"I was really anxious at the time of the ceremony, as I feel and I think that it was the greatest honor and a very big responsibility to be the first torchbearer. I hope I did my best and the ceremony was as perfect as it should be," said Nikolaidis.

President of the Hellenic Olympic Committee Minos Kyiakou once said choosing Nikolaidis as the first torchbearer not only because he was the silver medalist in the Olympic Games and his gifted talents in sports, but also because of his courage, modest manner and his personality. He has shown with his ethics in his sports career and respects very much the Olympic idea and the Olympic Games.

Nikolaidis said that he likes the slogan "One world, One Dream" put forward by the Beijing Olympic Committee. He holds that the whole Olympic idea goes beyond the boundaries of sportsmanship. When the Olympic Games were taking place in ancient Greece, every war act should stop and that was generally accepted by all the countries taking part in the Games.

"This was called the Olympic Truce, and it was the biggest proof how much the sportsmanship can bring people together," said the first torchbearer.

To pursue their dreams, Nikolaidis said all the athletes would make big efforts. He said when he participated in the Sydney Olympic Games in 2000, which was the first Olympic Games in his sports career, he was seriously injured.

"In the first days I was so disappointed that I thought of giving up. But the love of my family and the beloved people around me made me feel so good that the thought of giving up never crossed my mind again."

"Also, taekwondo is the thing I love more than anything else in my life, and I couldn't think myself quitting," said the Olympic silver medalist.

He said that "the expectations are always high, but you must get there step-by-step. It is commonly known that in taekwondo you must honor and respect every opponent. I hope I will be in good shape on that day, and reach as high as possible."

Nikolaidis started practicing taekwondo at the age of 3 and his father was his Master. That helped him very much as it gave him the basis and the fundamentals of the sport in a very high level.

Nikolaidis is the fan and supporter of ARIS club. He likes to watch the basketball and football games by ARIS club players when he has time. Like other young people, he likes to spend a lot time in front of a computer, listening to music or watching some movies in his sparetime.

Nikolaidis said he visited China in 2007 for the World Taekwondo Championships, but he hadn't had any time to go sightseeing as he had to prepare himself for the competitions.

"I would really love to see China again, without any sports obligations, and a lot of touring time in my hands," said Nikolaidis.

(Xinhua News Agency July 30, 2008)