title: Panathinaikos B.C.

text: The parent athletic club was founded in 1908, while the basketball team was created in 1919, being one of the oldest in Greece. Alongside Aris, they are the only un-relegated teams with participation in every Greek First Division Championship until today.


title: Panathinaikos B.C.

text: Panathinaikos has developed into the most successful basketball club in Greek basketball's history, and one of the most successful in European basketball, creating its own dynasty. They have won six EuroLeague Championships, thirty-nine Greek Basket League Championships, twenty Greek Cups, one Intercontinental Cup, one Greek Super Cup and two Triple Crowns. They also hold the record for most consecutive Greek League titles, as they are the only team to have won nine consecutive championships (2003–2011), as well as for the most consecutive Greek Basketball Cup titles, winning six from 2012 to 2017. Panathinaikos counts one more championship that took place in 1921 and was organized by the YMCA. It is however not recognized by the Hellenic Basketball Clubs Association, as it was before the creation of the Hellenic Basketball Federation. The team plays its home games in the O.A.C.A. Olympic Indoor Hall, which has a maximum capacity of 19,250 for basketball games. Panathinaikos also holds the world record for the longest title-winning streak, spanning 27 seasons, starting in 1995-96 and continuing up until today. These last 27 years, Panathinaikos have won at least one title each season and 43 titles overall.


title: Panathinaikos B.C.

text: Among the numerous well-known top class players who have played with the club over the years are Dominique Wilkins, Fragiskos Alvertis, Byron Scott, Nick Galis, John Salley, Dimitris Diamantidis, Antonio Davis, Stojko Vranković, Dino Rađja, Šarūnas Jasikevičius, Dejan Bodiroga, Oded Kattash, Ramūnas Šiškauskas, Panagiotis Giannakis, Fanis Christodoulou, Alexander Volkov, Marcelo Nicola, Hugo Sconochini, Željko Rebrača, Antonis Fotsis, İbrahim Kutluay, John Amaechi, Nikola Peković, Jaka Lakovič, Pepe Sánchez, Kostas Tsartsaris, Mike Batiste, Nick Calathes, Vassilis Spanoulis, Dejan Tomašević, Byron Dinkins, Ferdinando Gentile, Sani Bečirovič, Darryl Middleton, Lazaros Papadopoulos, Žarko Paspalj, Nikos Chatzivrettas, Dimos Dikoudis, Tiit Sokk, Sofoklis Schortsanitis, Jason Kapono, Arijan Komazec, Edgar Jones, Romain Sato, Johnny Rogers, Tony Delk, Drew Nicholas, Stéphane Lasme, Roko Ukić, Robertas Javtokas, Jonas Mačiulis, Ioannis Bourousis, James Gist, Keith Langford and Jimmer Fredette. Such players, the successful management of former long-time presidents Pavlos Giannakopoulos and Thanasis Giannakopoulos, as well as the long-time guidance of the most successful coach in EuroLeague history, Željko Obradović, turned Panathinaikos into the most successful team in Europe over the last two-and-a-half decades.


title: Panathinaikos B.C.

text: Panathinaikos is the only team on the European continent to win as many as six EuroLeague titles (1996, 2000, 2002, 2007, 2009, 2011), since the establishment of the modern era EuroLeague Final Four format in 1988 (no other club has won more than four EuroLeague championships in this period). They were also EuroLeague runners-up in 2001. They reached the EuroLeague Final Four eleven times altogether (1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2005, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2012).


title: Panathinaikos B.C.

text: Panathinaikos started as a football club in 1908. In 1919, basketball was still unknown in Greece. During that period Giorgos Kalafatis with other athletes participated in the Inter-Allied Games in Paris and attended basketball games between the Allies of World War I. When he later returned to Greece with the necessary equipment, he set up the Panathinaikos basketball club, led by Apostolos Nikolaidis.


title: Panathinaikos B.C.

text: In 1919, PAO played their first match against X.A.N. Thessaloniki (YMCA), another club also pioneer of basketball in Greece, a match which took place at the Panathenaic Stadium.


title: Panathinaikos B.C.

text: In 1937, Kalafatis managed to create a new Panathinaikos team that, during the following year, tried to catch up with already established clubs like the YMCA, Ethnikos G.S. Athens, Panionios, Aris and Iraklis. Angelos Fillipou, Nikos Mantzaroglou, Litsas and Dimitrakos were the ringleaders of the group and were later joined by Telis Karagiorgos, Thymios Karadimos, Giorgos Bofilios, Philipos Papaikonomou, Petros Polycratis and Nikos Polycratis. During the German occupation that followed, Dimitris Giannatos (founding member of the basketball team) was executed by the Nazis for his resistance action.


title: Panathinaikos B.C.

text: In 1946 (the first post-war championship) and 1947, Panathinaikos emerged champions, with the help of players like Ioannis Lambrou, Missas Pantazopoulos, Stelios Arvanitis (these players would later go on to win the bronze medal in EuroBasket 1949) and Jack Nicolaidis (nephew of Apostolos Nikolaidis).


title: Panathinaikos B.C.

text: In 1950 and 1951, Panathinaikos emerged as champions once again with the help of great athletes Faidon Matthaiou (considered the "Patriarch" of Greek basketball) and Nikos Milas. In 1954, the club would repeat the success, however the next five years would prove fruitless, and the club, despite its strength, would have to be renewed.


title: Panathinaikos B.C.

text: In 1961, Panathinaikos won the Greek League championship with new leaders Georgios Vassilakopoulos, Stelios Tavoularis and Petros Panagiotarakos. In 1962, Panathinaikos made the repeat, and was again the Greek League champion. That was also the year that PAO took part for the first time in a European-wide competition, as they faced Hapoel Tel Aviv in the FIBA European Champions Cup 1961–62 season.


title: Panathinaikos B.C.

text: On 23 November 1963, Panathinaikos beat Olympiacos, by a score of 90–48, in the Mantellos Cup, a tournament that was later replaced by the Greek Cup, which made its first appearance in 1976.


title: Panathinaikos B.C.

text: In 1967, Panathinaikos were crowned Greek League champions, with Giorgos Kolokithas (one of the greatest basketball players of his era) in their ranks. In 1969, the conquest of the Greek League championship was followed by the first European success of the club, the qualification to the semifinals of the FIBA European Cup Winners' Cup 1968–69 season, where they were eliminated by Dinamo Tbilisi. The next year, 1970, PAO was the first Greek basketball team to use a foreign player (Craig Greenwood) in a European game.


title: Panathinaikos B.C.

text: During these golden years, Panathinaikos won 10 out of 14 Greek League championships, with their great leader and scorer Apostolos Kontos.


title: Panathinaikos B.C.

text: During this period, Kostas Mourouzis, nicknamed "the fox of coaching", managed the "team of the 4-K" (the young Kontos, Koroneos, Kokolakis and Kefalos). These players, along with Iordanidis, who functioned as a link with older players, won 5 consecutive Greek League championships, and made the greatest accomplishment of their time by participating in the semifinals of the FIBA European Champions Cup 1971–72 season, when they were aided by American Willy Kirkland. Unfortunately, Ignis Varese, one of the giants of the era, proved an insurmountable obstacle for Panathinaikos.


title: Panathinaikos B.C.

text: Over the next 4 seasons, Panathinaikos captured the Greek League championship once, in 1977, and also won their first Greek Cup in 1979. They acquired Memos Ioannou in 1974, and Greek-American David Stergakos in 1979 (a player that would contribute greatly to the team in the coming years).


title: Panathinaikos B.C.

text: In the five years that followed, Panathinaikos won 4 Greek League championships (1980, 1981, 1982, 1984) and two Greek Cups (1982, 1983). More specifically, in 1982, while coached by Kostas Politis, Panathinaikos succeeded in winning their first Greek double, as well as placing 6th in the FIBA European Champions Cup 1981–82 season. During that season's group stage, Panathinaikos finished ahead of a strong CSKA Moscow team, after winning in the last seconds of a thriller game. The club's last Greek League championship, before the club's decline that followed, was in 1984, when Panathinaikos won the big game title in Corfu, which Liveris Andritsos and Tom Kappos starring for the team.


title: Panathinaikos B.C.

text: Panathinaikos had a great chance to avoid their upcoming decline, when they discovered Rony Seikaly, but Greek government bureaucratic problems prevented him from playing in the Greek League as a Greek citizen, despite claims that he was entitled to do so, which ultimately forced him to move to the United States to play college basketball at Syracuse.


title: Panathinaikos B.C.

text: In 1985, PAO finished in 3rd place in the Greek League. Stergakos, Ioannou, Vidas, Andritsos and Koroneos – who left the following year – were the key players. The balance of the Greek League's power however, had tilted in favour of Aris, and Panathinaikos ceased to be the leader of the league, and were limited to a secondary role. Nevertheless, they remained a worthy adversary. Thus, in 1986, against all odds, they managed to eliminate powerful Aris from the Greek Cup at the semifinal stage. Then Panathinakos went on to beat Olympiacos in the final, and conquered what would be their last title until 1993. During the next 2 seasons, PAO would finish in 5th place In the Greek League (their worst results in many years).


title: Panathinaikos B.C.

text: In 1988, the ban on using foreign players in the Greek League was lifted, and Panathinaikos was able to acquire Edgar Jones, from the NBA. He was a capable shooter, scorer and rebounder, and for the next 2 years, he was the star of the team. Although PAO achieved significant wins over the other major Greek teams, they did not manage any notable distinctions. Over the next two years, Antonio Davis, who later made a great career in the NBA, replaced Jones, as the leader of the team. At this point in time, Panathinaikos had also acquired some of the most talented young Greek players (Fragiskos Alvertis, Nikos Oikonomou and Christos Myriounis), but that did not stop them from experiencing the worst period in the history of the club, as they finished 7th in the Greek League in 1991, and dropped to the 8th position in 1992, which left them outside of European-wide play for the first time since 1967.


title: Panathinaikos B.C.

text: In 1992, the club's basketball department became professional, under the management of the Giannakopoulos family. In the summer of 1992, Panathinaikos attempted a full reconstruction of the team. Nikos Galis, the top Greek basketball player, was acquired by the club, and was flanked by star players Stojko Vranković, Tiit Sokk, and Arijan Komazec. Thus, Galis lead PAO to a Greek Cup win and also to the Greek League championship finals, where they lost despite having home court advantage. In the next season, 1993–94, Galis, along with Sasha Volkov and Stojko Vranković, led Panathinaikos to a 3rd-place finish at the 1994 FIBA European League Final Four, which was the highest finish in the club's history. Although they did not manage to win the title.


title: Panathinaikos B.C.

text: The 1994–95 season started with the best conditions, as the club acquired Panagiotis Giannakis and Žarko Paspalj. PAO was again the favourite for all domestic titles. The club started by eliminating Olympiacos from the Greek Cup in a very tough game, before the start of the Greek League championship. However, after the first games of the Greek League, Nikos Galis, the player that had led PAO in the Greek Cup game against Olympiacos, and also in the decisive game of the FIBA European League's 1994–95 season qualifiers, ended his professional basketball playing career. As a consequence, the team, despite playing some great games, only managed to retain the 3rd-place finish in Europe, and make the Greek League finals.


title: Panathinaikos B.C.

text: During the years 1996–98, Panathinaikos fulfilled all of their objectives by winning the FIBA European League championship, the FIBA Intercontinental Cup and the Greek League championship (in that order).


title: Panathinaikos B.C.

text: In 1996, the expectations of the team had risen a lot, as it was imperative for Panathinaikos to obtain a significant title. In the summer of 1995, they acquired the nine-time NBA All-Star, Dominique Wilkins, one of the top American players that ever played in Europe. The head coach of the team was Božidar Maljković. The former, along with Giannakis, Vranković, Alvertis, and Patavoukas, comprised a very experienced team, which, in 1996, managed an unprecedented success for Greek basketball. Indeed, in April 1996, at the Paris Final Four, Panathinaikos became the first Greek team to lift the FIBA European League championship (now called the EuroLeague), by beating Banca Catalana FC Barcelona in the tournament's final, by a score of 67–66. Back in Greece, right after the big win in Paris, Panathinaikos was not able to clinch the Greek League title, after again losing the title to Olympiacos.


title: Panathinaikos B.C.

text: In the next season, Maljković removed all the stars from the roster, in an attempt to assemble a squad based on teamwork. With the start of the season, Panathinaikos was crowned 1996 FIBA Intercontinental Cup champion, by prevailing by 2–1 wins in a 3-game series over Olimpia of Venado Tuerto, the South American League champions. Unfortunately, the restructuring of the team failed, and Panathinaikos failed to participate in the 1997 FIBA EuroLeague Final Four, in order to defend their European title. Moreover, they finished in 5th place in the Greek League championship, thus losing the right to participate in next season's EuroLeague.


title: Panathinaikos B.C.

text: In the next season, Slobodan Subotić assumed head coaching leadership of the club, and convinced Dino Rađja to come to Panathinaikos. The huge transfer of Radja was accompanied by three-time NBA champion Byron Scott and Fanis Christodoulou, and with the help of Alvertis, Oikonomou, and Koch, Panathinaikos finally won the Greek League again, after 14 years.


title: Panathinaikos B.C.

text: In the summer of 1998 Panathinaikos chairman Pavlos Giannakopoulos began assembling a team to conquer Europe. In order to achieve that, he signed the 1998 FIBA World Cup MVP, Dejan Bodiroga, while Nando Gentile, Pat Burke and Nikos Boudouris also joined the team. The 1998–99 season proved very important for Panathinaikos, as Olympiacos, who had gained home court advantage in the Greek League playoffs, were prepared to return to the top. It was at the last game of the Greek League finals, when Panathinaikos achieved one of the most decisive away victories against their rivals, capturing the title.


title: Panathinaikos B.C.

text: The arrival of Željko Obradović to Panathinaikos, during summer 1999, marked the beginning of an extraordinary period for the club, with many major successes, and the establishment of the team as one of the strongest in the history of European club basketball.


title: Panathinaikos B.C.

text: The first thing that Obradović did, was to adapt the team to Dejan Bodiroga, who was the absolute leader of Panathinaikos. As a result of the success of his strategy, PAO managed to capture 2 EuroLeague titles (2000, 2002,) after 3 consecutive EuroLeague Finals appearances (2000–2002), and also won 3 consecutive Greek League championships (1999–2001). In 2000, at the Thessaloniki EuroLeague Final Four, Panathinaikos became EuroLeague champions for the second time, after beating Macabbi Elite Tel Aviv, 73–67, in the final. In 2002, in Bologna, at the 2002 EuroLeague Final Four, Panathinaikos won the most prestigious European trophy for the third time, after beating hosts Kinder Bologna, by the score of 89–83, in the final.


title: Panathinaikos B.C.

text: Nevertheless, in this period they failed to win the Greek Cup, even though they played in two Greek Cup finals. Rebrača, Gentile, Middleton, Alvertis, Kattash, Kutluay, and Fotsis were some of the team's players who excelled during these years. The dominance in the Greek League was finally interrupted in 2002, the year that PAO won their 3rd EuroLeague championship. Also, at the end of the year, there were many significant changes in the team, starting with the withdrawal of Bodiroga, making a renewal of the team's roster an imperative.


title: Panathinaikos B.C.

text: 2002–03 was the year that Obradović used to restructure Panathinaikos, and return them to the top of Greece. He emphatically achieved this objective by leading the team to 9 straight Greek League championships (2003–11), with 6 doubles in Greece, and 2 triple crowns (i.e. Greek double plus EuroLeague champions) in the following years, thus creating a dynasty. Panathinaikos had radically changed the style of their game, after replacing Bodiroga. The game contribution of the Serbian player was replaced by an unprecedented model of teamwork, that proved that a superstar was unnecessary. Players such as Lakovič, Alvertis, Diamantidis, Fotsis, Tsartsaris, Batiste, and later Spanoulis, Šiškauskas, and Jasikevičius, who played not for themselves, but for the maximum success of the team, led to the transformation of PAO, into a title-winning machine, that was not hampered by irreplaceable players, and this quality was widely recognized.


title: Panathinaikos B.C.

text: At the 2007 EuroLeague Final Four, which was held on their home court of OAKA, in Athens, Panathinaikos became EuroLeague champions for the fourth time, after beating the defending champions at the time, CSKA Moscow, by a score of 93–91 in the final.


title: Panathinaikos B.C.

text: The same teams (PAO and CSKA), competed in the final of the 2009 EuroLeague Final Four in Berlin, where Panathinaikos won the trophy again, for the fifth time in their history. The score was 73–71. On 14 December 2009, Panathinaikos was voted the top Greek sports team of 2009, by the Greek Sports Journalists Association, with 1,291 votes. In addition, head coach Želimir Obradović, was voted the top coach, with 1,399 votes.


title: Panathinaikos B.C.

text: At the 2011 EuroLeague Final Four in Barcelona, Panathinaikos, after a great performance by Calathes in the semifinal against Montepaschi Siena (17 points, 6 rebounds, 2 steals), won 77–69, and reached the EuroLeague Final against Maccabi Tel Aviv. In the final, the "Great Club" won its sixth EuroLeague title, by holding off Maccabi, by a score of 78–70.


title: Panathinaikos B.C.

text: After the departure of Obradović, Panathinaikos' new head coach, Argiris Pedoulakis, was forced to make massive changes to the team, with 12 new players being added to the roster, including James Gist, Roko Ukić, and NBA players Jason Kapono and Marcus Banks. Team captains Dimitris Diamantidis and Kostas Tsartsaris led the rebuilding effort for the Greens, who reached the EuroLeague quarterfinals, only to fall to FC Barcelona Regal in a 5-game series. Panathinaikos won their 14th Greek Cup, by beating Olympiacos in the final, with a three-point difference (81-78). During the same year, Panathinaikos was able to "break" Olympiacos' home court twice in the Greek League Finals, thus conquering the Greek League championship for the 33rd time in the club's history.


title: Panathinaikos B.C.

text: Since Dimitris Giannakopoulos first became the chairman of Panathinaikos, he repeatedly attempted to secure marketing deals with Asian corporations. The first step was made when Panathinaikos announced that they had signed Chinese basketball player Shang Ping. This deal made Panathinaikos the first European club to have a Chinese player on its roster. On 12 September 2013, Panathinaikos landed at the airport of Guangzhou, becoming the first European team to make a trip to China via airline. On 13 September 2013, Panathinaikos wrote European history once again, in less than two days, becoming the first European team to ever face a Chinese Basketball Association (CBA) team. In addition, Panathinaikos became the first European team to win against a Chinese team, the Foshan Dralions, with a score of 66–67.


title: Panathinaikos B.C.

text: On 8 March 2014, due to the fans' dissatisfaction with the team's bad record in the EuroLeague, the replacement of the team's head coach, Argiris Pedoulakis, was announced. It was also announced that the team would go to the Greek League Finals under the guidance of the club's legend, Fragiskos Alvertis, who would serve as an interim caretaker coach. After the conquest of another Greek double by beating Olympiacos, Panathinaikos announced the recruitment of Duško Ivanović, to be their new head coach.


title: Panathinaikos B.C.

text: On 5 April 2015, Panathinaikos beat Apollon Patras, in the final of the Greek Cup, with a score of 53–68. Earlier in the cup competition, the team had to overcome the obstacles of Olympiacos and PAOK. Panathinaikos made the EuroLeague playoffs. In Greek League, Panathinaikos lost to Olympiacos in the finals, 0–3.


title: Panathinaikos B.C.

text: On 30 June 2015, Sasha Đjorđjević was announced by the team, as the club's new head coach. Panathinaikos was able to sign Greek point guard Nick Calathes, and Serbian center Miroslav Raduljica. The debut of the team was dreamy, as on 8 October 2015, Panathinaikos beat and eliminated Olympiacos, in an away match for the Greek Basketball Cup, by a score of 64–70. On 6 March 2016, Panathinaikos won the Greek Cup for the 17th time in the club's history, and for the 5th straight season, with a record score of 101–52 against the Greek 2nd Division club, Faros Keratsiniou.


title: Panathinaikos B.C.

text: On 19 April 2016, Sasha Đjorđjević was replaced by Argyris Pedoulakis, who once again took over the team's head coaching position. Despite that, the team lost against Olympiacos in the finals of the Greek League, with a 1–3 series loss.


title: Panathinaikos B.C.

text: With the retirement of Dimitris Diamantidis, Panathinaikos turned over to a new page in the club's history. This led the team to increase its budget, and to obtain players such as Mike James, K.C. Rivers, Chris Singleton, and Ioannis Bourousis. Many sponsorship deals were also achieved at the same time, as well as the deal that made OPAP, Greece's biggest betting firm, the team's main sponsor. The appointment of Xavi Pascual as the team's head coach for three years, started a new era for the club.


title: Panathinaikos B.C.

text: The next two seasons, 2016/17 and 2017/18, Panathinaikos with coach Xavi Pascual managed to win two back-to-back Greek Basket League Championships against Olympiacos, and the 2017 Greek Basketball Cup against Aris. They also made it to the EuroLeague playoffs, where they faced each year's upcoming champions (Fenerbahce in 2017, and Real Madrid in 2018) and eliminated from the EuroLeague Final Four both times. In the fifth Greek Basket League Championship final of 2017, Panathinaikos defeated Olympiacos in their home court, to win the Greek Championship after two years, winning the series with 3–2. The next year, Panathinaikos managed to be the only team in Europe to finish the regular season of their domestic championship undefeated. They remained undefeated until the finals, where they met Olympiacos again, and won the series once more with 3–2.


title: Panathinaikos B.C.

text: Despite the difficulties that followed Obradović's departure and the changes in the team's roster and the team's finances, Panathinaikos is the only team in Europe that manages to win at least one title every season, for 27 consecutive seasons, since 1996.


title: Panathinaikos B.C.

text: After two and a half seasons, Panathinaikos parted ways with coach Xavi Pascual, on December 20, 2018. Pasqual paid the price for the teams' poor performance and losing streak in 2018/2019 EuroLeague. Georgios Vovoras served as Panathinaikos' interim head coach for the second time in his career, as the club agreed with Hall-Of-Famer Rick Pitino to be the team's new head coach, until the end of the 2018/2019 season. With coach Pitino on the bench, Panathinaikos transformed into a different team and managed to make an impressive comeback to the EuroLeague, finishing in the sixth place and getting into the playoffs. There, they faced once again the champions, Real Madrid, and eliminated from the EuroLeague Final Four. The season ended with Panathinaikos winning both the Greek Cup beating PAOK in the Cup Final, and the Greek Basket League Championship sweeping 3-0 Promitheas in the League Finals.


title: Panathinaikos B.C.

text: Panathinaikos made an offer to coach Pitino, and although he was willing to stay in Greece for the next season, a family matter occurred, so he had to return home. On June 24, 2019, Panathinaikos signed a two-year contract with Greek coach Argyris Pedoulakis once again, being the team's head coach for the third time in seven years. Pedoulakis's third stint ended on 15 November 2019, as Panathinaikos fired him once again, after team's poor performance on EuroLeague and elimination from the Greek Cup. Georgios Vovoras served as interim head coach for the third time.


title: Panathinaikos B.C.

text: On November 26, 2019, Rick Pitino typically and officially returned to Panathinaikos, after overcoming the family matter that kept him away from the benches, signing a one-and-a-half year contract, becoming team's head coach until the summer of 2021.


title: Panathinaikos B.C.

text: However, on 20 March 2020, Panathinaikos and Pitino have agreed to end their cooperation, in the face of the coronavirus pandemic that has forced the suspension of play in EuroLeague and Greek Basket League. Rick Pitino returned to his family in USA, as he also agreed to be the new head coach of Iona College. Once again, Georgios Vovoras served as interim head coach, for the fourth time.


title: Panathinaikos B.C.

text: In the summer of 2020, Panathinaikos went through major changes. On June 10, the owner of the team, Dimitris Giannakopoulos, held a press conference where he announced that he won't longer be involved with Panathinaikos, and that the club is up for sale for a price of 25 million euros. As a result of this, a new -and unusual- era began for the Greens, meaning that the team had to be rebuilt and operated based on the balance sheet, and that players with huge contracts couldn't stay with the club at the time. Many players had to leave the team, including long-time club captain Nick Calathes. Also long-time Panathinaikos member through different roles, Manos Papadopoulos, who was very close to the Giannakopoulos family for over 30 years, left the Greens to join Zenit Saint Petersburg as the club's sports director.


title: Panathinaikos B.C.

text: On June 26, 2020, Panathinaikos announced that the club's sport management will be represented by the team's legends and former players Dimitris Diamantidis and Fragiskos Alvertis, alongside former CEO Takis Triantopoulos. Meanwhile, George Vovoras was named head coach for the difficult upcoming season. After almost seven months, and due to the team's poor performance, Panathinaikos and coach Vovoras parted ways, on January 4, 2021. Kostas Charalampidis served as an interim coach for a few days, as of January 14, 2021, when Panathinaikos announced Oded Kattash as the club's new head coach, on a one-and-a-half year agreement. With coach Kattash, Panathinaikos managed to win both 2020–21 Greek Basket League and 2020–21 Greek Cup. However, on June 24, 2021, the team parted ways with him. Two days later, on June 26, 2021, Panathinaikos appointed Dimitris Priftis as their new head coach, on a three-year deal. Priftis has been no stranger to the team, as he had served as an assistant coach in 2014, under then head coach Fragiskos Alvertis.


title: Panathinaikos B.C.

text: On April 12, 2022, after a home defeat of a Greek Basket League regular season game against Olympiacos, in an unexpected turn of events, coach Priftis, general managers Diamantidis and Alvertis, and technical director Nikos Pappas were all fired by Panathinaikos, while president Panagiotis Triantopoulos resigned. Fragiskos Alvertis was given the option to stay in the club as team manager, but he declined the offer, leaving Panathinaikos for the first time in his life, after 32 long years with the club. Former Panathinaikos coach Argyris Pedoulakis was appointed immediately as the team's new technical director, having the responsibility for the team and the hiring of a new coach. On April 14, 2022, Panathinaikos announced the return of head coach George Vovoras for the remainder of the season, having former Lavrio B.C. head coach for 17 seasons Christos Serelis as an assistant. The reason for all those massive changes -according to the team's official press release- was the failure to "create a basic core of athletes and build a team for today and especially for tomorrow", as well as an economic failure, based on a balanced budget.


title: Panathinaikos B.C.

text: The trifolium is the emblem of the team; a symbol of harmony, unity, nature and good luck. The main colours of the team, since its foundation, are green and white (green for health and nature, such as physiolatry, and white for virtue). Alternative colours also used include black, lime, dark blue/purple uniforms, and elements of golden yellow.


title: Panathinaikos B.C.

text: Since 1992, the year in which the club's basketball department became professional, Panathinaikos B.C. uses its own logo.


title: Panathinaikos B.C.

text: Since 1982, Panathinaikos has a specific kit manufacturer and a kit sponsor. The following tables detail the shirt sponsors and kit suppliers by year:


title: Panathinaikos B.C.

text: Panathinaikos' long-time home court is the O.A.K.A., which is the largest indoor venue in Greece. It is located in Marousi, and is a part of the Athens Olympic Sports Complex. The venue was completed in 1995, and renovated for the 2004 Summer Olympics. It is considered to be one of the biggest and most modern indoor sports arenas in all of Europe. The seating capacity for basketball games is 18,989, however, the arena can hold up to a capacity of 20,000.


title: Panathinaikos B.C.

text: The team, which is famous for its fans' passionate support, also set a record (broken in 2009), for the highest home game attendance in the history of the EuroLeague, which was 20,000 fans, achieved at a home game in OAKA, against Benetton Treviso, on 29 March 2006, during the second phase of the 2005–06 EuroLeague.


title: Panathinaikos B.C.

text: An attendance of 18,900 fans has also been achieved three times in the EuroLeague, in home games of the Greens, against Efes Pilsen in 2005, and TAU Cerámica (twice) in 2006. While PAO no longer holds the record for largest EuroLeague home crowd, it still holds the honor of being involved in the record attendance game. PAO was the opponent of Partizan Belgrade, when it drew 22,567 fans to Belgrade Arena, during a 2008–09 EuroLeague game. The EuroLeague attendance record was then broken again by Panathinaikos, on 18 April 2013, on the season's 4th EuroLeague game (2012–13 EuroLeague) against FC Barcelona. It was estimated that the number of viewers reached 30,000 (over 25,000 officially). However, the EuroLeague does not officially recognize that as the all-time attendance record, since the number of fans in the arena, went over the arena's normal seating capacity.


title: Panathinaikos B.C.

text: "Mr. Green" was the first official mascot of Panathinaikos B.C. "Born" in 2006, he was a green muscular basketball player, with a basketball as a head. He used to wear a jersey with the number "08", which is a reference to 1908, the year Panathinaikos was founded. Creating Mr. Green took a good part of a month, since he was made out of material commonly being used in the Hollywood motion pictures industry for the construction of movie costumes, such as the ones for Batman, Spider-Man and other American movie characters. He entertained fans of all ages during game breaks, gave away presents, and participated in all entertainment events inside the court. Mr. Green partook in each and every game hosted by the team at OAKA, while he always stood by the children, participating in social responsibility events. He has also participated in five All Star Games.


title: Panathinaikos B.C.

text: On 18 September 2021, during the 2021-22 pre-season and the beginning of the "3rd Pavlos Giannakopoulos tournament", "Green Kong", the new official mascot was revealed, a grey haired gorilla sporting a Panathinaikos jersey.


title: Panathinaikos B.C.

text: Panathinaikos hold a major long-term rivalry with Olympiacos, and matches between the two teams are referred to as the "Derby of the eternal enemies". Panathinaikos is the most successful basketball club in Greece, with Olympiacos being runners-up. For the eternal enemies are the most traditional basketball powers, as they have been fighting in the top level of the Greek basketball scene longer than any other team.


title: Panathinaikos B.C.

text: Their rivalry is highly credited, especially in the 1990s-2000s, when they met each other in several regular season and playoff series, and in some EuroLeague matches which marked their history.


title: Panathinaikos B.C.

text: Panathinaikos used to hold a minor rivalry with Aris, mostly during the 1980s, when Panathinaikos and Aris were the two biggest dynasties in Greek basketball at the time. They also hold a minor rivalry with AEK and PAOK, not for on-court dominance but mostly due to the fanbase of the clubs involved. None of the above rivalries can even be compared to the huge and manifold rivalry with Olympiacos, though.


title: Panathinaikos B.C.

text: Panathinaikos has advanced to the Final Four of the EuroLeague (and its predecessor) another five times: Tel Aviv in 1994 (3rd), Zaragoza in 1995 (3rd), Paris in 2001 (2nd), Moscow in 2005 (3rd), and Istanbul in 2012 (4th). Other significant successes are: the two appearances in the semifinals of the FIBA Cup Winners' Cup (1968–69, 1997–98), as well as the road to the semifinals of the FIBA European Champions' Cup in the 1971–72 season (eliminated by Ignis Varese (78–70, 55–69). In the 1981–82 season, Panathinaikos participated in the semifinals of the FIBA European Champions' Cup, after eliminating the teams of CSKA Moscow and Levski-Spartak, in that order.


title: Panathinaikos B.C.

text: Panathinaikos has twice made a tour of the United States, for friendly games. In 2003, when they played against the NBA team the Toronto Raptors, and in 2007. On 11 October 2007, Panathinaikos played against the NBA's Houston Rockets, and on 18 October 2007, they played against the defending NBA champions at the time, the San Antonio Spurs.


title: Panathinaikos B.C.

text: Panathinaikos has also twice made a tour in China for friendly games. In 2013, when they played against Foshan Long Lions. On 28 September 2015, Panathinaikos played against Zhejiang Lions, and on 30 September 2015, they played against the Guangdong Tigers.


title: Panathinaikos B.C.

text: Panathinaikos team leaders in games played, points scored, and rebounds, in games played in the Greek A1 Division, since it was first formed, starting with the 1986–87 season.


title: Panathinaikos B.C.

text: Until 1992, the President of Panathinaikos A.C. was responsible for the management of the team. In 1992, the basketball department became professional, with its own President.


title: President of Iran

text: The president of Iran () is the head of government of the Islamic Republic of Iran. The president is the second highest-ranking official of Iran after the Supreme Leader.


title: President of Iran

text: The president is required to gain the Supreme Leader's official approval before being sworn in by the Parliament and the Supreme Leader has the power to dismiss the elected president if he has either been impeached by Parliament or found guilty of a constitutional violation by the Supreme Court. The president carries out the decrees, and answers to the Supreme Leader, who functions as the country's head of state. Unlike the executive in other countries, the president of Iran does not have full control over the government, which is ultimately under the direct control of the Supreme Leader. Before elections, the nominees must be approved by the guardian council to become a president candidate. Members of the guardian council are chosen by the supreme leader. The president of Iran is elected for a four-year term by direct vote and is not permitted to run for more than two consecutive terms.


title: President of Iran

text: Chapter IX of the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Iran sets forth the qualifications for presidential candidates. The procedures for presidential election and all other elections in Iran are outlined by the Supreme Leader. The president functions as the executive of the decrees and wishes of the Supreme Leader, including: signing treaties with foreign countries and international organizations; and administering national planning, budget, and state employment affairs. The president also appoints the ministers, subject to the approval of Parliament, as well as to that of the Supreme Leader, who can dismiss or reinstate any of the ministers and vice presidents at any time, regardless of the president or parliament's decision. The Supreme Leader also directly chooses the ministers of Defense, Intelligence, Foreign Affairs, and Interior, as well as certain other ministries, such as the Science Ministry. Iran's regional policy is directly controlled by the office of the Supreme Leader with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ task limited to protocol and ceremonial occasions. All of Iran's ambassadors to Arab countries, for example, are chosen by the Quds Corps, which directly reports to the Supreme Leader.


title: President of Iran

text: The current long-time Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, ruling Iran for more than three decades, has issued decrees and made final decisions on economy, education, environment, foreign policy, national planning, and almost everything else in the country. Khamenei has also made final decisions on the degree of transparency in elections in Iran, and has fired and reinstated presidential cabinet appointments.


title: President of Iran

text: The current president of Iran is Ebrahim Raisi, who assumed office on 3 August 2021, after the 2021 presidential election. He succeeded Hassan Rouhani, who served 8 years in office from 2013 to 2021.


title: President of Iran

text: After the Iranian Revolution of 1979 and referendum to create the Islamic Republic on March 29 and 30, the new government needed to craft a new constitution. Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, ordered an election for the Assembly of Experts, the body tasked with writing the constitution. The assembly presented the constitution on October 24, 1979, and Supreme Leader Ruhollah Khomeini and Prime Minister Mehdi Bazargan approved it.


title: President of Iran

text: The 1979 Constitution designated the Supreme Leader of Iran as the head of state and the President and Prime Minister as the heads of government. The post of Prime Minister was abolished in 1989.


title: President of Iran

text: The first Iranian presidential election was held on January 25, 1980, and resulted in the election of Abulhassan Banisadr with 76% of the votes. Banisadr was impeached on June 22, 1981, by Parliament. Until the early election on July 24, 1981, the duties of the President were undertaken by the Provisional Presidential Council. Mohammad-Ali Rajai was elected president on July 24, 1981, and took office on August 2. Rajai was in office for less than one month because he and his prime minister were both assassinated. Once again a Provisional Presidential Council filled the office until October 13, 1981, when Ali Khamenei was elected president.


title: President of Iran

text: The election on August 3, 2005 resulted in a victory for Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. The election on June 12, 2009 was reported by government authorities as a victory for Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the incumbent candidate, although this is greatly disputed by supporters of rival candidates, who noted the statistical anomalies in voting reports and large-scale overvoting in the officially announced tallies.


title: President of Iran

text: Ali Khamenei, Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, Mohammad Khatami, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and Hassan Rouhani were each elected president for two terms.


title: President of Iran

text: The procedures for presidential election and all other elections in Iran are outlined by the Supreme Leader. The President of Iran is elected for a four-year term in a national election by universal adult suffrage by everyone of at least 18 years of age. Presidents can only be reelected once if in a consecutive manner. Candidates for the presidency must be approved by the Council of Guardians, a twelve-member body consisting of six clerics (selected by Iran's Supreme Leader) and six lawyers (proposed by the Supreme Leader-appointed head of Iran's judicial system, and voted in by the Parliament). According to the Constitution of Iran candidates for the presidency must possess the following qualifications:


title: President of Iran

text: Within these guidelines the Council vetoes candidates who are deemed unacceptable. The approval process is considered to be a check on the president's power, and usually amounts to a small number of candidates being approved. In the 1997 election, for example, only four out of 238 presidential candidates were approved by the council. Western observers have routinely criticized the approvals process as a way for the Council and Supreme Leader to ensure that only conservative and like-minded Islamic fundamentalists can win office. However, the council rejects the criticism, citing approval of so-called reformists in previous elections. The council rejects most of the candidates stating that they are not "a well-known political figure", a requirement by the current law.


title: President of Iran

text: The President must be elected with a simple majority of the popular vote. If no candidate receives a majority in the first round, a runoff election is held between the top two candidates.


title: President of Iran

text: According to the Iranian constitution, when the President dies or is impeached, a special provisional "Presidential Council" temporarily rules in their place until an election can be held.


title: President of Iran

text: The President automatically becomes the Head of the Supreme National Security Council and the Head of the Supreme Council of Cultural Revolution.


title: President of Iran

text: The President's duties include the following, subject to supervision and approval by the Supreme Leader:


title: President of Iran

text: I, as the President, upon the Holy Qur'an and in the presence of the Iranian nation, do hereby swear in the name of Almighty God to safeguard the official Faith, the system of the Islamic republic and the Constitution of the country; to use all my talents and abilities in the discharge of responsibilities undertaken by me; to devote myself to the service of the people, glory of the country, promotion of religion and morality, support of right and propagation of justice; to refrain from being autocratic; to protect the freedom and dignity of individuals and the rights of the Nation recognized by the Constitution; to spare no efforts in safeguarding the frontiers and the political, economic and cultural freedoms of the country; to guard the power entrusted to me by the Nation as a sacred trust like an honest and faithful trustee, by seeking help from God and following the example of the Prophet of Islam and the sacred Imams, peace be upon them, and to entrust it to the one elected by the Nation after me.


title: President of Iran

text: "TIME Magazine" noted that presidential elections in Iran change nothing as Supreme Leader Khamenei — and not the President — wields the ultimate power. Tallha Abdulrazaq, an Iraqi researcher at the University of Exeter's Strategy and Security Institute, stated that Khamenei, the longtime Supreme Leader of Iran, always uses the president as a kind of a buffer zone between him and the people. “Anything that goes right, Khamenei then can say 'I am the wise leader who put this guy in charge and he made the right policy decisions.' Anything that goes wrong, he can say ‘we should get rid of this guy. He is not good for the country, he is not good for you.’"


title: Canasta

text: Canasta (; Spanish for "basket") is a card game of the rummy family of games believed to be a variant of 500 Rum. Although many variations exist for two, three, five or six players, it is most commonly played by four in two partnerships with two standard decks of cards. Players attempt to make melds of seven cards of the same rank and "go out" by playing all cards in their hands. It is "the most recent card game to have achieved worldwide status as a classic".


title: Canasta

text: The game of Canasta was devised by attorney Segundo Sanchez Santos and his Bridge partner, architect Alberto Serrato in Montevideo, Uruguay, in 1939, in an attempt to design a time-efficient game that was as engaging as Bridge. They tried different formulas before inviting Arturo Gomez Hartley and Ricardo Sanguinetti to test their game.


title: Canasta

text: After a positive reception of Canasta at their local bridge club, the Jockey Club, in the 1940s the game quickly spread north throughout South America in myriad variations to Chile, Peru, Brazil and Argentina, where its rules were further refined. It was introduced to the United States in 1949 by Josefina Artayeta de Viel (New York), where it was then referred to as the "Argentine Rummy" game by Ottilie H. Reilly in 1949 and Michael Scully of "Coronet" magazine in 1953. In 1949/51 the New York "Regency Club" wrote the Official Canasta Laws, which were published together with game experts from South America by the "National Canasta Laws Commissions" of the US and Argentina.


title: Canasta

text: Canasta became rapidly popular in the United States in the 1950s with many card sets, card trays and books being produced. Interest in the game began to wane there during the 1960s, but the game still enjoys some popularity today, with Canasta leagues and clubs still existing in several parts of the United States.


title: Canasta

text: Santos and Serrato never patented the game rules, and thus never received royalties from the later Canasta boom.


title: Canasta

text: The classic game is for four players in two partnerships. Variations exist for two and three player games wherein each plays alone, and also for a six player game in two partnerships of three. If partners are chosen, they must sit opposite each other. Canasta usually uses two complete decks of 52 playing cards (French Deck) with two or three Jokers per deck, making a total of 108 or 110 cards(The amount of Jokers depends on the type of French card deck).


title: Canasta

text: The initial dealer is chosen by any common method, although in Canasta there is no privilege or advantage to being the dealer. The deal then rotates clockwise after every hand. The dealer shuffles the pack, the player to the dealer's right cuts, and the dealer deals out a hand of 11 cards to each player. The remaining cards are left in a stack in the center of the table. One card is taken from the top of the stack and placed face up to start the discard pile. If that card is wild or a red three, another card is turned and placed on top of it. That continues until a natural card or a black three is turned up.


title: Canasta

text: If a player was dealt red threes, they must instantly play them face up in front of them and draw the same number of replacement cards.


title: Canasta

text: The player to the dealer's left has the first turn, and then play proceeds clockwise. A turn begins either by drawing the first card from the stock into the player's hand or by picking up the entire discard pile. However, there are restrictions on when one can pick up the discard pile. (See Picking up the discard pile, below). If the card drawn from the stock is a red three, the player must table it immediately, as one would if melding, and draw another card.


title: Canasta

text: Players may then make as many legal melds as they wish from the cards in their hands. A turn ends when the player discards one card from the hand to the top of the discard pile. No player may "undo" a meld or laid card, or change their mind after drawing a card from the deck.


title: Canasta

text: Each player/team keeps separate melds of the various ranks of cards. A player may never play to an opponent's meld. A legal meld consists of at least three cards of the same rank, and there is no limit on how large it can grow. Suits are irrelevant except that black threes are treated differently from red threes. Wild cards can be used as any rank except for threes. Threes may never be melded in ordinary play, although three or more black threes may be melded in the final turn of a player going out.


title: Canasta

text: A meld must consist of at least two natural cards, and can never have more than three wild cards. Examples: and are legal melds. is not a legal meld as it contains only one natural card. is not legal as it contains more than three wild cards. One team/player cannot have two separate melds of the same rank. If more cards of the same rank are melded, they are automatically merged into the preexisting meld.


title: Canasta

text: A canasta is a meld of at least seven cards, whether natural or mixed. A natural canasta is one that comprises only cards of the same rank. A mixed canasta (or dirty canasta) is one that comprises both natural and wild cards. Once a canasta is assembled, the cards are squared up, and one of the natural cards forming it is placed on top – a red one to indicate a natural canasta or a black one to indicate a mixed canasta.


title: Canasta

text: Each card has a specific value which determines both the score and the minimum points players need before laying down their first melds:


title: Canasta

text: During each hand the first time a team lays cards on the table, the cards of the combined melds must equal a minimum meld requirement based on the values of each of the cards. At the beginning of a game, both teams have an initial meld requirement of 50 points. The count towards the requirement cannot include the value of the cards a player could possibly pick up from the discard pile, but must come only from the cards in their hand and the top discarded card in case of picking up the discard pile. If the combined value does not meet the minimum requirement, they cannot play the cards on the table nor pick up the discard pile. After the first hand, the minimum meld requirement is based on a team's score before the hand starts.


title: Canasta

text: Example: If a player/team has a score of 1,600 and has not yet made any melds in a hand, an initial meld of , cannot be made as it scores only 65 points and the requirement is 90. A meld of , would score 95 points and can be played. Note that both initial melds can be played if the team's total score is below 1500, and that neither can be played if the team's total score is 3000 or higher. The minimum meld requirement for a team which has a negative score is 15. As any three cards are always worth at least 15 points it effectively means any meld is sufficient for laying down the first meld(s). Once a teammate has laid down cards on the table, the partner is free to meld whatever cards are legally allowed meaning they do not have to meet the minimum meld requirement.


title: Canasta

text: The discard pile should be kept squared up, so only the top card is visible. A player cannot look through the discard pile.


title: Canasta

text: At the beginning of the turn, a player may pick up the entire discard pile instead of drawing a card from the stock. They may only pick up the discard pile if they can use the top card, either in an existing meld or by making a new meld along with at least two other cards from the hand (which can include wild cards). Only the top card is relevant for the player/team to pick up the rest of the discard pile. In addition, if the player/team has not yet melded, they must meet the initial meld requirement using the top card of the discard pile in order to pick up the pile. In this case the points of the top card are included to meet the initial meld requirement.


title: Canasta

text: Discarding a wild card freezes the pile. The card should be placed at right angles to the pile, so that it is still visible to indicate a frozen pile after more cards have been discarded. A frozen pile may only be picked up (unfrozen) if a player can meld the top card with two natural cards of the same rank from the player's hand.


title: Canasta

text: If a wild card or a black three is on top of the discard pile, it may not be picked up. Playing a black three does not freeze the pile; it just acts as a stop card, preventing the other player from picking up the pile. The card discarded after a black three allows the pile to be picked up again (unless it is a wild card or another black three).


title: Canasta

text: The discard pile is also frozen against a player/team that has not yet melded at all this hand, though at the same time it will not be frozen for another player/team that has melded.


title: Canasta

text: A player may go out by using all the cards in hand only if that player/team has made at least one canasta. The player goes out by melding all his or her cards and may discard a single final card if necessary. It is not required to discard a card in the process of legally going out. If the player/team has not yet made any canastas, players in that team may not make a play which would leave them with no cards in the hand at the end of the turn. If a player can legally go out, but has three or more black threes in the hand, these may be melded at this time only. The hand ends immediately when any player goes out. Going out earns a bonus of 100 points.


title: Canasta

text: When considering going out, a player may ask the partner for permission to go out. It is not required to ask partner's permission, but if done the player must abide by the partner's answer. If the partner refuses permission, the player may not go out this turn. If the partner responds "yes", the player must go out this turn.


title: Canasta

text: If a player melds the whole hand in one turn (including at least one canasta) without previously melding, they earn an extra 100 points for going out concealed, making it 200 points. To earn the bonus, a player cannot add cards to the partner's melds. It is allowed to go out concealed while picking up the discard pile. The relevant initial meld requirement must be met.


title: Canasta

text: A hand can also be ended by exhausting the stock. Play can continue with no stock as long as players are able take the previous player's discard and meld it. In such a situation a player must take the discard if able to do so. As soon as a player cannot legally take the card, the hand ends. If a player draws a red three as the last card from the stock, it is counted towards that player's score, but the hand ends immediately since there is no replacement card to be taken. The player is not allowed to meld nor discard after picking up the red three in this case.


title: Canasta

text: The total value of all cards melded by that player/team, including cards in canastas minus the total value of all cards remaining in the player's/team's hands, plus any bonuses:


title: Canasta

text: If a player/team has collected red threes, but has not yet made the initial melds when the opposition goes out, then the bonus value of red threes counts against them (it is subtracted from the score along with the rest of the cards in their hands). If they collected all four red threes, 800 points are deducted from their score.


title: Canasta

text: It is possible to have a negative total score. The game ends when a player/team's total score reaches 5000. If both players/teams reach 5000 at the end of hand, whoever has the higher score, wins the game. The margin of victory is the difference in points.


title: Canasta

text: Canasta can be played with fewer than four players with some variations in the rules. The most significant changes are in the number of cards dealt at the beginning of the hand and the fact that each person plays individually. In a game with three players, each player receives 13 cards. In a two player game each player receives 15 cards and each player draws two cards on each of their turns and discards one. If each player draws two cards, there is usually the additional requirement that a player must have made two canastas in order to go out.


title: Canasta

text: The CLA was established in 2013 as a result of the growing popularity of Canasta. Utilizing the rules of Modern American Canasta, the CLA, has standardized the rules through their (currently) 9th Edition of the CLA Standard Rules and Instruction for Playing Modern Canasta. The Canasta League of America reports that they have endorsed Canasta Junction for online game play which plays according to the CLA Rules. Annual Membership in the CLA is open to anyone. The Standard Rules book is available on their website.


title: Canasta

text: This version of Canasta is widespread, especially in the United States, and it was the official tournament version used by the (possibly defunct) American Canasta Association. American Canasta can be found in few books. One notable exception is "Scarne's Encyclopedia of Card Games", where the author claims to have invented a game which he calls International Canasta. Most of the elements of Modern American Canasta can be found in Scarne's International Canasta, although there are some differences.


title: Canasta

text: Due to its relative complexity and unforgiving scoring rules, which give large penalties for many melds that would be acceptable and even good in other versions, this may not be the best version for beginning players; "classic" canasta or Hand & Foot may better serve this purpose. (On the other hand, these versions can teach habits that become major liabilities in American canasta). This version is only meant to be played by exactly four players, in two two-person partnerships. Important differences between this version and the "classic" version include:


title: Canasta

text: Samba is a variant of Canasta, played with three decks, including jokers, for a total of 162 cards. 15 cards are dealt to each of four players, and an additional card is turned up. Two cards are drawn each turn, so the pace is quicker than traditional Canasta. The game is to 10,000 points instead of 5,000. Samba allows sequence melds of three or more (for example, the 4, 5, and 6 of hearts or the Queen, King and Ace of Spades). If a player is able to make a sequence of seven (for example, the 5 through J of diamonds), this is a "samba" and is worth 1,500 points. Rather than four red threes being worth 800 points, six red threes are worth 1,000 points. Two wild cards is the maximum allowed for a meld. The minimum initial meld is 150 if a partnership has 7,000 or more.


title: Canasta

text: Bolivian Canasta is similar to Samba, as it uses three decks and sequence melds. Play is to 15,000. Wild card canastas ("bolivias") count 2,500. A side must have a samba (called "escalera" in this game) and at least one other canasta to go out. Red threes only count positive if two or more canastas have been melded. Black threes are negative 100 instead of negative 5 when left in hand.


title: Canasta

text: Similar to Bolivia, but only to 10,000. The minimum meld requirements are 150 from 5,000 to 7,000; a canasta from 7,000 to 8,000; 200 from 8,000 to 9,000; and a natural canasta from 9,000 up. Wild card canastas count 2,000. Partnerships receive 1,000 for five red threes and 1,200 for all six. If a side has a sequence of five cards or less, it loses 1,000.


title: Canasta

text: Similar to the original rules but with the important addition of 'Acaba' (Spanish for 'The End'). A player may say this at any point during their turn and will immediately forfeit the round awarding the opposing player or team 1,500 points and receiving 0 points, ending the very dull phase where one player or team has total control over the discard deck. When playing in teams a player may ask their teammate for permission to say acaba just as they may ask before going out and they will also be bound by the response in the same way.


title: Canasta

text: Allows both "sambas" and "bolivias". Can be played with either three decks (162 cards) or four decks (216 cards).


title: Canasta

text: A two-deck variant to 7,500. Requires 150 for an initial meld if a partnership is over 5,000. The deck is always frozen. Wild card canastas are worth between 2,000 and 4,000; depending on the number of deuces. Threes are scored only if canastas are made; they count 100 for one, 300 for two, 500 for three and 1,000 for four. Black threes are removed from play if a discard pile is taken; a partnership that removes all four black threes this way gets 100 points.


title: Canasta

text: Italian canasta is a Samba variant. The number of cards in the discard pile at the beginning of the game varies with the initial card turned up. The discard pile is always frozen. Deuces may, but a partnership may not play deuces as wild cards if deuces have been melded and a canasta is incomplete. Game is to 15,000


title: Canasta

text: This variation originates in Slovakia. Since the definition of Canasta rules differed from player to player a strong urge has risen for unified rules. This in turn was satisfied by the creation of Boat Canasta, which really is a mix of other known rules, but thoroughly optimized. Currently this variant of Canasta is steadily gaining popularity mainly in Slovakia, but also in countries such as France, Germany and England.


title: Canasta

text: This version is a quad deck game that is played with a hand and a foot, unlike traditional canasta that just has a hand. Hand and Foot is a Canasta variant involving four to seven decks and is played by teams of two players (usually two teams, but it also works with three or four teams). The number of decks used is typically one more than the number of players, though this can vary. Due to the larger pool of available cards, it is much easier to form canastas in Hand and Foot than in standard Canasta, which changes the strategy considerably. Some players feel this version is more enjoyable for beginners. The variant was born in the 1970s; commercial decks to play Hand and Foot have been available since 1987. Important rule changes for this variant include:


title: Canasta

text: At the beginning of a game, both teams have an initial meld requirement of 50. The requirement increases in value in subsequent hands.


title: Canasta

text: The total value of all cards melded by that player/team, including cards in canastas minus the total value of all cards remaining in the team's hands, plus any bonuses:


title: Canasta

text: The expression "as dead as Canasta" cites the transience of popular interest in the game within the United States.


title: Canasta

text: In the J. D. Salinger novel "The Catcher in the Rye", protagonist Holden Caulfield says of fellow student Ackley, "'Listen,' I said, 'do you feel like playing a little Canasta?' He was a Canasta fiend."


title: Canasta

text: In the James Bond novel "Goldfinger" by Ian Fleming, Bond finds the titular villain, Auric Goldfinger, cheating at canasta with the help of a confederate who spies on the game from a hotel room balcony and feeds him information via radio.


title: Canasta

text: David Bowie refers to this card game in his art rock song "Lady Grinning Soul": "She'll drive a beetle car and beat you down at cool canasta."


title: Canasta

text: Lucy Ricardo (Lucille Ball) and Ethel Mertz (Vivian Vance) play canasta (or are referenced as being regular players) in a few episodes of the classic U.S. sitcom "I Love Lucy" (1951–1957) such as "Job Switching" et al.


title: Sakshi Tanwar

text: Tanwar was born in 1972 or 1973 to Rajendra Singh Tanwar, a retired CBI officer, in a middle-class Rajput family from Alwar, Rajasthan, India. She was educated in many Kendriya Vidyalayas before graduating from Lady Shri Ram College in New Delhi. Prior to this, in 1990, after completing her pre-university course, she worked as a sales trainee at a five-star hotel. In college, she was the secretary and president of the dramatic society. After graduation, while preparing for the entrance tests to the administrative services and mass communications, she gave an audition for the national broadcaster Doordarshan's film songs based program "Albela Sur Mela" in 1998; she was selected as the presenter.


title: Sakshi Tanwar

text: After her television debut in 1998 with "Albela Sur Mela", Tanwar gained fame for her role of Parvati Agarwal in the soap opera, "Kahaani Ghar Ghar Kii". Between 2011 and 2014, she played Priya Kapoor, opposite Ram Kapoor, in "Bade Achhe Lagte Hain". In December 2012, she made a third appearance on the reality show "Kaun Banega Crorepati".


title: Sakshi Tanwar

text: In the 2016 film "Dangal", Tanwar played Daya Kaur, wife of former wrestler Mahavir Singh Phogat (played by Aamir Khan), who trains his daughters to be world-class wrestlers against social odds. Sakshi Tanwar made a comeback on television with "Tyohaar Ki Thaali", first telecasted by Epic Channel in February 2018.


title: Territorial Defense Forces (Ukraine)

text: The Territorial Defence Forces were formed after the reorganization of the Territorial Defence Battalions, volunteer militias created during the War in Donbas under the command of the Ministry of Defence. Territorial Defence units existed from 2015 until 2021 in semi-organized forms until 2022 when they were formally organized into a unified defense corps under the Territorial Defence Forces.


title: Territorial Defense Forces (Ukraine)

text: It is formed by a core of part-time reservists, usually former combat veterans, and in cases of war can be expanded to local civilian volunteers for local defense, in a case of mass mobilization. That core is expected to lead the mobilized volunteers. The TDF was officially activated with the start of the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, with more than 100,000 civilians had volunteered by March.


title: Territorial Defense Forces (Ukraine)

text: The Territorial Defense Forces also contain the International Legion of Territorial Defense of Ukraine, formed by foreign volunteers.


title: Territorial Defense Forces (Ukraine)

text: In 2014 the Armed Forces of Ukraine suffered a series of humiliating defeats; the Annexation of Crimea by Russia led to the takeover of the peninsula as most of the military either surrendered without resistance or defected to Russia. While in the initial stages War in Donbas, the Ukrainian military had a number of setbacks and defeats against the pro-Russian separatist forces, as they were ill-prepared, ill-equipped, lacking in professionalism, morale, fighting spirit and with severe incompetence in the high command. As the Donbas situation deteriorated, many civilians started to form volunteer militias and paramilitary groups to fight the separatists, known as the "Volunteer Battalions". The Ministry of Defence of Ukraine started to organize and mobilize some of these units under their command as the Territorial Defence Battalions. The Territorial Defense Battalions and other Volunteer Battalions were credited with having held the line against separatist forces and allowing the Ukrainian military to reorganize and mobilize.


title: Territorial Defense Forces (Ukraine)

text: In late 2014 the system of territorial defense of Ukraine changed. Territorial defense battalions were reorganized and transferred to the mechanized infantry brigade of the Army. To replace them, a new structure of the territorial defense forces of the Armed Forces was gradually introduced.


title: Territorial Defense Forces (Ukraine)

text: The example of Ukrainian Forces was later used by Poland to build its own armed forces, which from 2015 and on implemented a similar practice.


title: Territorial Defense Forces (Ukraine)

text: On 25 May 2021, President Volodymyr Zelensky introduced a law to the Verkhovna Rada (Ukraine's national parliament) "on the basis of national resistance" that proposed to increase the number of the territorial forces by 11,000 servicemen. The old Territorial Defence units would be now organized under the new Territorial Defense Forces as a standalone branch of the Armed Forces. Veterans of the Donbas War from the Armed Forces of Ukraine, National Guard of Ukraine and other paramilitary forces involved in the conflict would provide a backbone to train and lead the mobilized volunteers. On 16 July 2021 parliament approved this bill, and on 29 July 2021 Zelensky signed the law. On 1 January 2022, the Territorial Defence Forces were officially activated. The creation of the branch coincided with the Russian military build-up which had been ongoing since 2021.


title: Territorial Defense Forces (Ukraine)

text: As a result of the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Territorial Defense Forces reserves were activated and many civilians joined local Territorial Defense Forces groups to fight the Russian invaders. On 25 February, during the rapid Russian offensive into Kyiv, the Ukrainian government distributed 18,000 guns for people wishing to fight in Kyiv. For the next few days, the Territorial Forces were engaged in various combat situations and battles around Ukraine, supporting the Ukrainian Ground Forces and National Guard of Ukraine. By 6 March, almost 100,000 people had volunteered for the Territorial Defense Forces. Some units stopped accepting volunteer as they reached their operational limit. There were reports of Ukrainian volunteers paying bribes or using connections to join the Territorial Defense.


title: Territorial Defense Forces (Ukraine)

text: On 27 February, as a result of many foreigners volunteering to fight for Ukraine, President Zelenskyy created the International Legion of Territorial Defense of Ukraine, a foreign legion which was placed under the command of the Territorial Defense Forces. A TDF battalion, the Bratstvo battalion, was active in multiple major campaigns during the 2022 invasion, including the defense of Kyiv, the Kharkiv counteroffensive, and the liberation of Kherson. It is currently conducting riverine operations through its special forces unit.


title: Territorial Defense Forces (Ukraine)

text: In September 2022, the 113th Territorial Defense Brigade also partook in the Kharkiv counteroffensive namely in the direction of Vovchansk. Ukrainian units liberated most of the Kharkiv Oblast following the collapse of Russian frontline forces. This has been attributed to the lack of secondary and tertiary defensive lines.


title: Territorial Defense Forces (Ukraine)

text: In accordance with the Constitution and legislation passed by the Supreme Council, the TDF fulfills the following missions:


title: Territorial Defense Forces (Ukraine)

text: The territory of the country is divided into defense zones according to upper-level administrative units (regions, cities of special status, the Autonomous Republic of Crimea), which in turn are subordinate to the relevant operational command of the Armed Forces of Ukraine in whose area of responsibility these administrative units belong.


title: Territorial Defense Forces (Ukraine)

text: Each military commissariat forms a security company, and the regional military commissariats, in addition, are responsible for the territorial defense battalions (BtrO, 27 battalions). Each district (city) military commissariat in the area of its responsibility is responsible for the raising of two to five detachments[12], depending on the assigned tasks (ZgO, 490 + 111 (districts in cities), 1202 units, at least does not take into account the occupied territories). Approximate staff strength - 423,428 (battalions: 13,284, guard companies: 75,988, defense units: 334,165) service personnel.


title: Territorial Defense Forces (Ukraine)

text: Territorial defense brigades are recruited on the basis of the military reserve[13] and are responsible to the office of the regional military commissioner.


title: Territorial Defense Forces (Ukraine)

text: Militiamen of the Civil Defence of the TDF, while being paramilitary, are also affiliated to the State Emergency Service of Ukraine. They are organized similarly to the territorial battalions and/or companies.


title: Territorial Defense Forces (Ukraine)

text: As a subdivision of the TDFU, the International Legion of Territorial Defense is organized as an operational division with brigades/regiments or independent battalions, structured in like manner as the territorial battalions mentioned above.


title: Territorial Defense Forces (Ukraine)

text: Territorial defense throughout Ukraine is organized by the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, or regional governments in the relevant areas, within their powers. Direct supervision of state territorial defense is done by the head of the General Staff, with the Commander of the Armed Forces assuming overall supervision thru the General Staff and the office of the Commander of the TDF.


title: Territorial Defense Forces (Ukraine)

text: Because of their territorial defense tasks the Territorial Defense Forces are involved in the Armed Forces of Ukraine and other military formations formed in accordance with the Constitution and laws of Ukraine, including law enforcement forces, units of the State Special Transport Service, State Special Communications Service of Ukraine and the relevant bodies and offices of the government of the republic.


title: Territorial Defense Forces (Ukraine)

text: Regional military commissariats form separate rifle battalions. District (city) military commissariats form defense units in an amount of 2 to 5 units, depending on the assigned tasks. Regional and district military commissariats have a staff defence company, involved in the task of territorial defense (TD).


title: Territorial Defense Forces (Ukraine)

text: All units are equipped reservists and military service obligatories. Preparation of the units of TD held within educational meeting of military service (with practical appeal) and the activities carried out between these.


title: Territorial Defense Forces (Ukraine)

text: Units of the ILTD are made up of veterans of foreign armed forces and are organized in like manner as the rest of the TDF.


title: Constitution of the Philippines

text: The Constitution of the Philippines (Filipino: "Saligang Batas ng Pilipinas" or "Konstitusyon ng Pilipinas", Spanish: "Constitución de la República de Filipinas") is the constitution or the supreme law of the Republic of the Philippines. Its final draft was completed by the Constitutional Commission on October 12, 1986, and ratified by a nationwide plebiscite on February 2, 1987.


title: Constitution of the Philippines

text: Three other constitutions have effectively governed the country in its history: the 1935 Commonwealth Constitution, the 1973 Constitution, and the 1986 Freedom Constitution.


title: Constitution of the Philippines

text: The earliest constitution establishing a "Philippine Republic", the 1899 Malolos Constitution, was never fully implemented throughout the Philippines and did not establish a state that was internationally recognized, due in great part to the eruption of the Philippine–American War.


title: Constitution of the Philippines

text: Ruling by decree during the early months of her tenure as a president installed via the People Power Revolution, President Corazon Aquino was granted three options: restore the 1935 Constitution, retain and make reforms to the 1973 Constitution, or pass a new constitution. She decided to draft a new constitution and issued Proclamation No. 3 on March 25, 1986, abrogating many of the provisions of the 1973 Constitution adopted during the Marcos regime, including the unicameral legislature (the Batasang Pambansa), the office of Prime Minister, and provisions which gave the President legislative powers. Often called the "Freedom Constitution", this constitution was intended as a transitional constitution to ensure democracy and the freedom of the people. The Freedom Constitution provided for an orderly transfer of power while a Constitutional Commission was drafting a permanent constitution.


title: Constitution of the Philippines

text: The Constitutional Commission was composed of forty-eight members appointed by Aquino from varied backgrounds, including several former members of the House of Representatives, former justices of the Supreme Court, a Roman Catholic bishop, and political activists against the Marcos regime. Aquino appointed Cecilia Muñoz-Palma, a former Associate Justice of the Supreme Court, as president of the commission. Several issues were of particular contention during the commission's sessions, including the form of government to adopt, the abolition of the death penalty, the retention of U.S. bases in Clark and Subic, and the integration of economic policies into the constitution. Lino Brocka, a film director and political activist who was a member of the commission, walked out before the constitution's completion, and two other delegates dissented from the final draft. The Commission finished the final draft on October 12, 1986, and presented it to Aquino on October 15. The constitution was ratified by a nationwide plebiscite on February 2, 1987.


title: Constitution of the Philippines

text: The constitution provided for three governmental branches, namely the executive, legislative, and judicial branches. The executive branch is headed by the president and his appointed cabinet members. The executive, same with the other two co-equal branches, has limited power. This is to ensure that the country will be "safeguarded" if martial law is to be declared. The president can still declare martial law, but it expires within 60 days and Congress can either reject or extend it.


title: Constitution of the Philippines

text: The task of the Supreme Court is to review whether a declaration of martial law is just. The legislative power consists of the Senate and the House of Representatives. There are twenty-four senators and the House is composed of district representatives. It also created opportunities for under-represented sectors of community to select their representative through party-list system. The judiciary branch comprises the Supreme Court and the lower courts. The Supreme Court is granted the power to hear any cases that deals with the constitutionality of law, about a treaty or decree of the government. It is also tasked to administrate the function of the lower courts.


title: Constitution of the Philippines

text: Through the constitution, three independent Constitutional Commissions, namely the Civil Service Commission, Commission on Elections, and Commission on Audit, were created. These Constitutional Commissions have different functions. The constitution also paved a way for the establishment of the Office of the Ombudsman, which has a function of promoting and ensuring an ethical and lawful conduct of the government.


title: Constitution of the Philippines

text: There are three possible methods by which the Constitution can be amended: a Constituent assembly (Con-Ass), Constitutional Convention (Con-Con), or People's Initiative. All three methods require ratification by majority vote in a national referendum. Following the administration of Corazon Aquino, succeeding administrations made several attempts to amend or change the 1987 Constitution.


title: Constitution of the Philippines

text: The first attempt was in 1995. A constitution was drafted by then-Secretary of National Security Council Jose Almonte, but was never completed because it was exposed to the media by different non-government organizations. They saw through a potential change regarding the protection of the people's interests in the constitutional draft.


title: Constitution of the Philippines

text: In 1997, the Pedrosa couple created a group called PIRMA followed with an attempt to change the constitution through a People's Initiative by way of gathering signatures from voters. Many prominent figures opposed the proposition, including Senator Miriam Defensor-Santiago, who brought the issue all the way to the Supreme Court and eventually won the case. The Supreme Court ruled that the initiative not continue, stating that a People's Initiative requires an enabling law for it to push through.


title: Constitution of the Philippines

text: During his presidency, Joseph Ejercito Estrada created a study commission for a possible charter change regarding the economic and judiciary provisions of the constitution. The attempt never attained its purpose after various entities opposed it due apparently to the attempt serving the personal interests of the initiators.


title: Constitution of the Philippines

text: After the Estrada presidency, the administration of Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo endorsed constitutional changes via a Constitutional Assembly, with then-House Speaker Jose de Venecia leading the way. However, due to political controversies surrounding Arroyo's administration, including the possibility of term extension, the proposal was rejected by the Supreme Court.


title: Constitution of the Philippines

text: The next attempt was from then-Speaker of the House Feliciano Belmonte Jr. during President Benigno Aquino III's administration. Belmonte attempted to introduce amendments to the Constitution focusing on economic provisions aiming toward liberalization. The effort did not succeed.


title: Constitution of the Philippines

text: President Rodrigo Duterte oversaw the possibility of implementing federalism on the country. Following his ascension as president after the 2016 presidential election, he signed Executive Order No. 10 on December 7, 2016, creating the Consultative Committee to Review the 1987 Constitution.


title: Constitution of the Philippines

text: The preamble and eighteen self-contained articles with a section numbering that resets for every article.


title: Constitution of the Philippines

text: The preamble introduces the constitution and the source of sovereignty, the people. It follows the pattern in past constitutions, including an appeal to God. The preamble reads:


title: Constitution of the Philippines

text: The national territory comprises the Philippine archipelago, with all the islands and waters embraced therein, and all other territories over which the Philippines has sovereignty or jurisdiction, consisting of its terrestrial, fluvial, and aerial domains, including its territorial sea, the seabed, the subsoil, the insular shelves, and other submarine areas. The waters around, between, and connecting the islands of the archipelago, regardless of their breadth and dimensions, form part of the internal waters of the Philippines.


title: Constitution of the Philippines

text: Article II lays out the basic social and political creed of the Philippines, particularly the implementation of the constitution and sets forth the objectives of the government. Some essential provisions are:


title: Constitution of the Philippines

text: Article III enumerates specific protections against the abuse of state power, most of which are similar to the provisions of the U.S. Constitution. Some essential provisions are:


title: Constitution of the Philippines

text: Similar to U.S. jurisprudence and other common law jurisdictions, the scope and limitations of these rights have largely been determined by the Supreme Court through case law.


title: Constitution of the Philippines

text: Article IV defines the citizenship of Filipinos. It enumerates two kinds of citizens: natural-born citizens and naturalized citizens. Natural-born citizens are those who are citizens from birth without having to perform any act to acquire or perfect Philippine citizenship. The Philippines follows a "jus sanguinis" system where citizenship is mainly acquired through a blood relationship with Filipino citizens.


title: Constitution of the Philippines

text: Natural-born citizenship forms an important part of the political system as only natural-born Filipinos are eligible to hold high offices, including all elective offices beginning with a representative in the House of Representatives up to the President.


title: Constitution of the Philippines

text: Article V mandates various age and residence qualifications to vote and a system of secret ballots and absentee voting. It also mandates a procedure for overseas and disabled and illiterate Filipinos to vote.


title: Constitution of the Philippines

text: Article VI provides for a bicameral legislature called the Congress composed of the Senate and the House of Representatives. It vests upon Congress, among others, the power of investigation and inquiry in aid of legislation, the power to declare the existence of a state of war,


title: Constitution of the Philippines

text: Article VII provides for a presidential form of government where the executive power is vested on the President. It provides for the qualification, terms of office, election, and power and functions of the President. It also provides for a vice president and for the presidential line of succession.


title: Constitution of the Philippines

text: Article VIII vests the judicial power upon the Supreme Court and other lower courts as may be established by law (by Congress). While the power to appoint justices and judges still reside with the President, the President from a list of at least three nominees prepared by the Judicial and Bar Council for every vacancy, a body composed of the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, the Secretary of Justice, the Chairs of the Senate and House Committees on Justice, and representatives from the legal profession.


title: Constitution of the Philippines

text: Article IX establishes three constitutional commissions, which are governmental bodies that are independent of the three main branches of government. These are the Civil Service Commission, the Commission on Elections, and the Commission on Audit.


title: Constitution of the Philippines

text: Article X pursues for local autonomy and mandates Congress to enact a law for the local government, now currently the Local Government Code.


title: Constitution of the Philippines

text: Article XI establishes the Office of the Ombudsman which is responsible for investigating and prosecuting government officials. It also vests upon the Congress the power to impeach the President, the Vice President, members of the Supreme Court, and the Ombudsman.


title: Constitution of the Philippines

text: Article XII lays down the goals and objectives of the Philippine government in terms of wealth distribution, division of goods and services and to offer job opportunities to elevate the lives of Filipino people. This section also provides important provisions such as:


title: Constitution of the Philippines

text: Article XIII divulge the utmost responsibility of the Congress to give the highest priority in enactments of such measures which protects and enhances the rights of all the people to human dignity through affirming that present social, economic and political inequalities as well as cultural inequities among the elites and the poor shall be reduced or removed in order to secure equitable welfare and common good among Filipino people. It also establishes the role of the Commission on Human Rights which ensures appropriate legal measures for the protection of human rights of all the persons within the Philippines as well as Filipinos residing abroad. Moreover, this section also lays down salient provisions such as:


title: Constitution of the Philippines

text: Article XV establishes the recognition of the state on the Filipino family as the basic foundation of the nation as it shall reinforce and bolster its solidarity and steadily promote its development. Alongside with this, it also states important provisions such as:


title: Constitution of the Philippines

text: Article XVI contains several general provisions, such as a general description of the national flag, the establishment of the Armed Forces of the Philippines and a police force (presently the Philippine National Police), the regulation of mass media and advertising industries, the doctrine of sovereign immunity, and others.


title: Constitution of the Philippines

text: Article XVII establishes the methods by which the Constitution may be amended or revised. Amendments may be proposed by either: a) a three-fourths vote of all Members of Congress (called a Constituent Assembly), b) a Constitutional Convention, or c) a petition of at least twelve percent of all registered voters, and at least three percent of registered voters within each district (called a People's Initiative). All amendments must be ratified in a national referendum.


title: Constitution of the Philippines

text: Article XVIII establishes provisions to allow a clean transition from the preceding provisional constitution to the new Constitution. This includes provisions for directing the elections of the first members of the new Congress and of the President and the Vice President, specifying the current courts and the term limits of judges, specifying the initial salary for key members of government, mandating the newly elected Congress to pass laws to fulfill obligations set by these transitory provisions, and defining grace periods and limitations for previous treaties, laws, orders, and other instruments. This article also establishes that the new Constitution will take effect when ratified by a majority of votes in a plebiscite.


title: Constitution of the Philippines

text: The Constitution also contains several other provisions enumerating various state policies including, i.e., the affirmation of labor "as a primary social economic force" (Section 14, Article II); the equal protection of "the life of the mother and the life of the unborn from conception" (Section 12, Article II); the "Filipino family as the foundation of the nation" (Article XV, Section 1); the recognition of Filipino as "the national language of the Philippines" (Section 6, Article XIV), and even a requirement that "all educational institutions shall undertake regular sports activities throughout the country in cooperation with athletic clubs and other sectors." (Section 19.1, Article XIV) Whether these provisions may, by themselves, be the source of enforceable rights without accompanying legislation has been the subject of considerable debate in the legal sphere and within the Supreme Court. The Court, for example, has ruled that a provision requiring that the State "guarantee equal access to opportunities to public service" could not be enforced without accompanying legislation, and thus could not bar the disallowance of so-called "nuisance candidates" in presidential elections.


title: Constitution of the Philippines

text: But in another case, the Court held that a provision requiring that the State "protect and advance the right of the people to a balanced and healthful ecology" did not require implementing legislation to become the source of operative rights.


title: Constitution of the Philippines

text: The Katipunan's revolution led to the Tejeros Convention where, at San Francisco de Malabón, Cavite, on March 22, 1897, the first presidential and vice presidential elections in Philippine history were held—although only "Katipuneros" ("viz." members of the Katipunan) were able to take part, and not the general populace. A later meeting of the revolutionary government established there, held on November 1, 1897, at "Biak-na-Bato" in the town of San Miguel de Mayumo in Bulacan, established the "Republic of Biak-na-Bato". The republic had a constitution drafted by Isabelo Artacho and Félix Ferrer and was based on the first Cuban Constitution. It is known as the "Constitución Provisional de la República de Filipinas", and was originally written in and promulgated in the Spanish and Tagalog languages.


title: Constitution of the Philippines

text: The organs of the government under the Constitution consisted of three divisions: (1) the Supreme Council, which was authorized with the power of the Republic in which it was headed by the President and the four different secretaries which was the interior, foreign affairs, treasury, and war; (2) the Consejo Supremo de Garcia Y Justicia (Supreme Council of Grace and Justice), which has the authority to create decisions and validate and refute the sentences given by the other courts and to command rules for the administration of justice; and (3) the Asamblea de Representantes (Assembly of the Representatives), which was to be assembled after the revolution to create a new constitution and to choose a new Council of Government and Representatives of the people.


title: Constitution of the Philippines

text: The Constitution of Biak-na-Bato was never fully implemented, and was overtaken by the Pact of Biak-na-Bato between the Spanish and the Philippine Revolutionary Army.


title: Constitution of the Philippines

text: The Filipino revolutionary leaders accepted a payment from Spain and went to exile in Hong Kong. The Americans defeated the Spanish in the Battle of Manila Bay and Aguinaldo was transferred to the Philippines by the United States Navy. The newly reformed Philippine revolutionary forces returned to the control of Aguinaldo and the Philippine Declaration of Independence was issued on June 12, 1898. On September 17, 1898, the Malolos Congress was elected, which was composed of wealthy and educated men.


title: Constitution of the Philippines

text: The document was patterned after the Spanish Constitution of 1812, with influences from the charters of Belgium, Mexico, Brazil, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, and Guatemala and the French Constitution of 1793. The Malolos Constitution, namely, the Kartilya and the Sanggunian-Hukuman, the charter of laws and morals of the Katipunan written by Emilio Jacinto in 1896; the Biak-na-Bato Constitution of 1897 planned by Isabelo Artacho; Mabini's Constitutional Program of the Philippine Republic of 1898; the provisional constitution of Mariano Ponce in 1898 that followed the Spanish constitutions; and the autonomy projects of Paterno in 1898.


title: Constitution of the Philippines

text: The Malolos Constitution was the first republican constitution in Asia. It declared that sovereignty resides exclusively in the people, stated basic civil rights, separated the church and state, and called for the creation of an Assembly of Representatives to act as the legislative body. It also called for a parliamentary republic as the form of government. The president was elected for a term of four years by a majority of the Assembly. It was titled "Constitución política", and was written in Spanish following the declaration of independence from Spain, proclaimed on January 20, 1899, and was enacted and ratified by the Malolos Congress, a congress held in Malolos, Bulacan.


title: Constitution of the Philippines

text: The Philippines was a United States Territory from December 10, 1898, to March 24, 1934 and therefore was under the jurisdiction of the Federal Government of the United States. Two acts of the United States Congress passed during this period can be considered Philippine constitutions in that those acts defined the fundamental political principles and established the structure, procedures, powers and duties of the Philippine government.


title: Constitution of the Philippines

text: The Philippine Organic Act of 1902, sometimes known as the "Philippine Bill of 1902" or the "Cooper Act", was the first organic law for the Philippine Islands enacted by the United States Congress. It provided for the creation of a popularly elected Philippine Assembly, and specified that legislative power would be vested in a bicameral legislature composed of the Philippine Commission (upper house) and the Philippine Assembly (lower house). Its key provisions included a bill of rights for the Filipinos and the appointment of two non-voting Filipino Resident Commissioner of the Philippines to represent the Philippines in the United States House of Representatives.


title: Constitution of the Philippines

text: The Philippine Autonomy Act of 1916, sometimes known as the "Jones Law", modified the structure of the Philippine government by removing the Philippine Commission as the legislative upper house and replacing it with a Senate elected by Filipino voters, creating the Philippines' first fully elected national legislature. This act also explicitly stated that it was and always had been the purpose of the people of the United States to renounce their sovereignty over the Philippine Islands and to recognize Philippine independence as soon as a stable government can be established therein.


title: Constitution of the Philippines

text: Though not a constitution itself, the Hare–Hawes–Cutting Act of 1932 was the precursor the Tydings–McDuffie Act, which laid down the promise of independence to the Philippines after 10 years of transition period and other provisions; however, because of infighting within the Philippine Congress, it was not ratified and only became the basis for the creation of the Tydings–McDuffie Act.


title: Constitution of the Philippines

text: Though also not a constitution itself, the Tydings–McDuffie Act of 1934 provided for autonomy. Specified requirements for a formal constitution and defined mechanisms for its establishment via a constitutional convention.


title: Constitution of the Philippines

text: The 1935 Constitution was written, approved and adopted in 1934 by the Commonwealth of the Philippines (1935–1946) and later used by the Third Republic (1946–1972). It was written to meet requirements set forth in the Tydings–McDuffie Act to prepare the country for its independence.


title: Constitution of the Philippines

text: The Commonwealth Constitution was ratified to prepare the country for its independence. This constitution was dominantly influenced by the Americans, but possess the traces of the Malolos Constitution, the German, Spanish, and Mexican Constitution, constitutions of several South American countries, and the unwritten English Constitution.