Evangelos Zappas

Evangelis or Evangelos Zappas was a Greek patriot, philanthropist and businessman who spent most of his life in Romania. He is recognized today as one of the founders of the modern Olympic Games, who sponsored the Olympic Games of 1859, 1870, 1875, and 1888 and preceded the Olympic Games that came under the auspices of the International Olympic Committee. These Games, known at the time simply as Olympics, came before the founding of the International Olympic Committee. The legacy of Evangelis Zappas, as well as the legacy of his cousin Konstantinos Zappas, was also used to fund the Olympic Games of 1896.