals to Jim Courier, Sampras said that he was not disappointed and felt relieved that the pressure to defend his title was no longer on him. This led to widespread criticism, which included disparaging remarks from Courier and Jimmy Connors.


title: Pete Sampras

text: In 1992, Sampras reached the quarterfinals of the French Open for the first of three consecutive years, made it to the Wimbledon semifinals, and was the runner-up at the US Open to Stefan Edberg. Sampras later stated that his loss in the US Open final that year was a "wake-up call" and that he needed to figure out how to become the world No. 1. He also played doubles with John McEnroe on the US team that won the Davis Cup.


title: Pete Sampras

text: 1992 was also the year when Sampras made his only competitive appearance at the Olympics. The event was played on clay, his worst surface. Nonetheless, Sampras advanced to the third round before giving up a two-set lead and losing to Andrei Cherkasov of Russia.


title: Pete Sampras

text: Sampras reached the semifinals of the Australian Open in early 1993, losing again to Stefan Edberg and matching the previous year's quarterfinal performance at the French Open. In April 1993, Sampras attained the No. 1 ranking for the first time. His rise to the top of the rankings was controversial because he had not recently won any Grand Slam titles, but he justified his ranking three months later by claiming his first of seven Wimbledon titles, beating former world No. 1 and fellow American Jim Courier in the final. This was followed by his second US Open title. He finished the year as the clear No. 1 and set a new ATP Tour record that year by becoming the first player to serve more than 1,000 aces in a season.


title: Pete Sampras

text: Sampras won the first of two Australian Open titles in 1994, defeating American Todd Martin in the final. He then defended his Wimbledon later that year, beating Ivanisevic in the final. Criticisms were made about the length of the points, as only three rallies contained more than five shots.


title: Pete Sampras

text: In 1995, Sampras battled for the world No. 1 ranking with compatriot Andre Agassi, whom he faced in two grand slam finals. He won two grand slam titles on the year and was the key figure for champion United States in the Davis Cup.


title: Pete Sampras

text: Sampras experienced one of the most emotional matches of his career against Courier in the quarterfinals of the Australian Open. Sampras' longtime coach and close friend, Tim Gullikson, had mysteriously collapsed during the tournament and was forced to return to the United States. Gullikson was later diagnosed with brain cancer, to which he succumbed the following year. Saddened by Gullikson's illness, Sampras began visibly weeping during the match when a spectator shouted at Sampras, urging him to win it for Gullikson. Sampras nevertheless managed to defeat Courier, but lost the final to Andre Agassi in four sets. Paul Annacone took over as Sampras' full-time coach after Gullikson's illness made it impossible for him to continue coaching.


title: Pete Sampras

text: Sampras defeated Agassi in the final at Indian Wells and then won his third straight Wimbledon title over Boris Becker. Sampras lost in the final of the Canadian Masters to Agassi and then beat Agassi in the final of the US Open.


title: Pete Sampras

text: In the year's first major, the Australian Open, the top-seeded Sampras lost to the unseeded Mark Philippoussis 6–4, 7-6, 7-6 in the tournament's third round. Sampras had what would end up being his best run ever at that year's French Open, defeating two past former champions Sergi Bruguera and Jim Courier before losing in a semifinal match to the eventual winner, Yevgeny Kafelnikov, 7-6, 6–0, 6–2.


title: Pete Sampras

text: In the eight Wimbledons inclusive between 1993 and 2000, 1996 was the only year that Sampras would fail to win the championship at Wimbledon. Sampras lost in the quarterfinals of Wimbledon to the eventual winner, Richard Krajicek, the tournament's 17th-seed. The match lasted three long sets, with Krajicek winning 7–5, 7–6, 6–4.


title: Pete Sampras

text: In the quarterfinals of the US Open, Sampras vomited on the court at 1–1 in the final set tiebreak (due to dehydration) while facing Àlex Corretja; nonetheless, Sampras would win that match. Sampras advanced to the finals, where he defeated No. 2 Michael Chang to defend his US Open title.


title: Pete Sampras

text: Sampras won his second Australian Open title in January, defeating Carlos Moyá in the final. In July, he won Wimbledon for the fourth time, defeating Cédric Pioline in the final. Sampras also won singles titles in San Jose, Philadelphia, Cincinnati, Munich, and Paris, and the ATP Tour World Championships in Hanover, Germany. He became the only player to win both the Grand Slam Cup and the ATP Tour World Championships in the same year.


title: Pete Sampras

text: He had a 10–1 win–loss record against top-10 opponents and was undefeated in eight singles finals. He held the No. 1 ranking for the entire year and joined Jimmy Connors (1974–1978) as the only male players to hold the year-end No. 1 ranking for five consecutive years. His prize money earnings of US$6,498,211 for the year was a career high.


title: Pete Sampras

text: In 1998, Sampras's No. 1 ranking was challenged by Chilean player Marcelo Ríos. Sampras failed to defend his Australian Open title, losing in the quarterfinals to Karol Kučera, and won Wimbledon only after a hard-fought five-set victory over Goran Ivanišević.


title: Pete Sampras

text: Sampras lost in the final of the Cincinnati Masters to Patrick Rafter after a controversial line call. Sampras faced Rafter again in the semifinals of the US Open, losing in five sets after sustaining injury while leading the match two sets to one, and Rafter went on to win his second consecutive US Open title. Sampras lost another semifinal at the Tennis Masters Cup to eventual champion Àlex Corretja. Nevertheless, Sampras finished the year as the top-ranked player for the sixth year in a row.


title: Pete Sampras

text: The year started with a withdrawal from the Australian Open due to fatigue, and Sampras failed to win a title during the early part of the season. However, he then went on a 24-match winning streak encompassing the Stella Artois Championships, Wimbledon (equaling Roy Emerson's record of 12 Grand Slam singles titles), Los Angeles, and Cincinnati (a rematch of the previous year's final with Patrick Rafter). Sampras' victory over Andre Agassi in the Wimbledon final is often cited as one of the greatest performances in a Wimbledon final. Despite this—on account of a herniated disc in his back forcing retirements at the RCA Championships and the US Open—he lost his no. 1 ranking to Agassi the following day, when the ATP Tour rankings were updated.


title: Pete Sampras

text: Sampras' ranking was hurt by a combination of withdrawing from the Australian and US Opens, tournaments in which he had strong performances during the previous year, and the resurgence of longtime rival Agassi, putting an end to Sampras' six consecutive years of finishing as world No. 1. Agassi took over the top ranking and held it for the rest of the season, but Sampras recovered and managed to beat Agassi in the year-end championships for the fifth and final time, enabling him to remain third in the rankings.


title: Pete Sampras

text: Sampras reached the semifinals of the Australian Open in early 2000, falling to the eventual champion Agassi in a five-set match. He won the Ericsson Open for the third time in March. After getting knocked out in the first round at the French Open, he won his seventh and final title at Wimbledon, battling through tendinitis in his right shin and a painful back injury in the process equalling the then all time gentleman's singles title record of William Renshaw. In the final, Sampras was a set down and 4-1 down in the second set tie break against Patrick Rafter, but went on to win in four sets. This was his 13th Grand Slam singles title, breaking the all-time record of Roy Emerson that had stood for over 30 years.


title: Pete Sampras

text: In the 2000 US Open, Sampras overcame Richard Krajicek in four sets at the quarterfinals (including a comeback from 2-6 down in a tiebreaker), and upcoming star Lleyton Hewitt in the semi-finals, but lost the final to Marat Safin. Sampras' run to the final briefly returned him to the No. 1 ranking, but Gustavo Kuerten ended the year atop the rankings. This would be the last time Sampras was ranked No. 1, extending his ATP record career total to 286 weeks. (The record was surpassed by Roger Federer in 2012.)


title: Pete Sampras

text: Sampras' 31-match Wimbledon win streak ended in a five set loss to Roger Federer, aged 19, in the fourth round; this was the only time the two tennis legends ever played an official professional match. At the US Open, Sampras reached the final but lost in straight sets to Lleyton Hewitt. Overall, this season was the first in 12 years that Sampras did not win a single title, and he finished the year ranked No. 10, also his lowest since 1989.


title: Pete Sampras

text: In 2002, Sampras suffered an early exit from Wimbledon, losing in the second round to No. 145 fast-court specialist George Bastl of Switzerland. After that loss, Sampras asked his former coach Paul Annacone to return and coach through the US Open. Sampras had a relatively poor summer leading up to the US Open, losing at Cincinnati to No. 70-ranked Wayne Arthurs in the second round, and then was eliminated at the opening round at Long Island by No. 85. Paul-Henri Mathieu.


title: Pete Sampras

text: At the US Open, Sampras was seeded 17th. Greg Rusedski, whom Sampras had defeated in a long five-set third round match at the US Open, said that Sampras was "a step and a half slower" and predicted that Sampras would lose his next match. Sampras, however, then defeated two young stars, Tommy Haas in the fourth round and Andy Roddick in the quarterfinals. He then defeated Sjeng Schalken in the semifinals to reach his third straight US Open final, and eighth US Open final overall, tying Ivan Lendl's all-time record. This time, he faced Agassi, whom he had met in his very first Grand Slam final 12 years earlier. After a four-set battle between the two veterans, Sampras claimed a then-record 14th Grand Slam singles title and matched Jimmy Connors' Open Era record of five US Open singles championships.


title: Pete Sampras

text: Sampras did not compete in any tour events in the following 12 months, but he did not officially announce his retirement until August 2003, just prior to the US Open. He chose not to defend his title there, but his retirement announcement was timed so that he could say farewell at a special ceremony organized for him at the Open. He thus became the only man to win the final Grand Slam tournament at which he competed. At the time of his retirement, many regarded Sampras as the greatest player of all time.


title: Pete Sampras

text: Sampras won 64 top-level singles titles (including 14 Grand Slam titles, 11 Super 9/ATP Masters Series/ATP World Tour Masters 1000 titles and five Tennis Masters Cup titles) and two doubles titles. He was ranked the world No. 1 for a total of 286 weeks (the third most in the Open Era after Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer) and was year-end No. 1 for an ATP record six consecutive years from 1993 through 1998.


title: Pete Sampras

text: Sampras was known for his natural attacking serve-and-volley game, all-round game, and strong competitive instinct. Sampras's best surface was undoubtedly the fast-playing grass courts, Sampras won seven Wimbledon Gentleman's Singles titles (1993–95, 1997–2000), broken only by a loss in the 1996 quarterfinals to eventual winner Richard Krajicek. Sampras's seven Wimbledon Gentleman's Singles titles, tied with William Renshaw and Novak Djokovic, has only been surpassed by Federer who won a record eighth Gentleman's Singles title in 2017. Sampras is lauded by many tennis analysts as one of the greatest male grass-court players of all time. Sampras also shares the record of five US Open titles in the Open Era with Jimmy Connors and Federer. He won back-to-back US Open titles in 1995 and 1996, despite vomiting on the court at 1–1 in the final set tiebreak due to dehydration in the 1996 quarterfinals against Àlex Corretja. Combined with his two Australian Open titles, this gave Sampras a total of fourteen majors won on grass and hard courts.


title: Pete Sampras

text: Sampras's only real weakness was on clay courts, where the slow surface tempered his natural attacking serve-and-volley game. His best performance at the French Open came in 1996, when he lost a semifinal match to the eventual winner, Yevgeny Kafelnikov. Despite his limited success at Roland Garros, Sampras did win some significant matches on clay. He won a 1992 clay court tournament in Kitzbühel, defeating Alberto Mancini in the final. He won the prestigious Italian Open in 1994, defeating Boris Becker in the final, and two singles matches in the 1995 Davis Cup final against Russians Andrei Chesnokov and Yevgeny Kafelnikov in Moscow. Sampras also won a 1998 clay court tournament in Atlanta, defeating Jason Stoltenberg in the final.


title: Pete Sampras

text: On April 6, 2006, three and a half years after his retirement, Sampras resurfaced and played his first exhibition match in River Oaks, Houston, Texas, against 23-year-old Robby Ginepri. Ginepri won the match in two sets. Sampras later announced that he would be playing in World Team Tennis events.


title: Pete Sampras

text: In 2007, Sampras was announcing that he would play in a few events on the Outback Champions Series, a group of tournaments for former ATP players who have met certain criteria during their careers. Sampras won his first two events on tour, defeating Todd Martin in both finals (one of which included Sampras's first trip to his ancestral homeland, Greece). Many observers noted that despite Sampras’ lengthy layoff from competitive tournaments, he still possessed many of the previous skills he had displayed while on the ATP tour, with commentator John McEnroe going as far as to say that Sampras would be worthy of a top five seeding at Wimbledon were he to enter the tournament.


title: Pete Sampras

text: On November 20, 2007, Sampras lost the first of three exhibition matches in Asia against then world #1 Roger Federer in Seoul, Korea. Two days later in Kuala Lumpur, Sampras again lost to Federer in two tiebreaks. However, Sampras was able to win the last match of the series, winning in two sets on fast carpet.


title: Pete Sampras

text: On February 18, 2008, in an exhibition match during the SAP Open, Sampras defeated another active player, former No. 2 Tommy Haas. Sampras dispatched the German in 43 minutes.


title: Pete Sampras

text: On March 10, 2008, Sampras played another exhibition match against No. 1 Roger Federer at Madison Square Garden in New York City. Sampras once again lost the match in three tight sets.


title: Pete Sampras

text: In 2009, Sampras won two Outback Champions Series titles. He defeated McEnroe in the final of the Champions Cup Boston in February and Patrick Rafter in the final of The Del Mar Development Champions Cup in March.


title: Pete Sampras

text: Sampras was present at the 2009 Wimbledon final between Andy Roddick and Roger Federer to witness Federer eclipse his mark of 14 major titles and become the most successful man in Grand Slam history. His record of 14 majors had lasted for seven years.


title: Pete Sampras

text: The following year along with Federer, Andre Agassi and Rafael Nadal, Sampras played an exhibition doubles match at Indian Wells to raise money for the people of Haiti who had been affected by the earthquake.


title: Pete Sampras

text: In November 2010, Sampras reported that many of his trophies and memorabilia had been stolen from a West Los Angeles public storage facility. The loss included the trophy from his first Australian Open victory, two Davis Cups, an Olympic ring and six trophies for finishing top in the year-end rankings. Most of the stolen items have since been recovered and returned.


title: Pete Sampras

text: On November 17, 2011, Sampras played and lost an exhibition match against Milos Raonic. His serve approached 200 km/h (124 mph) throughout the night.


title: Pete Sampras

text: The rivalry has been called the greatest of the generation of players competing in the 1990s, as they were the most successful players of that decade, and had a contrasting playing style, with both Sampras and Agassi being respectively considered the greatest server and the greatest serve returner of their eras. Sampras won 20 of the 34 matches he played against Agassi.


title: Pete Sampras

text: The 1990 US Open was their first meeting in a Grand Slam tournament final. Agassi was favored because he was ranked No. 4, compared to the No. 12 ranking of Sampras and because Agassi had defeated Sampras in their only previously completed match. However, Agassi lost the final to Sampras in straight sets.


title: Pete Sampras

text: Their next meeting in a Grand Slam was at the 1992 French Open, where they met in the quarterfinals. Although Sampras was higher ranked, Agassi prevailed in straight sets. Their next Grand Slam meeting was at the quarterfinals of Wimbledon in 1993, where Agassi was the defending champion and Sampras was the newly minted No. 1. Sampras prevailed in five sets, and went on to win his first Wimbledon championship.


title: Pete Sampras

text: With both Sampras and Agassi participating, the U.S. won the Davis Cup in 1995. Notable Sampras-Agassi matches of 1995 included the finals of the Australian Open, the Newsweek Champions Cup, the Lipton International Players Championships, the Canadian Open, and the US Open, with Sampras winning the Newsweek Champions Cup and the US Open.


title: Pete Sampras

text: The next time Sampras and Agassi met in a Grand Slam final was at Wimbledon in 1999, where Sampras won in straight sets. For both, it was considered a career rejuvenation, as Sampras had suffered a string of disappointments in the last year while Agassi was regaining his status as a top-ranked player after winning the French Open. Sampras forfeited the No. 1 ranking to Agassi when injury forced Sampras to withdraw from that year's US Open, which Agassi went on to win. They faced each other twice in the season-ending ATP Tour World Championships, with Sampras losing the round-robin match, but winning the final.


title: Pete Sampras

text: They played each other only once in 2000. The top-ranked Agassi defeated No. 3 Sampras in the semifinals of the Australian Open in five sets.


title: Pete Sampras

text: In arguably their most memorable match, Sampras defeated Agassi in the 2001 US Open quarterfinals 6–7, 7–6, 7–6, 7–6. There were no breaks of serve during the entire match. Reruns of the match are frequently featured on television, especially during US Open rain delays.


title: Pete Sampras

text: The final of the 2002 US Open was their first meeting in a US Open final since 1995. The match was also notable because they had defeated several up-and-coming players en route to the final. Sampras had defeated No. 3 Tommy Haas in the fourth round and future No. 1 Andy Roddick in the quarterfinals, while Agassi had defeated No. 1 and defending champion Lleyton Hewitt in the semifinals. Sampras defeated Agassi in four sets. This was the final ATP tour singles match of Sampras's career.


title: Pete Sampras

text: In August 2010, Sampras played an exhibition game with Agassi at the indoor arena Coliseo Cubierto El Campin in Bogotá, Colombia.


title: Pete Sampras

text: Sampras won 12 of the 16 matches he played against Patrick Rafter, including eight of their first nine, and their final four meetings.


title: Pete Sampras

text: In 1997, Rafter won the US Open, a tournament that many expected Sampras to win, having won in 1995 and 1996. The win catapulted Rafter to the year-end no. 2 rankings behind Sampras. Seven-time Grand Slam champion John McEnroe believed Rafter to be a "one-slam wonder", since it was only his second career ATP title. Up to that point, Sampras was 5–1 against Rafter, and defeated Rafter three times in fall 1997 to solidify his No. 1 ATP ranking. "We're not the best of mates," Rafter said of Sampras after 1997 Davis Cup semifinals, "I wouldn't go out for a beer with him, put it that way. I don't know what the story is. There's a bit of feeling."


title: Pete Sampras

text: In 1998, Rafter came back from a set down to defeat Sampras in the Cincinnati Masters final, a title that Sampras needed to win in order get the maximum ranking points to stay No. 1 ahead of Marcelo Ríos. During that match, Rafter's serve was called out, but the umpire overruled the call to give Rafter the ace and the Cincinnati title. Sampras was displeased, and stood at the baseline for several seconds, making the victorious Rafter wait at the net, and then refused to shake the umpire's hand. Sampras, at the time winner of 11 Grand Slams, when asked about the difference between himself and Rafter, said "Ten grand slams", that a controversial line-call cost him the match, and that a player had to come back and win another Grand Slam title in order to be considered great. Rafter went on to win the Canada Masters as well, earning the third seed at the 1998 US Open.


title: Pete Sampras

text: The two met in the semifinals of the 1998 US Open, where Sampras was slowed in the third set by a leg injury and called for a trainer, and Rafter broke Sampras twice in the deciding fifth set. Sampras's loss denied him the chance to match two records—Jimmy Connors' mark of five U.S. Open titles and Roy Emerson's record of 12 Grand Slam singles titles. Sampras cited a leg injury as the reason Rafter won, an attitude that upset the Australian: "He really does say some funny things at the wrong time", said Rafter, "We are out there busting our guts and he doesn't show a lot of respect at the end of the day. He tries to play down the reason why he lost, giving no respect to the other player, and that is what really upsets me about him and the reason I try to piss him off as much as I can." Following Rafter's successful defense of his 1997 U.S. Open title by defeating Mark Philippoussis in the 1998 final, when asked about Sampras' earlier comments about having to win another Grand Slam in order to be considered great, Rafter replied: "Maybe you can ask him that question, if he thinks that now. For me, I won another Slam, and it hasn't sunk in yet. It's very, very exciting for me, especially to repeat it". For his part, Sampras said about Rafter, "When I see him holding the US Open trophy, it pisses me off." Rafter responded by calling Sampras a "cry baby" and saying that it would be better for tennis if someone besides the American were No. 1. Some had suggested at the time that the Sampras-Rafter feud was inflamed by the media since Sampras' traditional rival Andre Agassi was still in the midst of a comeback from injury.


title: Pete Sampras

text: Sampras, whose struggles from 1998 continued over to early 1999, lost a third consecutive time against Rafter at the World Team Cup, in straight sets, just before the French Open. By the summer of 1999 having rebuilt his confidence, en route to compiling a 24-match winning streak of four titles including Wimbledon, Sampras prevailed against Rafter in the Cincinnati Masters final, a rematch of the previous year's final, and the two were friendly in the trophy ceremony. Later that summer, Sampras withdrew from the U.S. Open due to an injured back, while Rafter retired in the first round as a result of a torn rotator cuff.


title: Pete Sampras

text: The next Sampras-Rafter match was the 2000 Wimbledon final, after Rafter overcame Agassi in the semifinals, a four-set final which included a 26-minute rain delay. Both players had flown in their parents for the Wimbledon final, the first time in years they would see their sons play. Sampras lost the first-set tiebreaker, and trailed in the second-set tiebreaker 1-4 before taking 5 consecutive points to win that set, then won the third and fourth sets for the Championship, with just 10 minutes of daylight left. That victory gave Sampras his 13th Grand Slam title, breaking the record of 12 by Roy Emerson for the most Grand Slam titles. After the match ended, Sampras called Rafter "all class, on and off the court", while Rafter said he was lucky to overcome early season injuries to make the final.


title: Pete Sampras

text: Sampras was an all-court player who would often serve and volley. Possessing an all-around skill, in the early years of his career, when not serving, his strategy was to be offensive from the baseline, put opponents in a defensive position, and finish points at the net. In his later years, he became even more offensive and would either employ a chip-and-charge strategy or try to hit an offensive shot on the return and follow his return to the net.


title: Pete Sampras

text: He had an accurate and powerful first serve – widely considered among players, commentators and fans as one of the best of all time. He had great disguise on both his first and second serves, and his second serve was nearly as powerful as his first. He was known for producing aces on critical points, even with his second serves.


title: Pete Sampras

text: Sampras was able to hit winners from both his forehand and backhand from all over the court. He was able to catch attacks wide to his forehand using his speed and hitting a forehand shot on the run. When successfully executed, he won many points outright or put opponents immediately on the defensive, due to the considerable pace and flat nature of the shot. This style did not help him on clay courts, according to some critics.


title: Pete Sampras

text: Sampras used one racket type, the Wilson Pro Staff Original, for his entire professional career—a racket first introduced in 1983. He played with Babolat natural gut, with all his rackets re-strung before each match (used or not) at 75 lbs tension (more or less, depending on conditions). His rackets had weight added to bring them close to 400 g, but the frame proper was a production model manufactured at a Wilson factory on the Caribbean island of St. Vincent. The handles were custom-built.


title: Pete Sampras

text: Post-retirement, Sampras has used a slightly modified Pro Staff Tour 90 and, from 2008, a new version of the original Pro Staff, produced with in-between head size of 88 square inches and heavier weight at 349 grams unstrung.


title: Pete Sampras

text: Since mid-2010, Sampras has been spotted at multiple exhibitions playing with a Babolat Pure Storm Tour, along with Babolat's popular RPM Blast strings.


title: Pete Sampras

text: "I need a little more pop...I need it if I'm going to play some tennis," he said after playing Gaël Monfils in an exhibition at the SAP Open.


title: Pete Sampras

text: During a good part of 2011, Sampras used a racquet that was painted all black, with Tourna Grip and Tourna Damper.


title: Pete Sampras

text: In the late 1980s, Sampras signed a three-year endorsement contract with Sergio Tacchini. It was extended to five years before Sampras signed with Nike in 1994. He wore Nike apparel and Nike Air Oscillate footwear on court.


title: Pete Sampras

text: Sampras's mother was born in Greece and his father was born in the United States to a Greek father and Jewish mother. His older sister, Stella Sampras Webster, is the women's tennis head coach at UCLA, and his younger sister, Marion, is a teacher in Los Angeles. His older brother, Gus, has been tournament director at the Scottsdale ATP event. In 2007 he became president of the firm managing Pete's business activities.


title: Pete Sampras

text: On September 30, 2000, Sampras married American actress and former Miss Teen USA Bridgette Wilson. On November 21, 2002, their son, Christian Charles Sampras, was born. On July 29, 2005, the couple had their second son, Ryan Nikolaos Sampras. They reside in Lake Sherwood, California.


title: Pete Sampras

text: Due to his achievements, Sampras is regarded by many as one of the greatest tennis players in the history of the sport. In particular, he is remembered for his excellent technique and his mastery of the serve-and-volley playstyle. Sampras is considered to be one of the best serve-and-volley players in tennis history.


title: Seo Yea-ji

text: Seo Ye-ji () is a South Korean actress. She began her acting career in the sitcom "Potato Star 2013QR3" (2013–2014). This was followed by major roles in period drama "Diary of a Night Watchman" (2014), thriller "Last" (2015), and fantasy "" (2016). Her notable lead roles in television series include "Save Me" (2017) and "Lawless Lawyer" (2018). She rose to prominence with the romantic comedy "It's Okay to Not Be Okay" (2020).


title: Seo Yea-ji

text: Seo had no plans to pursue a career in acting but things took a different turn when she caught the attention of the CEO of her then-management company, Made in Chan Entertainment, who persuaded her to venture into acting. In March 2013, she stepped in the entertainment industry by appearing in an advertisement for SK Telecom. In May 2013, she featured in the Samsung Galaxy S4 short film "Love" essaying the role of Min-joo. She debuted as an actress in the tvN sitcom "Potato Star 2013QR3" which aired for 120 episodes from September 23, 2013, to May 15, 2014.


title: Seo Yea-ji

text: She next starred in the MBC historical drama "Diary of a Night Watchman" (2014) where she essayed a major role for which she was nominated at the 2014 MBC Drama Awards in the Best New Actress category. This was followed by her appearance in tvN television series "Super Daddy Yeol (2015)" and notable jTBC television series "Last (2015)" starring as a civil servant.


title: Seo Yea-ji

text: After capturing viewers' attention through her drama "Last", Seo made her debut on the big screen with the hit historical drama film "The Throne" (2015) where she played the role of Queen Jeongsun. This was followed by her film "Circle of Atonement" (2015). She also appeared in the music video of South Korean boy band Big Bang titled "Let's Not Fall In Love" (2015).


title: Seo Yea-ji

text: In 2016, she played one of the main characters in the KBS drama " (2016)" and marked next big-screen project with the film "" (2016) in a supporting role. This was followed by supporting role in the KBS drama "" (2016–17).


title: Seo Yea-ji

text: Following the expiration of her contract with her management company in 2016, Seo left Made in Chan Entertainment and became associated with King Entertainment.


title: Seo Yea-ji

text: Starting of 2017 was marked by Seo's first leading role in the film "Another Way" (2017) which dealt with the issue of suicide pacts. Seo was praised from viewers as 'New Thriller Queen' when she starred in OCN thriller mystery television series "Save Me" (2017).


title: Seo Yea-ji

text: She played a role of lawyer who finds it hard to control her temper in the tvN drama "Lawless Lawyer" (2018) alongside Lee Joon-gi. The series was a commercial hit and became one of the most highly rated Korean dramas in cable television history. In response to her role, Seo was appointed as an honorary police officer by the National Police Agency.


title: Seo Yea-ji

text: Seo's first venture with her new management company came with tvN and Netflix broadcast romantic comedy "It's Okay to Not Be Okay" (2020). She starred opposite Kim Soo-hyun and featured in the role of a bestselling children's book author who has a personality disorder. Her portrayal of the character was critically acclaimed by "Manila Bulletin", "The Hindu" and "The New York Times" named the series one of "The Best International Shows of 2020" and called Seo's performance as "mesmerizing". Seo also experienced a substantial rise in popularity and attracted media attention in Korea and internationally.


title: Seo Yea-ji

text: In 2021, she starred in a mystery-thriller film "Recalled", directed by Seo Yoo-min alongside Kim Kang-woo which was a resounding success. "Recalled" topped local box office on its opening weekend. In December 2021, Seo renewed her contract with the Gold Medalist.


title: Seo Yea-ji

text: In April 2021, Seo was accused of being the reason behind Kim Jung-hyun's behavior at a 2018 press conference for "The Time" and his exit from the series. On April 12, South Korean local tabloid Dispatch revealed alleged text messages between Kim Jung-hyun and Seo, which showed the actress demanding Kim to refrain from any physical contact with female actors in the drama "The Time". She allegedly told him to get the romantic scenes deleted from the script. He eventually quit in the middle of production citing eating and sleeping disorders.


title: Seo Yea-ji

text: In response, Seo's agency, Gold Medalist, denied the claim that she was the reason behind Kim's behaviour and abrupt exit from the series. They argued that "it is unreasonable to assume that a lead actor would make a decision that would jeopardize his career without free will", adding that they "confirmed" this with Kim Jung-hyun. The agency argued that messages exchanged between them were "very misleading" and were "merely jealous quarrels about shooting scenes". Amid these allegations, Seo withdrew from the ongoing production of the Korean drama "Island". According to the production, her character would be recast and rewritten.


title: Seo Yea-ji

text: In May 2021, Kim Jung-hyun revealed that he had ended his contract with his agency, whom he accused of forcing the 2018 press conference on him despite his health problems. Kim added that he would pursue legal action against the agency for putting up false claims against him since that event. In addition, Kim also denied Seo has any involvement in how he acted, reiterating the issues on his health problems and company's mistreatment.


title: Tig Notaro

text: Mathilde O'Callaghan "Tig" Notaro (born March 24, 1971) is an American stand-up comedian, writer, radio contributor, and actress. She is known for her deadpan comedy. Her acclaimed album "Live" was nominated in 2014 for the Grammy Award for Best Comedy Album at the 56th Annual Grammy Awards. The special "" was nominated in 2016 at the 68th Primetime Emmy Awards for Outstanding Writing for a Variety Special. In 2017, the album "Boyish Girl Interrupted" was nominated for the Grammy Award for Best Comedy Album at the 59th Annual Grammy Awards.


title: Tig Notaro

text: Notaro was born in Jackson, Mississippi, the daughter of Mathilde "Susie" O'Callaghan and Pat Notaro. Her mother was born in New Orleans. Notaro was raised in Pass Christian, Mississippi, until kindergarten. Her family later moved to Spring, Texas, a suburb of Houston. She has a brother, Renaud Notaro, who is a year her elder and works as a radio talk show host. "Tig" is a childhood nickname given to her by her brother when she was two years old.


title: Tig Notaro

text: Notaro's maternal great-great-grandfather was John Fitzpatrick, mayor of New Orleans from 1892 to 1896. When taking part in season 5 of "Finding Your Roots with Henry Louis Gates, Jr.", Notaro found out that she is also a distant cousin of Gloria Steinem.


title: Tig Notaro

text: In an interview with "Mother Jones" magazine, she said she disliked school. Notaro failed three grades, eventually dropping out of high school. In 1990, while living in Texas, Notaro got her general equivalency diploma.


title: Tig Notaro

text: An avid music fan, Notaro moved to Denver, Colorado, where she became involved in the music industry. She became a band manager, working under the name Tignation Promotions in the mid-'90s.


title: Tig Notaro

text: Notaro's work promoting bands took her to Los Angeles, where she tried stand-up for the first time in the late '90s. Notaro has since been featured on "Comedy Central Presents" and on "The Sarah Silverman Program" as a lesbian police officer. She collaborates frequently with writing partner Kyle Dunnigan. With Dunnigan and David Huntsberger, she co-hosted the podcast "Professor Blastoff" from May 2011 until July 2015.


title: Tig Notaro

text: In 2011, she released her debut stand-up album, "Good One". Her 2012 album, "Live", is a recording of a stand-up set performed shortly after she was diagnosed with breast cancer.


title: Tig Notaro

text: In 2012, Notaro appeared on "Conan", and in May of that year on the live episode of "This American Life", which was broadcast to theaters nationwide and on radio in edited form. She performed a monologue about having encountered Taylor Dayne on multiple occasions, greeting her each time with, "Excuse me, I'm sorry to bother you, but I just have to tell you. I love your voice." After her monologue, Dayne made a surprise appearance, serenading Notaro with the song "I'll Always Love You". She worked on fellow comedian Amy Schumer's Comedy Central series "Inside Amy Schumer." In June 2012, Notaro did a Kickstarter-funded series called "Clown Service" written by her and starring herself.


title: Tig Notaro

text: Notaro wrote a memoir for HarperCollins imprint Ecco called "I'm Just a Person", and there is a Showtime documentary made about her life that chronicled her post-cancer stand-up tour called "Knock Knock, It's Tig Notaro."


title: Tig Notaro

text: In July 2015, a Netflix movie called "Tig", which chronicles Notaro's attempts to become pregnant with her fiancée, Stephanie Allynne, was also released. The singer Sharon Van Etten wrote a song in homage to Notaro called "Words" that is shown in the credits.


title: Tig Notaro

text: In November 2015, Notaro co-wrote, produced, and starred in a semi-autobiographical TV pilot for Amazon Video called "One Mississippi". The show received a six-episode series order from Amazon a month later. The show follows Notaro's character as she returns to her hometown of Bay Saint Louis, Mississippi, after her mother's unexpected death.


title: Tig Notaro

text: Her first stand-up one-hour special was released by HBO in 2015, "". In 2016, it was released as her third album on her own label, Bentzen Ball Records, which also put out Aparna Nancherla's "Just Putting It Out There".


title: Tig Notaro

text: In April 2018, it was announced that Notaro would appear in the second season of "" as Chief Engineer Jett Reno of the U.S.S. "Hiawatha".


title: Tig Notaro

text: Notaro was digitally inserted in post-production in Zack Snyder's "Army of the Dead", replacing Chris D'Elia, who was accused of sexual misconduct.


title: Tig Notaro

text: On her approach to comedy (and whether she considers herself a dark comic): "I'm always going to do whatever I think is funniest. If something's dark, I'll do it. If it's a sock puppet, if it's a stool, I'll do it. There's no preconceived idea of who I think I might be now." Notaro said that since her cancer diagnosis, she has shifted not to darker comedy but rather to personal comedy. Previously she was more distant and observational, but now she reflects on her childhood and her life.


title: Tig Notaro

text: In the autumn of 2016, she appeared in a video as an onstage "stand-in" during the Nostalgic for the Present concert tour of Australian singer Sia for the song "Diamonds."


title: Tig Notaro

text: Notaro met her wife, Stephanie Allynne, on the set of the movie "In a World..." They became engaged on January 1, 2015 and were married on October 24, 2015. They welcomed twin sons in 2016, conceived via a surrogate using Allynne's eggs.


title: Tig Notaro

text: Notaro was diagnosed with cancer in both breasts on July 30, 2012. On August 3, she addressed her cancer diagnosis and other personal difficulties during her live stage show at Largo in Los Angeles. The set has been described as "instantly legendary", with many comedians praising her work.


title: Tig Notaro

text: The next day, comedian Louis C.K. called Notaro, telling her he wanted to release the audio of the show. She was uncomfortable with the idea at first, but decided the material could help people, so she agreed. C.K. made audio of the performance available that October for download on his site under the title "Live". Notaro later released the audio (with booklet) on iTunes. "Live" ended up selling more copies than Kiss's album "Monster", which debuted the same week, something Notaro said she never dreamed could happen. She was a fan of the band in her youth.


title: Tig Notaro

text: Notaro subsequently had a double mastectomy with no reconstructive surgery; she opted out of chemo but decided to continue treatment with hormone blocking.


title: Tig Notaro

text: In November 2014, as part of the New York Comedy Festival, Notaro did a set at Town Hall in New York City wherein she performed part of the set topless. The "New York Times" described it: "She showed the audience her scars and then, through the force of her showmanship, made you forget that they were there. It was a powerful, even inspiring, statement about survival and recovery, and yet, it had the larky feel of a dare."


title: Tig Notaro

text: In 2017, Notaro adopted a vegan diet, which she credited for eliminating the chronic pain she had experienced in the years following her cancer diagnosis. She later earned a certification in plant-based nutrition.


title: Hokkaido

text: The largest city on Hokkaidō is its capital, Sapporo, which is also its only ordinance-designated city. Sakhalin lies about 43 kilometers (26 mi) to the north of Hokkaidō, and to the east and northeast are the Kuril Islands, which are administered by Russia, though the four most southerly are claimed by Japan. Hokkaidō was formerly known as "Ezo", "Yezo", "Yeso", or "Yesso".


title: Hokkaido

text: Although there were Japanese settlers who ruled the southern tip of the island since the 16th century, Hokkaido was considered foreign territory that was inhabited by the indigenous people of the island, known as the Ainu people. While geographers such as Mogami Tokunai and Mamiya Rinzō explored the island in the Edo period, Japan's governance was limited to Oshima Peninsula until the 17th century. The Japanese settlers began their migration to Hokkaido in the 17th century, which often resulted in clashes and revolts between Japanese and Ainu populations. In 1869, following the Meiji Restoration, Ezo was annexed by Japan under on-going colonial practices, and renamed Hokkaido. After this event, Japanese settlers started to colonize the island. While Japanese settlers colonized the island, the Ainu people were dispossessed of their land, forced to assimilate, and aggressively discriminated against by the Japanese settlers.


title: Hokkaido

text: When establishing the Development Commission, the Meiji government decided to change the name of Ezochi. Matsuura Takeshirō submitted six proposals, including names such as and , to the government. The government eventually decided to use the name Hokkaidō, but decided to write it as , as a compromise between and because of the similarity with names such as . According to Matsuura, the name was thought up because the Ainu called the region "Kai". The "kai" element also strongly resembles the On'yomi, or Sino-Japanese, reading of the characters ("on'yomi" as [, カイ], "kun'yomi" as [, えみし]) which have been used for over a thousand years in China and Japan as the standard orthographic form to be used when referring to Ainu and related peoples; it is possible that Matsuura's "kai" was actually an alteration, influenced by the Sino-Japanese reading of "Ka-i", of the Nivkh exonym for the Ainu, namely "Qoy" or .


title: Hokkaido

text: In 1947, Hokkaidō became a full-fledged prefecture. The historical suffix 道 ("-dō") translates to "prefecture" in English, ambiguously the same as 府 ("-fu") for Osaka and Kyoto, and 県 ("-ken") for the rest of the "prefectures". "Dō", as shorthand, can be used to uniquely identify Hokkaido, for example as in 道道 ("dōdō", "Hokkaido road") or 道議会 ("Dōgikai", "Hokkaido Assembly"), the same way 都 ("-to") is used for Tokyo. "Hokkai-do-ken" (literally "North Sea Province Prefecture") is, therefore, technically speaking, a redundant term, although it is occasionally used to differentiate the government from the island. The prefecture's government calls itself the "Hokkaidō Government" rather than the "Hokkaidō Prefectural Government".


title: Hokkaido

text: With the rise of indigenous rights movements, there emerges a normative notion that Hokkaido must have an Ainu language name. Whichever Ainu phrase is chosen, its original referent is critically different from the large geographical entity, however. The phrase ' () has been a preferred choice among Japanese activists. Its primary meaning is the "land of humans", as opposed to the "land of gods" ('). When contrasted with ' (the land of the neighbors, often pointing to Honshu or Japanese settlements on the southern tip of Hokkaido), it means the land of the Ainu people, which, depending on context, can refer to Hokkaido, although from a modern ethnolinguistic point of view, the Ainu people have extended their domain to a large part of Sakhalin and the entire Kuril Islands. Another phrase ' (ヤウンモシㇼ) has gained prominence. It literally means the "onshore land", as opposed to the "offshore land" (), which, depending on context, can refer to the Kuril Islands, Honshu, or any foreign country. If the speaker is a resident of Hokkaido, ' can refer to Hokkaido. Yet another phrase ' (アコㇿモシㇼ) means "our (inclusive) land". If uttered among Hokkaido Ainus, it can refer to Hokkaido or Japan as a whole.


title: Hokkaido

text: During the Jomon period the local culture and the associated hunter-gatherer lifestyle flourished in Hokkaidō, beginning over 15,000 years ago. In contrast to the island of Honshu, Hokkaidō saw an absence of conflict during this time period. Jomon beliefs in natural spirits are theorized to be the origins of Ainu spirituality. About 2,000 years ago, the island was colonized by Yayoi people, and much of the island's population shifted away from hunting and gathering towards agriculture.


title: Hokkaido

text: The "Nihon Shoki", finished in 720 AD, is often said to be the first mention of Hokkaidō in recorded history. According to the text, Abe no Hirafu led a large navy and army to northern areas from 658 to 660 and came into contact with the Mishihase and Emishi. One of the places Hirafu went to was called , which is often believed to be present-day Hokkaidō. However, many theories exist concerning the details of this event, including the location of Watarishima and the common belief that the Emishi in Watarishima were the ancestors of the present-day Ainu people.


title: Hokkaido

text: During the Nara and Heian periods (710–1185), people in Hokkaidō conducted trade with Dewa Province, an outpost of the Japanese central government. From the Middle Ages, the people in Hokkaidō began to be called Ezo. Hokkaidō subsequently became known as or . The Ezo mainly relied upon hunting and fishing and obtained rice and iron through trade with the Japanese.


title: Hokkaido

text: During the Muromachi period (1336–1573), the Japanese created a settlement at the south of the Oshima Peninsula, with a series of fortified residences such as that of Shinoridate. As more people moved to the settlement to avoid battles, disputes arose between the Japanese and the Ainu. The disputes eventually developed into war. Takeda Nobuhiro killed the Ainu leader, Koshamain, and defeated the opposition in 1457. Nobuhiro's descendants became the rulers of the Matsumae-han, which was granted exclusive trading rights with the Ainu in the Azuchi-Momoyama and Edo periods (1568–1868). The Matsumae family's economy relied upon trade with the Ainu. They held authority over the south of Ezochi until the end of the Edo period.


title: Hokkaido

text: The Matsumae clan rule over the Ainu must be understood in the context of the expansion of the Japanese feudal state. Medieval military leaders in northern Honshu (ex. Northern Fujiwara, Akita clan) maintained only tenuous political and cultural ties to the imperial court and its proxies, the Kamakura shogunate and Ashikaga shogunate. Feudal strongmen sometimes located themselves within medieval institutional order, taking shogunate titles, while in other times they assumed titles that seemed to give them a non-Japanese identity. In fact, many of the feudal strongmen were descended from Emishi military leaders who had been assimilated into Japanese society. The Matsumae clan were of Yamato descent like other ethnic Japanese people, whereas the Emishi of northern Honshu were a distinctive group related to the Ainu. The Emishi were conquered and integrated into the Japanese state dating back as far as the 8th century and as result began to lose their distinctive culture and ethnicity as they became minorities. By the time the Matsumae clan ruled over the Ainu, most of the Emishi were ethnically mixed and physically closer to Japanese than they were to Ainu. From this, the "transformation" theory postulates that native Jōmon peoples changed gradually with the infusion of Yayoi immigrants into the Tōhoku, in contrast to the "replacement" theory that posits the Jōmon was "replaced" by the Yayoi.


title: Hokkaido

text: There were numerous revolts by the Ainu against the feudal rule. The last large-scale resistance was Shakushain's revolt in 1669–1672. In 1789, a smaller movement known as the Menashi–Kunashir rebellion was crushed. After that rebellion, the terms "Japanese" and "Ainu" referred to clearly distinguished groups, and the Matsumae were unequivocally Japanese.


title: Hokkaido

text: According to John A. Harrison of the University of Florida, prior to 1868 Japan used proximity as its claim Hokkaido, Saghalien and the Kuril Islands; however, Japan had never really explored, governed, or exploited the areas, and this claim was invalidated by the movement of Russia into the Northeast Pacific area and by Russian settlements on Kamchatka, Saghalien and the Okhotsk Coast.


title: Hokkaido

text: Leading up to the Meiji Restoration, the Tokugawa shogunate realized there was a need to prepare northern defenses against a possible Russian invasion and took over control of most of Ezochi. Many Japanese settlers regarded the Ainu as "inhumane and the inferior descendants of dogs." The shogunate also imposed various assimilation programs on the Ainu.


title: Hokkaido

text: Hokkaidō was known as Ezochi until the Meiji Restoration. Shortly after the Boshin War in 1868, a group of Tokugawa loyalists led by Enomoto Takeaki temporarily occupied the island (the polity is commonly but mistakenly known as the Republic of Ezo), but the rebellion was crushed in May 1869. Through colonial practices, Ezochi was annexed into Japanese territory, and renamed Hokkaido. Ezochi was subsequently put under control of , Hakodate Prefectural Government. When establishing the , the Meiji government introduced a new name. After 1869, the northern Japanese island was known as Hokkaidō; and regional subdivisions were established, including the provinces of Oshima, Shiribeshi, Iburi, Ishikari, Teshio, Kitami, Hidaka, Tokachi, Kushiro, Nemuro and Chishima.


title: Hokkaido

text: The primary purpose of the Development Commission was to secure Hokkaidō before the Russians extended their control of the Far East beyond Vladivostok. The Japanese failed to settle in the interior lowlands of the island because of aboriginal resistance. The resistance was eventually destroyed, and the lowlands were under the control of the commission. The most important goal of the Japanese was to increase the farm population and to create a conducive environment for emigration and settlement. However, the Japanese did not have expertise in modern agricultural techniques, and only possessed primitive mining and lumbering methods. Kuroda Kiyotaka was put in charge of the project, and turned to the United States for help.


title: Hokkaido

text: His first step was to journey to the United States and recruit Horace Capron, President Ulysses S. Grant's commissioner of agriculture. From 1871 to 1873 Capron bent his efforts to expounding Western agriculture and mining, with mixed results. Frustrated with obstacles to his efforts, Capron returned home in 1875. In 1876, William S. Clark arrived to found an agricultural college in Sapporo. Although he only remained a year, Clark left a lasting impression on Hokkaidō, inspiring the Japanese with his teachings on agriculture as well as Christianity. His parting words, ""Boys, be ambitious!"", can be found on public buildings in Hokkaidō to this day. The population of Hokkaidō boomed from 58,000 to 240,000 during that decade.


title: Hokkaido

text: In 1882, the Development Commission was abolished. Transportation on the island was underdeveloped, so the prefecture was split into several "sub-prefectures" (支庁 "shichō"), namely , , and , that could fulfill administrative duties of the prefectural government and keep tight control over the developing island. In 1886, the three prefectures were demoted, and Hokkaidō was put under the . These sub-prefectures still exist today, although they have much less power than they possessed before and during World War II; they now exist primarily to handle paperwork and other bureaucratic functions.


title: Hokkaido

text: In mid-July 1945, various shipping ports, cities, and military facilities in Hokkaidō were attacked by the United States Navy's Task Force 38. On 14–15 July, aircraft operating from the task force's aircraft carriers sank and damaged a large number of ships in ports along Hokkaidō's southern coastline as well as in northern Honshu. In addition, on 15 July a force of three battleships and two light cruisers bombarded the city of Muroran. Before the Japanese surrender was formalized, the Soviet Union made preparations for an invasion of Hokkaidō, but U.S. President Harry Truman made it clear that the surrender of all of the Japanese home islands would be carried out by General Douglas MacArthur per the 1943 Cairo Declaration.


title: Hokkaido

text: Hokkaidō became equal with other prefectures in 1947, when the revised Local Autonomy Law became effective. The Japanese central government established the as an agency of the Prime Minister's Office in 1949 to maintain its executive power in Hokkaidō. The agency was absorbed by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport in 2001. and the of the ministry still have a strong influence on public construction projects in Hokkaidō.


title: Hokkaido

text: The island of Hokkaidō is located in the north of Japan, near Russia (Sakhalin Oblast). It has coastlines on the Sea of Japan (to the west of the island), the Sea of Okhotsk (to the north), and the Pacific Ocean (to the east). The center of the island is mountainous, with volcanic plateaux. Hokkaidō has multiple plains such as the Ishikari Plain , Tokachi Plain , the Kushiro Plain (the largest wetland in Japan) and Sarobetsu Plain . Hokkaidō is which make it the second-largest island of Japan.


title: Hokkaido

text: The Tsugaru Strait separates Hokkaidō from Honshu (Aomori Prefecture); La Pérouse Strait separates Hokkaidō from the island of Sakhalin in Russia; Nemuro Strait separates Hokkaidō from Kunashir Island in the Russian Kuril Islands.


title: Hokkaido

text: The governmental jurisdiction of Hokkaidō incorporates several smaller islands, including Rishiri, Okushiri Island, and Rebun. (By Japanese reckoning, Hokkaidō also incorporates several of the Kuril Islands.) Hokkaidō Prefecture is the largest and northernmost Japanese prefecture. The island ranks 21st in the world by area.


title: Hokkaido

text: Hokkaidō has the third-largest population of Japan's five main islands, with 5,383,579 people . It has the lowest population-density in Japan with just 64.5/km (160/sq mi) (2016). By population, it ranks 21st globally. Major cities include Sapporo and Asahikawa in the central region and the port of Hakodate facing Honshu in the south. Sapporo is the largest city of Hokkaidō and 5th-largest in Japan. It had a population of 1,957,914 and a population density of .


title: Hokkaido

text: There are three populations of the Ussuri brown bear found on the island. There are more brown bears in Hokkaidō than anywhere else in Asia besides Russia. The Hokkaidō brown bear is separated into three distinct lineages. There are only eight lineages in the world. Those on Honshu died out long ago.


title: Hokkaido

text: The native conifer species in northern Hokkaidō is the Sakhalin fir ("Abies sachalinensis"). The flowering plant "Hydrangea hirta" is also found on the island.


title: Hokkaido

text: Like many areas of Japan, Hokkaidō is seismically active. Aside from numerous earthquakes, the following volcanoes are considered still active (at least one eruption since 1850):


title: Hokkaido

text: In 1993, an earthquake of magnitude 7.7 generated a tsunami which devastated Okushiri, killing 202 inhabitants. An earthquake of magnitude 8.3 struck near the island on September 26, 2003. On September 6, 2018, an earthquake of magnitude 6.6 struck with its epicenter near the city of Tomakomai, causing a blackout across the whole island.


title: Hokkaido

text: On May 16, 2021, an earthquake measuring 6.1 on the Richter scale struck off Japan's Hokkaidō prefecture.


title: Hokkaido

text: , Hokkaidō has nine General Subprefectural Bureaus (総合振興局) and five Subprefectural Bureaus (振興局). Hokkaidō is one of eight prefectures in Japan that have subprefectures (支庁 "shichō"). However, it is the only one of the eight to have such offices covering the whole of its territory outside the main cities (rather than having them just for outlying islands or remote areas). This is mostly because of its great size; many parts of the prefecture are simply too far away to be effectively administered by Sapporo. Subprefectural offices in Hokkaidō carry out many of the duties that prefectural offices fulfill elsewhere in Japan.


title: Hokkaido

text: As Japan's coldest region, Hokkaidō has relatively cool summers and icy/snowy winters. Most of the island falls in the humid continental climate zone with Köppen climate classification "Dfb" (hemiboreal) in most areas but "Dfa" (hot summer humid continental) in some inland lowlands. The average August temperature ranges from , while the average January temperature ranges from , in both cases depending on elevation and distance from the ocean, though temperatures on the western side of the island tend to be a little warmer than on the eastern. The highest temperature ever recorded is on 26 May 2019.


title: Hokkaido

text: The northern portion of Hokkaidō falls into the taiga biome with significant snowfall. Snowfall varies widely from as much as on the mountains adjacent to the Sea of Japan down to around on the Pacific coast. The island tends to have isolated snowstorms that develop long-lasting snowbanks. Total precipitation varies from on the mountains of the Sea of Japan coast to around (the lowest in Japan) on the Sea of Okhotsk coast and interior lowlands and up to around on the Pacific side. The generally high quality of powder snow and numerous mountains in Hokkaidō make it a popular region for snow sports. The snowfall usually commences in earnest in November and ski resorts (such as those at Niseko, Furano, Teine and Rusutsu) usually operate between December and April. Hokkaidō celebrates its winter weather at the Sapporo Snow Festival.


title: Hokkaido

text: During the winter, passage through the Sea of Okhotsk is often complicated by large floes of drift ice. Combined with high winds that occur during winter, this frequently brings air travel and maritime activity to a halt beyond the northern coast of Hokkaidō. Ports on the open Pacific Ocean and Sea of Japan are generally ice-free year round, though most rivers freeze during the winter.


title: Hokkaido

text: Unlike the other major islands of Japan, Hokkaidō is normally not affected by the June–July rainy season and the relative lack of humidity and typically warm, rather than hot, summer weather makes its climate an attraction for tourists from other parts of Japan.


title: Hokkaido

text: Hokkaidō's largest city is the capital, Sapporo, which is a designated city. The island has two core cities: Hakodate in the south and Asahikawa in the central region. Other important population centers include Rumoi, Iwamizawa, Kushiro, Obihiro, Kitami, Abashiri, Wakkanai, and Nemuro.


title: Hokkaido

text: Although there is some light industry (most notably paper milling and beer brewing) most of the population is employed by the service sector. In 2001, the service sector and other tertiary industries generated more than three-quarters of the gross domestic product.


title: Hokkaido

text: Agriculture and other primary industries play a large role in Hokkaidō's economy. Hokkaidō has nearly one fourth of Japan's total arable land. It ranks first in the nation in the production of a host of agricultural products, including wheat, soybeans, potatoes, sugar beets, onions, pumpkins, corn, raw milk, and beef. Hokkaidō also accounts for 22% of Japan's forests with a sizable timber industry. The prefecture is first in the nation in production of marine products and aquaculture. The average farm size in Hokkaidō is 26 hectares per farmer in 2013, which is almost 11 times bigger than the national average of 2.4 hectares.


title: Hokkaido

text: Tourism is an important industry, especially during the cool summertime when visitors are attracted to Hokkaidō's open spaces from hotter and more humid parts of Japan and other Asian countries. During the winter, skiing and other winter sports bring other tourists, and increasingly international ones, to the island.


title: Hokkaido

text: Coal mining played an important role in the industrial development of Hokkaidō, with the Ishikari coalfield. Cities such as Muroran were primarily developed to supply the rest of the archipelago with coal.


title: Hokkaido

text: Hokkaidō's only land link to the rest of Japan is the Seikan Tunnel. Most travellers travel to the island by air: the main airport is New Chitose Airport at Chitose, just south of Sapporo. Tokyo–Chitose is in the top 10 of the world's busiest air routes, handling more than 40 widebody round trips on several airlines each day. One of the airlines, Air Do was named after Hokkaidō.


title: Hokkaido

text: Hokkaidō can be reached by ferry from Sendai, Niigata and some other cities, with the ferries from Tokyo dealing only in cargo. The Hokkaido Shinkansen takes passengers from Tokyo to near Hakodate in slightly over four hours. There is a fairly well-developed railway network, but many cities can only be accessed by road. The coal railways were constructed around Sapporo and Horonai during the late 19th century, as advised by American engineer Joseph Crawford.


title: Hokkaido

text: Hokkaidō is home to one of Japan's Melody Roads, which is made from grooves cut into the ground, which when driven over causes a tactile vibration and audible rumbling transmitted through the wheels into the car body.


title: Hokkaido

text: The Hokkaido Prefectural Board of Education oversees public schools (except colleges and universities) in Hokkaidō. Public elementary and junior high schools (except Hokkaido Noboribetsu Akebi Secondary School and schools attached to Hokkaidō University of Education) are operated by municipalities, and public high schools are operated by either the prefectural board or municipalities.


title: Hokkaido

text: As of 2016, there are 291 high schools in Hokkaido: 4 national schools, 55 private schools, 233 public schools, and 2 integrated junior-senior schools.


title: Hokkaido

text: Hokkaidō has 34 universities (7 national, 6 local public, and 21 private universities), 15 junior colleges, and 6 colleges of technology (3 national, 1 local public, and 2 private colleges).


title: Hokkaido

text: , 74 individual municipalities in Hokkaidō have sister city agreements with 114 cities in 21 countries worldwide.


title: Hokkaido

text: The current governor of Hokkaido is Naomichi Suzuki. He won the governorship in the gubernatorial election in 2019 as an independent. In 1999, Hori was supported by all major non-Communist parties and Itō ran without party support. Before 1983, the governorship had been held by Liberal Democrats Naohiro Dōgakinai and Kingo Machimura for 24 years. In the 1971 election when Machimura retired, the Socialist candidate Shōhei Tsukada lost to Dōgakinai by only 13,000 votes; Tsukada was also supported by the Communist Party – the leftist cooperation in opposition to the US-Japanese security treaty had brought joint Socialist-Communist candidates to victory in many other prefectural and local elections in the 1960s and 1970s. In 1959, Machimura had defeated Yokomichi's father Setsuo in the race to succeed Hokkaidō's first elected governor, Socialist Toshibumi Tanaka who retired after three terms. Tanaka had only won the governorship in 1947 in a run-off election against Democrat Eiji Arima because no candidate had received the necessary vote share to win in the first round as required by law at the time.


title: Hokkaido

text: The Hokkaido Legislative Assembly has 100 members from 47 electoral districts. , the LDP caucus holds a majority with 51 seats, the DPJ-led group has 26 members. Other groups are the "Hokkaidō Yūshikai" of New Party Daichi and independents with twelve seats, Kōmeitō with eight, and the Japanese Communist Party with four members. General elections for the Hokkaido assembly are currently held together with gubernatorial elections in the unified local elections (last round: April 2015).


title: Hokkaido

text: For the lower house of the National Diet, Hokkaidō is divided into twelve single-member electoral districts. In the 2017 election, candidates from the governing coalition of Liberal Democrats and Kōmeitō won seven districts and the main opposition Constitutional Democrats five. For the proportional election segment, Hokkaidō and Tokyo are the only two prefectures that form a regional "block" district of their own. The Hokkaido proportional representation block elects eight Representatives. In 2017, the Liberal Democratic Party received 28.8% of the proportional vote and won three seats, the Constitutional Democratic Party won three (26.4% of the vote), one seat each went to Kibō no Tō (12.3%) and Kōmeitō (11.0%). The Japanese Communist Party, who won a seat in 2014, lost their seat in 2017 while receiving 8.5% of the votes.


title: Hokkaido

text: In the upper house of the National Diet, a major reapportionment in the 1990s halved the number of Councillors from Hokkaidō per election from four to two. After the elections of 2010 and 2013, the Hokkaido electoral district – like most two-member districts for the upper house – is represented by two Liberal Democrats and two Democrats. In the 2016 upper house election, the district magnitude will be raised to three, Hokkaidō will then temporarily be represented by five members and six after the 2019 election.


title: Apple M1

text: Apple M1 is a series of ARM-based systems-on-a-chip (SoCs) designed by Apple Inc. as a central processing unit (CPU) and graphics processing unit (GPU) for its Mac desktops and notebooks, and the iPad Pro and iPad Air tablets. The M1 chip initiated Apple's third change to the instruction set architecture used by Macintosh computers, switching from Intel to Apple silicon 14 years after they were switched from PowerPC to Intel, and 26 years after the transition from the original Motorola 68000 series to PowerPC. At the time of introduction in 2020, Apple said that the M1 had the world's fastest CPU core "in low power silicon" and the world's best CPU performance per watt. Its successor, Apple M2, was announced on June 6, 2022 at WWDC.


title: Apple M1

text: The M1 was introduced in November 2020, and was followed by the professional-focused M1 Pro and M1 Max chips in October 2021. The M1 Max is a higher-powered version of the M1 Pro, with more GPU cores and memory bandwidth and a larger die size. Apple introduced the M1 Ultra in 2022, combining two M1 Max chips in one package. These chips differ largely in size and the number of functional units: for example, while the original M1 has about 16 billion transistors, the M1 Ultra has 114 billion.


title: Apple M1

text: Apple's macOS and iPadOS operating systems both run on the M1. Initial support for the M1 SoC in the Linux kernel was released in version 5.13 on June 27, 2021. The initial versions of the M1 chips contain an architectural defect that permits sandboxed applications to exchange data, violating the security model, an issue that has been described as "mostly harmless".


title: Apple M1

text: The M1 has four high-performance "Firestorm" and four energy-efficient "Icestorm" cores, first seen on the A14 Bionic. It has a hybrid configuration similar to ARM DynamIQ and Intel's Lakefield, Alder Lake and Raptor Lake processors. This combination allows power-use optimizations not possible with previous Apple–Intel architecture devices. Apple claims the energy-efficient cores use one-tenth the power of the high-performance ones. The high-performance cores have an unusually large 192 KB of L1 instruction cache and 128 KB of L1 data cache and share a 12 MB L2 cache; the energy-efficient cores have a 128 KB L1 instruction cache, 64 KB L1 data cache, and a shared 4 MB L2 cache. The SoC also has a 8MB System Level Cache shared by the GPU.


title: Apple M1

text: The M1 Pro and M1 Max use the same ARM big.LITTLE design as the M1, with eight high-performance "Firestorm" (six in the lower-binned variants of the M1 Pro) and two energy-efficient "Icestorm" cores, providing a total of ten cores (eight in the lower-binned variants of the M1 Pro). The high-performance cores are clocked at 3228 MHz, and the high-efficiency cores are clocked at 2064 MHz. The eight high-performance cores are split into two clusters. Each high-performance cluster shares 12 MB of L2 cache. The two high-efficiency cores share 4 MB of L2 cache. The M1 Pro and M1 Max have 24 MB and 48 MB respectively of system level cache (SLC).


title: Apple M1

text: The M1 Ultra combines two M1 Max chips in one package for a total of 20 CPU cores and 96 MB system level cache (SLC).


title: Apple M1

text: The M1 integrates an Apple designed eight-core (seven in some base models) graphics processing unit (GPU). Each GPU core is split into 16 Execution Units, which each contain eight Arithmetic Logic Units (ALUs). In total, the M1 GPU contains up to 128 Execution units or 1024 ALUs, which Apple says can execute up to 24,576 threads simultaneously and which have a maximum floating point (FP32) performance of 2.6 TFLOPs.


title: Apple M1

text: The M1 Pro integrates a 16-core (14 in some base models) graphics processing unit (GPU), while the M1 Max integrates a 32-core (24 in some base models) GPU. In total, the M1 Max GPU contains up to 512 execution units or 4096 ALUs, which have a maximum floating point (FP32) performance of 10.4 TFLOPs.


title: Apple M1

text: The M1 uses a 128-bit LPDDR4X SDRAM in a unified memory configuration shared by all the components of the processor. The SoC and RAM chips are mounted together in a system-in-a-package design. 8 GB and 16 GB configurations are available.


title: Apple M1

text: The M1 Pro has 256-bit LPDDR5 SDRAM memory, and the M1 Max has 512-bit LPDDR5 SDRAM memory. While the M1 SoC has 66.67GB/s memory bandwidth, the M1 Pro has 200GB/s bandwidth and the M1 Max has a 400GB/s bandwidth. The M1 Pro comes in memory configurations of 16 GB and 32 GB, and the M1 Max comes in configurations of 32 GB and 64 GB.


title: Apple M1

text: The M1 Ultra doubles the specs of the M1 Max for a 1024-bit or 1-kilobit memory bus with 800GB/s bandwidth in a 64 GB or 128 GB configuration.


title: Apple M1

text: The M1 contains dedicated neural network hardware in a 16-core Neural Engine, capable of executing 11 trillion operations per second. Other components include an image signal processor, a PCIe storage controller, a USB4 controller that includes Thunderbolt 3 support, and a Secure Enclave. The M1 Pro, Max and Ultra support Thunderbolt 4.


title: Apple M1

text: The M1 has video codec encoding support for HEVC and H.264. It has decoding support for HEVC, H.264, and ProRes. The M1 Pro, M1 Max, and M1 Ultra have a media engine which has hardware-accelerated H.264, HEVC, ProRes, and ProRes RAW. This media engine includes a video decode engine (the M1 Ultra has two), a video encode engine (the M1 Max has two and the M1 Ultra has four), and a ProRes encode and decode engine (again the M1 Max has two and the M1 Ultra has four).


title: Apple M1

text: The M1 Max supports High Power Mode on the 16-inch MacBook Pro for intensive tasks. The M1 Pro supports two 6K displays at 60Hz over Thunderbolt, while the M1 Max supports a third 6K display over Thunderbolt and a 4K monitor over HDMI 2.0. All parameters of the M1 Max processors are doubled in M1 Ultra processors, as they are essentially two M1 Max processors operating in parallel; they are in a single package (in size being bigger than Socket AM4 AMD Ryzen processor) and seen as one processor in macOS.


title: Apple M1

text: The M1 recorded competitive performance and efficiency in popular benchmarks (Geekbench 5, Cinebench R23).


title: Apple M1

text: The 2020 M1-equipped Mac Mini draws 7 watts when idle and 39 watts at maximum load, compared with 20 watts idle and 122 watts maximum load for the 2018 6-core Intel i7 Mac mini. The energy efficiency of the M1 increases battery life of M1-based MacBooks by 50% compared to previous Intel-based MacBooks.


title: Apple M1

text: At release, the MacBook Air (M1, 2020) and MacBook Pro (M1, 2020) were praised by critics for their CPU performance and battery life, particularly compared to previous MacBooks.


title: Apple M1

text: After its release, some users who charged M1 devices through USB-C hubs reported bricking their device. The devices that are reported to cause this issue were third-party USB-C hubs and non-Thunderbolt docks (excluding Apple's own dongle). Apple handled this issue by replacing the logic board and by telling its customers not to charge through those hubs. macOS Big Sur 11.2.2 includes a fix to prevent 2019 or later MacBook Pro models and 2020 or later MacBook Air models from being damaged by certain third-party USB-C hubs and docks.


title: Apple M1

text: A flaw in M1 processors, given the name "M1racles", was announced in May 2021. Two sandboxed applications can exchange data without the system's knowledge by using an unintentionally writable processor register as a covert channel, violating the security model and constituting a minor vulnerability. It was discovered by Hector Martin, founder of the Asahi Linux project for Linux on Apple Silicon.


title: Apple M1

text: In May 2022 a flaw termed "Augury" was announced involving the Data-Memory Dependent Prefetcher (DMP) in M1 chips, discovered by researchers at Tel Aviv University, the University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign, and the University of Washington. It was not considered a substantial security risk at the time.


title: Apple M1

text: In June 2022 MIT researchers announced they had found a speculative execution vulnerability in M1 chips which they called "Pacman" after pointer authentication codes (PAC). Apple said they did not believe this posed a serious threat to users.


title: Olympiacos F.C.

text: Olympiacos Club of Fans of Piraeus ( ), known simply as Olympiacos or Olympiacos Piraeus, is a Greek professional football club based in Piraeus, Attica. Part of the major multi-sport club Olympiacos CFP ("Olympiakós Sýndesmos Filáthlon Peiraiós", "Olympic Club of Fans of Piraeus"), their name was inspired from the ancient Olympic Games and along with the club's emblem, the laurel-crowned Olympic athlete, symbolize the Olympic ideals of ancient Greece. Their home ground is the Karaiskakis Stadium, a 32,115-capacity stadium in Piraeus.


title: Olympiacos F.C.

text: Founded on 10 March 1925, Olympiacos is the most successful club in Greek football history, having won 47 League titles, 28 Cups (18 Doubles) and 4 Super Cups, all records. Τotalling 79 national trophies, Olympiacos is 9th in the world in total titles won by a football club. The club's dominating success can be further evidenced by the fact that all other Greek clubs have won a combined total of 39 League titles, while Olympiacos also holds the record for the most consecutive Greek League titles won, with seven in a row in two occasions (1997–2003 and 2011–2017), breaking their own previous record of six consecutive wins in the 1950s (1954–1959), when Olympiacos was unequivocally nicknamed Thrylos." (, "The Legend").


title: Olympiacos F.C.

text: Having won the 2014–15 League title, Olympiacos became the only football club in the world to have won a series of five or more consecutive championships for five times in their history, a record that was praised by FIFA with a congratulatory letter of its president, Sepp Blatter. They are also the only Greek club to have won five consecutive national Cups (1957–1961) as well as six League titles undefeated (1937, 1938, 1948, 1951, 1954, 1955). Olympiacos are one of only three clubs to have never been relegated from the top flight of Greek football, and by winning the 2012–13 title, their 40th in total, they added a fourth star above their crest, each one representing 10 League titles.


title: Olympiacos F.C.

text: In European competitions, Olympiacos best performances are their presence in the UEFA Champions League quarter-finals in 1998–99, losing the semi-final spot in the last minutes of their second leg match against Juventus, as well as in the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup quarter-finals in 1992–93. The Red-Whites are by far the highest ranked Greek club in the UEFA rankings, occupying the 37th place in Europe in the five-year ranking and the 30th in the ten-year ranking as of 2021, and one of the founding members of the European Club Association. Olympiacos won the Balkans Cup in 1963, at a time when the competition was considered the second most important in the region after the European Cup, becoming the first ever Greek club to win an international competition.


title: Olympiacos F.C.

text: Olympiacos is the most popular football club in Greece, also being the most popular club among the population of Athens, and gathering strong support from Greek communities all over the world. With 83,000 registered members as of April 2006, the club was placed 9th in the 2006 list of football clubs with the most paying members in the world; that figure increased to 98,000 in 2014. Olympiacos share a long-standing rivalry with Panathinaikos, with whom they contest in the "derby of the eternal enemies", the most classic football derby in Greece and one of the most well known around the world.


title: Olympiacos F.C.

text: Olympiacos was founded on 10 March 1925, in the Athenian port city of Piraeus. The club's initial aim, as stated in the statutes, was the systematic cultivation and development of its athletes' possibilities for participation in athletic competitions, the spreading of the Olympic athletic ideal and the promotion of sportsmanship and fanship among the youth according to egalitarian principles, by stressing a healthy, ethical and social basis as its foundation. Members of "Piraikos Podosfairikos Omilos FC" (Sport and Football Club of Piraeus) and "Piraeus Fans Club FC" decided, during a historical assembly, to dissolve the two clubs in order to establish a new unified one, which would bring this new vision and dynamic to the community. , a senior officer of the Hellenic Navy, proposed the name "Olympiacos" and the profile of a laurel-crowned Olympic winner as the emblem of the new club. , a prominent Piraeus industrialist, expanded the name to its complete and current status, "Olympiacos Syndesmos Filathlon Pireos". Besides Kamperos and Manouskos, among the most notable founding members were Stavros Maragoudakis, the post office director; Nikos Andronikos, a merchant; Dimitrios Sklias, a Hellenic Army officer; Nikolaos Zacharias, an attorney; Athanasios Mermigas, a notary public; , who became the first goalkeeper in the club's history; Ioannis Kekkes, a stockbroker; and above all, the Andrianopoulos family. Andrianopoulos, a family of well-established Piraeus merchants, played a pivotal role in the founding of Olympiacos. The five brothers, Yiannis, , , Vassilis and Leonidas Andrianopoulos raised the reputation of the club and brought it to its current glory. Yiannis, Dinos, Giorgos and Vassilis were the first to play, while Leonidas, the youngest of the five, made his debut later on and played for the club for eight years (1927–1935). The club's offensive line, made up of the five brothers, became legendary, rising to a mythical status and soon Olympiacos gained enormous popularity and became the most successful and well-supported club in Greece. Back then, their fan base consisted mainly of the working class, with the team's home ground at Neo Phaliron Velodrome, before moving to its current Karaiskakis Stadium. They became Piraeus Champions in 1925 and 1926.


title: Olympiacos F.C.

text: In 1926, the Hellenic Football Federation was founded and organized the Panhellenic Championship in the 1927–1928 season. This was the first national championship, where the regional champions from EPSA league (Athens), EPSP league (Piraeus) and EPSM league (Thessaloniki) competed for the national title during play-offs, with Aris becoming the first champion. The Panhellenic Championship was organized in this manner up until 1958–59. However, in the second season (1928–29) a dispute arose between Olympiacos and the Hellenic Football Federation and as a result, the club did not participate in the championship, with Panathinaikos and AEK Athens deciding to follow Olympiacos. During the course of that season, the three of them played friendly games with each other and formed a group called P.O.K.


title: Olympiacos F.C.

text: Meanwhile, the club continued to dominate the Piraeus Championship, winning the 1926–27, 1928–29, 1929–30 and 1930–31 titles and started establishing themselves as the leading force in Greek football; they set a record by remaining undefeated against all Greek teams for three consecutive seasons (14 March 1926 to 3 March 1929), counting 30 wins and 6 draws in 36 games. Those results ignited an enthusiastic reception from the Greek press, who called Olympiacos "Thrylos" ("Legend") for the first time in history. The fourth Panhellenic Championship took place in 1930–31 and found Olympiacos winning the Greece national league title for the first time ever, which was a milestone that marked the beginning of a very successful era in Olympiacos history. Olympiacos put in a great performance during the competition and won the title very convincingly with 11 wins, 2 draws and only one game lost. They managed to score 7 wins in 7 matches at home, beating Panathinaikos, AEK Athens, Aris, Iraklis and PAOK with the same score: 3–1. The sole exception was the match against Ethnikos, where Olympiacos netted 4 goals and won with 4–1. Besides the Andrianopoulos brothers and Kostas Klidouchakis, other notable players of the first era in the club's history (1925–1931) were Achilleas Grammatikopoulos, , , Nikos Panopoulos, Charalambos Pezonis and Kostas Terezakis.


title: Olympiacos F.C.

text: The rise of the new decade marked a substantial rise in Panhellenic Championship's popularity throughout Greece. In October 1931, Giorgos and Yiannis Andrianopoulos, emblematic players and founding members of Olympiacos, retired from active football. However, new heroes emerged, such as Giannis Vazos, , , , , , Nikos Grigoratos, Panagis Korsianos as well as the iconic brothers and and the club won five Championships in nine seasons (1932–33, 1933–34, 1935–36, 1936–37, 1937–38) and by 1940, Olympiacos had already won six Championships in the eleven first seasons of the Panhellenic Championship. Especially Giannis Vazos, Christoforos Raggos and Theologos Symeonidis composed a formidable trio of attacking players, scoring numerous goals and became nothing short of legendary. Giannis Vazos played for 18 years for Olympiacos (1931–1949), and managed to score 450 goals in 364 games (179 goals in 156 official games) for the club, being the club's second all-time scorer, winning also the Greek Championship top scorer award four times (1933, 1936, 1937 and 1947).


title: Olympiacos F.C.

text: In addition, the club managed to win the 1936–37 and 1937–38 Championship titles undefeated. Ιn Greek Cup, the team did not manage to win the competition in its first four editions, despite some outstanding wins such as the record-setting 1–6 away victory against Panathinaikos in Leoforos Stadium in 1932 (V. Andrianopoulos 16', 68', 88', 24', Vazos 69', 70'), which is the biggest away victory in this derby's history.


title: Olympiacos F.C.

text: On 28 October 1940, Fascist Italy invaded Greece, and several Olympiacos players joined the Hellenic Army to fight against the Axis invaders. Chistoforos Raggos was heavily injured in his left leg in January 1941, and wasn't able to play football again. Leonidas Andrianopoulos suffered severe frostbite in the Albanian front and almost died, while Nikos Grigoratos was injured in the leg during the Battle of Klisura. Furthermore, after the subsequent German occupation of Greece, Olympiacos players joined the Greek Resistance and fought fiercely against the Nazis. Olympiacos player , an emblematic figure for the club, was captain of the Greek People's Liberation Army (ELAS) and fought against the Germans in many fronts. He was executed wearing Olympiacos shirt and shorts, as was his last wish: "Shoot me and kill me with my Olympiacos shirt on, and do not blindfold me, I want to see the colours of my team before the final shot." Michalis Anamateros was also an active member of the Greek Resistance and was killed in 1944. Olympiacos paid a heavy price during the destructive war, the Axis occupation and the ensuing Greek Civil War and the club's progress was put on temporary hold.


title: Olympiacos F.C.

text: After the war, Olympiacos saw many of its key-players of the pre-war era retire, with many significant changes being made in the team's roster. Olympiacos captain and prolific scorer Giannis Vazos remained in the club, along with Giannis Chelmis. New important players joined the club, such as Andreas Mouratis, Alekos Chatzistavridis, and . As soon as regular fixtures recommenced, the Piraeus club returned to their dominant position in Greek football. From 1946 to 1959, Olympiacos won 9 out of the 11 Greek Championships (1947, 1948, 1951, 1954, 1955, 1956, 1957, 1958, 1959), bringing home 15 Championship titles in a total of 23 completed seasons of the Greek League. The six-straight Greek Championships won by Olympiacos from 1954 to 1959 was an unmatched achievement in Greek football history, an all-time record which stood for 44 years, up until Olympiacos managed to win seven-straight Greek Championships from 1997 to 2003.


title: Olympiacos F.C.

text: Furthermore, during the same period (1946–1959), the club won 8 Greek Cups out of 13 editions (1947, 1951, 1952, 1953, 1954, 1957, 1958, 1959), thus completing 6 Doubles (1947, 1951, 1954, 1957, 1958, 1959), three of which being consecutive (1957–1959). The legendary Olympiacos team of the 1950s, with key performers such as Andreas Mouratis, Ilias Rossidis, , Ilias Yfantis, , Kostas Polychroniou, , , , , , , , , , , , , , and marked Olympiacos' period of absolute domination in Greek football, which skyrocketed the club's popularity and spread the word of Olympiacos' superiority throughout Greece. Hence, after the club's record-breaking performance in the trophy-laden era of the 1950s, the club gained unequivocally the nickname of "Thrylos", meaning "The Legend".


title: Olympiacos F.C.

text: On 13 September 1959, Olympiacos made its debut in Europe against Milan for the 1959–60 European Cup and became the first Greek club that ever played in the European competitions. The first leg was held at the Karaiskakis Stadium in Piraeus and Olympiacos took the lead with a goal by (1–0), which was the first goal ever scored by a Greek club (and by a Greek player as well) in the European competitions. Milan's prolific goalscorer José Altafini equalised the match with a header in the 33rd minute, after a cross by Giancarlo Danova. Ilias Yfantis scored an outstanding goal and gave Olympiacos the lead again in the 45th minute of the game, when he controlled the ball between Cesare Maldini and and unleashed a powerful volley, burying the ball into the back of the net (2–1). Altafini scored his second goal once again with a header (72nd minute), after a free-kick by Nils Liedholm. The match ended 2–2, with Olympiacos putting in a great performance against the Italian champions, despite the fact that they had no foreign players in their roster, while Milan had four world-class foreign players, such as Altafini, Liedholm, Juan Alberto Schiaffino and Ernesto Grillo. In the second leg Milan won 3–1 (Giancarlo Danova 12', 26', 85'; 68') and qualified for the next round, despite Olympiacos' good performance especially in the second half.


title: Olympiacos F.C.

text: Olympiacos entered the 1960s by winning the 1960 and 1961 Greek Cups, thus completing five consecutive Greek Cup wins, which is an all-time record in Greek football history. In this decade, a strong side was created with players from the late 1950s and new important players, such as , Nikos Gioutsos, , Vasilis Botinos, , , , , , Giangos Simantiris, , , , Sotiris Gavetsos, Tasos Sourounis, Vangelis Milisis, Orestis Pavlidis, Panagiotis Barbalias and last but not least the prolific goalscorer Giorgos Sideris, top-scorer in the club's history with 493 goals in 519 matches in all competitions (224 goals in 284 Greek Championship matches).


title: Olympiacos F.C.

text: In 1963, Olympiacos became the first ever Greek club to win a non-domestic competition, winning the Balkans Cup, which marked the first international success by any Greek football club. The Balkans Cup was a very popular international competition in the 1960s (the 1967 final attracted 42.000 spectators), being the second most important international club competition for clubs from the Balkans (after the European Champions' Cup). Olympiacos topped his group after some notable wins, beating Galatasaray 1–0 at the Karaiskakis Stadium ( 49'), as well as FK Sarajevo (3–2) and FC Brașov (1–0), bagging also two away draws against Galatasaray (1–1) in Mithatpaşa Stadium (Metin Oktay 78' – 6') and FK Sarajevo in Koševo Stadium (3–3). In the final, they faced Levski Sofia, winning the first match in Piraeus (1–0, Giorgos Sideris 37') and losing the second match in Vasil Levski Stadium with the same score. In the third decisive final in Istanbul (a neutral ground), Olympiacos beat Levski 1–0 in Mithatpaşa Stadium with a goal by in the 87th minute and won the Balkans Cup.


title: Olympiacos F.C.

text: The club went on to win the 1963 and 1965 Greek Cups, completing seven Greek Cup titles in nine years. However, the years 1959–1965 were not fruitful for Olympiacos in the Greek Championship, as the team was not able to win the title for six years. This mediocre performance led Olympiacos board to hire the legendary Márton Bukovi as the club's head coach, with Mihály Lantos (prominent member of the Hungary national team of the 1950s widely known as the "Mighty Magyars" or ""Aranycsapat"") as his assistant coach. The innovative Hungarian coach, pioneer of the 4–2–4 formation (along with Béla Guttmann and Gusztáv Sebes) was a solid tactician and favoured attacking football and very demanding training sessions. Bukovi's innovatory tactics and groundbreaking training methods transformed Olympiacos and created a powerful, attacking team with constant player movement and solid combination game that often played spectacular football. Under Bukovi's guidance and with the great performance of key players such as Giorgos Sideris, Nikos Gioutsos, Kostas Polychroniou, Vasilis Botinos, , , , , , , and Orestis Pavlidis, Olympiacos won 2 straight Greek Championships (1966, 1967). They won the 1966 title with 23 wins and 4 draws in 30 games and in the decisive away match against Trikala, an estimated 15,000 ecstatic Olympiacos fans swarmed into the city of Trikala to celebrate the win (0–5) and the Championship title after seven years.


title: Olympiacos F.C.

text: The next season 1966–67, Olympiacos won 12 out of the first 14 games in the league, which was an all-time record in Greek football history, which lasted for 46 years and up until 2013, when Olympiacos, under coach Míchel's guidance, broke his own record by winning 13 out of the 14 first matches of the 2013–14 season. They won the title in a convincing way and with some notable wins, like the 4–0 smashing victory against arch-rivals Panathinaikos at the Karaiskakis Stadium ( 17', Sideris 20', 35', 62'), where Olympiacos played spectacular football and missed a plethora of chances for a much bigger score. Bukovi became a legend for the club's fans and his creation, the Olympiacos team of 1965–67, became nothing short of legendary. A special anthem was written for Bukovi's Olympiacos and became popular throughout Greece: ""Του Μπούκοβι την ομαδάρα, τη λένε Ολυμπιακάρα"" ("Bukovi's mighty team is called Olympiacos").


title: Olympiacos F.C.

text: Shortly before the end of the 1966–67 season, a military coup d'état took place and the Colonels seized power in Greece, establishing a dictatorship. The regime of the Colonels had devastating consequences for Olympiacos. In December 1967, Giorgos Andrianopoulos, club legend and president of the club for 13 years (1954–1967) was forced out of the club's presidency by the military regime. Furthermore, the regime canceled the transfer of Giorgos Koudas to Olympiacos and days later another blow was delivered to the club: Márton Bukovi, already a legend and architect of the great 1965–67 team, was forced out of Greece by the military junta, being labeled a communist. He left Greece on 21 December 1967, along with Mihály Lantos.