Latest news with #Acropolis
Straits Times
8 hours ago
- Automotive
- Straits Times
Rallying-Tanak leads in Greece after a day of heat and punctures
Rallying-Tanak leads in Greece after a day of heat and punctures Hyundai's Ott Tanak ended the first full day of the Acropolis Rally with a slender three second lead over teammate Adrien Fourmaux as the Greek heat and rough roads left rivals struggling to keep up. Tanak stayed out of trouble to lead on Friday night despite not winning any of the seven gravel stages in temperatures in excess of 40 degrees Celsius. "At times it was difficult to keep everything in one piece but I think in the end we must be happy that we didn't have any big trouble with the tyres or with the car," said the Estonian. Hyundai's reigning champion and last year's Acropolis winner Thierry Neuville led after stage three but then dropped three minutes after collecting two punctures, before taking the day's final stage to end the day eighth. Toyota's Takamoto Katsuta and Kalle Rovanpera also lost time with tyre problems. Teammate and eight-times world champion Sebastien Ogier was in third place, 16.9 seconds behind Tanak after leading up to stage five, and won two stages to Fourmaux's three. The Frenchman's championship-leading teammate Elfyn Evans was fourth and Gregoire Munster fifth for M-Sport Ford. Katsuta and Rovanpera were sixth and seventh. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
The Star
8 hours ago
- Automotive
- The Star
Rallying-Tanak leads in Greece after a day of heat and punctures
(Reuters) -Hyundai's Ott Tanak ended the first full day of the Acropolis Rally with a slender three second lead over teammate Adrien Fourmaux as the Greek heat and rough roads left rivals struggling to keep up. Tanak stayed out of trouble to lead on Friday night despite not winning any of the seven gravel stages in temperatures in excess of 40 degrees Celsius. "At times it was difficult to keep everything in one piece but I think in the end we must be happy that we didn't have any big trouble with the tyres or with the car," said the Estonian. Hyundai's reigning champion and last year's Acropolis winner Thierry Neuville led after stage three but then dropped three minutes after collecting two punctures, before taking the day's final stage to end the day eighth. Toyota's Takamoto Katsuta and Kalle Rovanpera also lost time with tyre problems. Teammate and eight-times world champion Sebastien Ogier was in third place, 16.9 seconds behind Tanak after leading up to stage five, and won two stages to Fourmaux's three. The Frenchman's championship-leading teammate Elfyn Evans was fourth and Gregoire Munster fifth for M-Sport Ford. Katsuta and Rovanpera were sixth and seventh. (Reporting by Alan Baldwin in London, editing by Pritha Sarkar)
Washington Post
a day ago
- Sport
- Washington Post
Rally of Gods: Punishing four-day Acropolis Rally kicks off in the Greek capital amid heatwave
ATHENS, Greece — It's dubbed the 'Rally of Gods' — a punishing, four-day event on the World Rally Championship circuit that will take 69 crews from 31 countries across rough, treacherous terrain in Greece. Known for its brutal combination of dust and heat on its twisty, mountainous stages, the Acropolis Rally started on Thursday afternoon with a special stage in the very center of Athens. Unlike much of the rest of the rally, the start will see the cars sliding on city streets outside Greece's parliament building near the foot of the Acropolis.
South China Morning Post
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- South China Morning Post
Host to Coldplay and Pavarotti, Athens' Odeon of Herodes Atticus to close for renovation
For visitors to Athens, the ancient Odeon of Herodes Atticus, the theatre at the foot of the Acropolis, is a must-see. Artists revere it for its majestic stage. And for Athenians, it is the touchstone of their summer cultural calendar. The Odeon of Herodes Atticus – known in Greek as the Herodion – recently opened the 70th season of the annual Athens Epidaurus Festival. This edition is the last before the theatre – which first opened in AD161 – closes for maintenance and restoration work that is expected to last at least three years. While theatre and dance grace its stage, music is its cornerstone. Renowned artists who have performed there include Luciano Pavarotti, Frank Sinatra, Coldplay and American-born Greek singer Maria Callas. Its closure will be a profound loss for spectators who enjoy first-class performances under the stars in one of the world's most iconic open-air theatres. 'When [people] think of the Athens cultural scene, everyone thinks of the festival and the Herodion,' said Katerina Evangelatos, the festival's artistic director since 2019. 'It has become a synonym for the festival. It is the heart of the festival.' Denia Mimerini (centre) and Nikos Egglezos (left) of the Greek National Opera prepare ahead of the staging of Puccini's Turandot at the Odeon of Herodes Atticus in Athens, Greece, on June 3, 2025. Photo: AP When the Greek National Opera opened this season's festival with Giacomo Puccini's opera Turandot, it erected temporary structures behind its arched walls to expand the available space for dressing rooms, because underground facilities were not large enough.
Arab News
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- Arab News
Athens' ancient theater closes for three-year restoration
ATHENS: For visitors to Athens, the ancient Odeon of Herod Atticus is the must-see theater at the foot of the Acropolis. Artists revere it for the majestic stage where legends have performed. And for the Greek capital's residents it is the touchstone of their summer cultural calendar. The Odeon of Herod Atticus recently opened the 70th season of the annual Athens Epidaurus Festival, a cherished annual tradition for many Greeks. But this edition marks the last before the theater that's more than 18 centuries old shuts down for maintenance and restoration work that is expected to last at least three years. While theater and dance grace its stage, music is its cornerstone. Renowned artists who have performed here include Luciano Pavarotti, Frank Sinatra, Coldplay, and Greece's own Maria Callas. Its closure will be a profound loss for spectators who have long enjoyed first-class performances under the stars in one of the world's most iconic open-air theaters. 'When (people) think of the Athens cultural scene, everyone thinks of the festival and Herodion,' said Katerina Evangelatos, the festival's artistic director since 2019, calling the theater by its commonly used Greek name. 'It has become a synonym of the festival. It is the heart of the festival.'
