The Hellenic Presidential Guard, the Evzones, spent a week in Sydney for Oxi Day 2026, from the Martin Place Cenotaph to the Hellenic Club Sydney centenary gala and a Doxology in Redfern.
First, the Evzones arrived in Sydney on Wednesday 21 October for their 2026 visit to Australia. In addition, His Excellency the President of the Hellenic Republic, Mr Konstantinos Tasoulas, approved the visit. Over the following eight days, the Guard took part in commemorations, receptions and community events across the city. Afterward, the detachment traveled to Canberra for Oxi Day itself.
Also, the visit coincides with Hellenic Club Sydney’s centenary year. The club hosts the Sydney program with support from the NSW Government, and the Guard joined its Centenary Celebrations Gala Ball at the Hyatt Regency on Saturday 24 October.
The program first began with a Doxology at St Spyridon College in Kingsford. Next came a Guard of Honour at the Martin Place Cenotaph and a reception at NSW Parliament House. Later, the Evzones met Sydney’s Greek Australian youth and attended the centenary gala. They also raised the Greek flag at the ANZAC Memorial in Hyde Park. Finally, after Canberra, they returned for the Oxi Day Doxology at the Cathedral of the Annunciation of Our Lady in Redfern.
Oxi Day marks 28 October 1940, when Greece rejected the Axis ultimatum. This year also marks its 86th anniversary. In addition, the Sydney ceremonies honoured the Australians and Greeks who fought together in the campaigns of Greece and Crete.
Guard of Honour at the Martin Place Cenotaph
On Thursday 22 October, the Guard first attended a Doxology service at St Spyridon College in Kingsford. There, the college and parish community welcomed the Evzones alongside Head of College Mrs Amelia Katsogiannis.
The Evzones then stood Guard of Honour at the Martin Place Cenotaph, as we reported on the Guard’s arrival in Sydney. Meanwhile, hundreds of community members, veterans and well-wishers stood in silence through the hour-long ceremony. Overall, the ceremony honoured the shared wartime sacrifices of Australian and Greek servicemen and women.
During the ceremony, students from St Spyridon College, St Euphemia College and All Saints Grammar performed the Australian and Greek national anthems.
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Evzones at NSW Parliament House, Sydney
At Parliament House, the Hon. Stephen Kamper MP, Minister for Lands and Property, Multiculturalism, Sport, and Jobs and Tourism, hosted a reception for the Guard. Afterward, a guided tour of the parliamentary chambers followed.
Ministers the Hon. Courtney Houssos MLC and the Hon. Sophie Cotsis MP attended, as did Nikolas Hatzistergos, President of Hellenic Club Sydney. In addition, Consul General of Greece in Sydney Georgios Skemperis, Defence Attaché Colonel Kyriakos Kyriakakos and the Commander of the Presidential Guard were present.
Business Sydney also welcomed the Guard at a special event. Paul Nicolaou, Executive Director of Business Sydney, introduced the speakers, including Ms Houssos, Mr Hatzistergos and Consul General Skemperis. Lieutenant Athanasios Loulas of the Hellenic Presidential Guard then delivered an address with slides and video. After that, Commander Michail Tzinieris was introduced.
Sydney’s Greek youth meet the Evzones
On Friday 23 October, the Evzones first met Consul General Georgios Skemperis at his office. That evening, more than 200 people attended a youth evening and question-and-answer session at Events by Alpha, as we reported from the youth evening. The Consulate General of Greece in Sydney also organised it with Hellenic Club Sydney and the Combined Universities Greek Association (CUGA). The NSW Government also sponsored the evening. The Consulate’s own booking page described the sold-out event as a Q&A on “the history, mental toughness and sacred duty” of Greece’s presidential guards.
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“The Evzones, along with the Parthenon, are the two most iconic symbols of Hellenism all around the world,” Mr Hatzistergos said.
Next, Maria Kakali, President of the Sydney University Greek Society, spoke on behalf of CUGA. “The Evzones represent not only Greece’s history and traditions, but also the sacrifice, resilience and national pride that they unite Greeks around the world,” she said.
Major Panagiotis Mimikos, Deputy Commander of the Hellenic Presidential Guard, then presented the history of the Evzones, their role and the significance of their uniform. Next, Consul General Skemperis led a question-and-answer session with two members of the Guard. They discussed volunteering, their daily duties and the demands of serving as an Evzone.
Evzones at the Hellenic Club Sydney centenary gala
On Saturday 24 October, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, Greek Ambassador to Australia Mr Stavros Venizelos, and NSW ministers attended the sold-out Hellenic Club Sydney centenary gala at the Hyatt Regency. Indeed, the club was incorporated on 4 December 1926. According to its official program for the Evzones visit, the gala formed part of a week-long celebration of Hellenic heritage.
“The Hellenic Club is a story written in the ink of belief, determination and hard work – by many people over many generations,” Mr Albanese said. “Australia without Greek Australians is simply beyond imagining.”
“What is most telling is that when we turn the clock back to 1926, there weren’t all that many Greeks in Sydney – at least not yet. Somewhere between 1000 and 1500 in a city of a million. But for a bunch of Greek shopkeepers who put their heads together, that was more than enough – and out of their vision, the Hellenic Club was born.”
Anthony Albanese, Prime Minister of Australia
The Prime Minister also linked the night to Oxi Day. “Oxi Day is when the Greeks reminded us of the preciousness of liberty,” he said.
Medallions and a new life member
Meanwhile, Lieutenant Commander Michail Tzinieris, representing the Military Office of the President of the Hellenic Republic, paid tribute to the club’s century of service. Mr Albanese and club patron Nick Politis AM then presented commemorative medallions to representatives of the Presidential Guard.
“To survive 100 years means that a lot of people would have cared for this organisation along the way,” Mr Hatzistergos said. He announced that Maria Salos will become the club’s first female life member. In addition, he named Greg Gavrilidis as the first recipient of the new President’s Award.
Eleftheria Eleftheriou, who represented Greece at Eurovision in 2012, also performed with Trio Mousikanti from Greece. Meanwhile, guests took to the dance floor to mark the milestone.
Evzones flag raising at Sydney’s ANZAC Memorial
On Sunday 25 October, the Evzones first attended the Divine Liturgy at St Spyridon Church, Kingsford. They then marched from Elizabeth Street to the ANZAC Memorial in Hyde Park for the flagship event of the Sydney program. The Kalymnian Association of NSW hosted the ceremony, as we reported from the OXI Day ANZAC Memorial ceremony.
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First, MC George Karantonis, Vice President of the Kalymnian Association of NSW, opened with an Acknowledgement of Country. He also thanked President Tassoulas for consenting to the Guard’s visit. After the flag raising, combined students of All Saints Grammar, St Euphemia College and St Spyridon College performed the national anthems.
Speeches and a joint wreath
Rev Father Dimitrios Papaoikonomou, representing Archbishop Makarios, gave the first address. Next, Ambassador Venizelos and Commander Michail Tzinieris, Head of the Mission of the Hellenic Presidential Guard, followed. Con Apoifis, President of the Greek Orthodox Community of NSW, and Nectaria Melas, secretary of the Kalymnian Association, also spoke.
After the speeches, Ambassador Venizelos, Consul General Skemperis and Defence Attaché Colonel Kyriakos Kyriakakos laid a joint wreath. Mr Karantonis then recalled the words of Winston Churchill: “Hence we will not say that Greeks fight like heroes, but that heroes fight like Greeks.”
“It is the commemoration of a principle,” Mr Karantonis said of Oxi Day as he closed the ceremony.
Oxi Day Doxology in Redfern
After Oxi Day in Canberra, including a reception at Australian Parliament House, the Guard returned to Sydney. Later, on Thursday 29 October, Archbishop Makarios of Australia presided over the Oxi Day Doxology at the Cathedral of the Annunciation of Our Lady in Redfern. Bishop Athenagoras of Canberra and Bishop Christophoros of Kerasounta also assisted.
“Our beloved Evzones, you have travelled from Greece to be among us, and through your presence, we feel an even stronger and more vibrant connection with our motherland.”
“You are not merely a ceremonial guard. You are living symbols of Greece’s historical memory, its national dignity and its indomitable spirit. You remind us that the identity of a nation is not preserved through words alone. It is preserved through dedication, discipline and the willingness of each generation to receive its historical inheritance and pass it on to the next.”
Archbishop Makarios of Australia
Consul General Georgios Skemperis attended, along with Theodosios (Theo) Penklis, Archon of the Ecumenical Patriarchate, Con Apoifis and students from the Greek Orthodox Day Schools. Afterwards, guests attended a reception in the Great Hall of St Andrew’s Theological College.
“Freedom is a precious gift, dignity requires constant defence, and the greatest legacy we can leave to our children is a world in which peace and justice prevail,” the Archbishop said.
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Visit to St Euphemia College, Bankstown
Finally, on the eve of Oxi Day, the Evzones visited St Euphemia College in Bankstown, one of the final engagements of their Sydney program. Students and staff also welcomed the Guard to the college.
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Photo Gallery: The Hellenic Presidential Guard’s 2026 Visit to Sydney
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All photos are copyrighted by Nick Bourdaniotis for Greek City Times
Greek City Times is proud to have been the official media partner of the Hellenic Presidential Guard (Evzones) during their historic 2026 visit to Australia for Oxi Day.