Godas, Nikos

Nikos Godas was born in 1921 in the Asia Minor city of Kidonies ( Ayvalik ), which was then, under the terms of the Treaty of Sevres , under Greek control. After the Turks broke through the front and avoiding the general persecution and massacre of the Greek population, started by the Kemalists, the family moved to the nearby island of Lesbos , and then to the island of Crete . Ultimately, the family settled in the Nicaea region of Piraeus , founded by Greek refugees from Asia Minor . Among the destitute refugees, the left-wing ideology began to prevail, which is why the region became better known by the name Kokkiniya (Κοκκινιά - from the red color of paint), rather than under its official name. Nikos and his brothers created a tavern “Arapchata” under his house (see Negro - “Τα Αραπάκια”). Nikos played the stringed instruments, was fascinated by the musical movement of Rebetik , who at that time was the persecuted regime of General Metaxas . Because of this, such famous representatives of this movement as Marcos Vamvakaris and Vasilis Tsitsanis played in the tavern of the brothers ^[1] .

Godas from a young age became interested in football and began playing in the amateur team of Nicaea. The outbreak of World War II and the occupation were not an obstacle to his passion for football. In the occupation he was admitted to the Olympiacos football club in Piraeus. In 1942, he was already a club striker. In December 1943, he was one of the protagonists in a victory with a score of 5-2 over, the eternal opponent of the Piraoes, the Athenian club Panathinaikos in the Christmas Cup.

But the country was under occupation and Godas, already a member of the Communist Party , took part in the Resistance Movement , as part of the 5th company of the city 1st corps of the People's Liberation Army of Greece (ELAS). Since 1943, ELAS city squads have practically controlled many areas of Athens and Piraeus, while the invaders and their employees were limited to raids on these areas. In March 1944, as a captain , Godas led the 5th company of the city's 1st ELAS corps in battles against the invaders and their employees, who committed a large-scale operation against Nicaea. In October 1944, when the Germans left the Greek capital, the 5th company, led by Godas, took part in the battles for rescue from the destruction of urban infrastructure in Piraeus and Peram , in particular the power plant in Keratsini .

In December 1944, the company of Godas took part in the battles of the city ELAS detachments against the British troops and their Greek allies, among which were former employees of the invaders. Rota Godas fought against the British in the coastal Piraeus region of Drapetsona, where the city’s ELAS units successfully blocked the 5th Indian brigade that landed here ^[2] . On December 16, the company took part in the heavy battle for the hill of St. Elijah ^[2] December and 23 again in the battle for Drapetsona ^[2] . On December 30, Godas’s company took part in the defense of the area around the “cemetery of the Resurrection” in Piraeus, and then, after a successful counterattack, again captured it ^[2] . During these battles, the Godas company suffered heavy losses. In early January, by order of the command, Godas took his company, along with other ELAS city units, to the city of Lamia, and then to the Timfristos Mountains, where his company was included in the 36th regular ELAS regiment, preparing for a long guerrilla warfare. However, the leadership of the Communist Party and ELAS compromised and signed the Varkiz Agreement .

After the Varkizsky agreement, Nikos Godas returned to Piraeus , where he was arrested and convicted in the so-called “Process of asylum of Kokkinia” (Δίκη του ασύλου της Κοκκινιάς) ^{[3] [4]} . He was originally imprisoned on the island of Aegina (where he played football with a team of prisoners). He was transferred to the Averof prison in Athens, and then again to the island of Aegina. The last stage was a prison for those sentenced to death on the island of Kerkyra . Godas stayed here for 3 years, firmly refusing to sign a renunciation of the ideas of communism, which could save his life. Nikos Godas was shot as a communist in the midst of the Civil War , on November 19, 1948, on the islet of Lazareto. His last wish was fulfilled. He was shot in a red and white Olympiakos T-shirt and without a blindfold, “to see the colors of his beloved club before his death” ^{[5] [6] [7]} .

His last words before the execution were the words of Phidippides “Νενικήκαμεν” (Nenikikamen - We won), which he continued with the words “Long live the Olympic winners of socialism” (Ζήτω οι ολυμπιονίκες του σοσιαλισμού) ^[8] .

Olympiakos Football Club celebrated the 64th anniversary of the shooting of its football player in November 2012. The municipality of Nicaea organized events in November 2013 to mark the 65th anniversary of the execution of Nikos Godas ^[9] . N. Boyopoulos and D. Milakas dedicated a chapter to Nikos Godas in his book “Religion without Infidels: Football” ( Μια θρησκεία χωρίς απίστους: Ποδόσφαιρο ) ^[10] .

1. ↑ Ο ήρωας με την "ερυθρόλευκη" φανέλα (vids + pics) | gazzetta.gr
2. ↑ ^{1 2 3 4} Δεκέμβρης του 44, εκδ. Σύγχρονη Εποχή, Αθήνα 2014, ISBN 978-960-451-183-1
3. ↑ Η Μάχη της Χαλκηδόνας, το Μπλόκο και τα Δεκεμβριανά έτσι όπως τα 'ζησε ο Μίμης ο Σπίθας | Πρωτοβουλία Πολιτών Χαλκηδόνας στη Νίκαια Archived October 20, 2014 on Wayback Machine
4. ↑ ΡΙΖΟΣΠΑΣΤΗΣ: Εκδήλωση τιμής για τον Ν. Γόδα
5. ↑ Ο Θρυλικός ήρωας, Νίκος Γόδας ( unopened ) (inaccessible link) . redplanet.gr. Archived December 16, 2014.
6. ↑ "Εκτελέστε με, με τη φανέλα του Ολυμπιακού" Βίντεο με τη συγκλονιστική ιστορία του Νίκου Γόδα (neopr.) . onalert.gr.
7. ↑ Τιμή και δόξα σε έναν κόκκινο ήρωα ( unspecified ) (unavailable link) . olympiacos24.gr. Archived July 12, 2014.
8. ↑ 65 χρόνια από την εκτέλεση του Θρυλικού ήρωα, Νίκου Γόδα - ERT Open
9. ↑ ΠΡΟΣΚΛΗΣΗ: Εκδήλωση τιμής για τον ποδοσφαιριστή ΝΙΚΟ ΓΟΔΑ, στο "Μάνος Λοϊζος" την Κυριακή 24 Νοέμβρη στις 11: 00
10. ↑ Ν. Μπογιόπουλου και Δ. Μηλάκα. Μια θρησκεία χωρίς απίστους: Ποδόσφαιρο. - Αθήνα: Λιβάνη, 2005.

• Ιστορίες από την Κατοχή sport24.gr
• [one]
• Νίκος Γόδας [2]