A Glimpse at Paul G. Spirakis

Paul G. Spirakis was born on 29 August 1955 in Didymoteicho, a city in the northeastern part of Greece, just 2Km from the Greek-Turkish border. His father George Spirakis originated from that city, while his mother Olga Avgoustinou originated from the island of Zakynthos (or Zante). She moved to Didymoteicho as a teacher in an elementary school of the area, where she met Paul’s father. The family is complemented by a daughter (Eleni). Didymoteicho was the home of the Spirakis family and Paul’s parents were among the prominent citizens of the city. George Spirakis was the City Mayor in the periods 1960–1966 and 1978–1982. Paul finished the elementary school there as well as the five out of the six classes of the high-school. He was the top student in all classes with a passionate love for mathematics. This caused his mathematics teacher in high-school’s fifth class (Mr. Ionas) to convince his parents to let Paul enroll in the advanced 1st