The time one of pro wrestling’s greatest world champions made a forgotten trip to the island nation of Cyprus
Pro wrestling is set to return to Cyprus for the first time on a regular basis in many years starting this October. Other than a couple of events in the 2000’s, one we just learned of and don’t have much information on yet, the pro wrestling industry has not been active in Cyprus in the modern era.
However, that was not always the case. Pro wrestling historian Phil Lions recently shared some information on the past history of pro wrestling in Cyprus in a pro wrestling history group on Facebook. Phil shared some details on Theofilos Tomazos (whose last name I have also seen spelled as Doumazos and Tomazou in the Cypriot press), a Cypriot wrestler who turned pro in the 1930’s but had previously been an Olympic wrestler, representing Greece in freestyle wrestling at the 1928 games in Amsterdam. Throughout the 1930’s, Tomazos competed both on Cyprus and abroad, was the island’s most popular and successful native pro wrestler, and also promoted pro wrestling events in Cyprus for a time.
Inspired by Phil’s revelation that there was some type of pro wrestling scene in Cyprus dating back to the time before World War 2, I decided do some research of my own. What I was able to track down is pretty significant and something that I haven’t seen shared elsewhere either by pro wrestling historians or results databases.
The island of Cyprus was a British Crown Colony during the 1930’s during the time of Theofilos Tomazos’s reign at the top of Cypriot pro wrestling. The flag above was the flag of British Cyprus as the crown colony was known at the time. Image courtesy Wikimedia Commons.
In the 1930’s, Cyprus was a crown colony of Britain and in turn, English was a common language used on the island, at least in the press and in government documents. One of the island’s newspapers at that time, the Cyprus Mail, was entirely in English and serves as a great record for pro wrestling’s past in Cyprus.
Through old issues of the Cyprus Mail, I was able to track down some information on some pro wrestling matches in Cyprus involving Theofilos Tomazos. However, one of those matches stands out as being what is likely the biggest pro wrestling match and event in the history of Cyprus pro wrestling.
On May 30, 1937, multi-time pro wrestling world champion Jim Londos took on Theofilos Tomazos at what was described as Nicosia Stadium in Nicosia, Cyprus. This stadium is likely the original GSP Stadium in Nicosia which, at the time of it’s demolition in 1999, had a capacity of 12,000. According to the Cyprus Mail, the event brought an estimated 12,000 people to Nicosia and brought 7,000 paying spectators to the stadium with large crowds gathered outside the stadium trying to catch a free view.
Despite the economic hardships and political turmoil being faced by the people of Cyprus during this time period, the Cyprus Mail reports that an estimated £5,000.00 was pumped into the Nicosia economy by the visitors on the day of the match (equal to $9,195.65 US dollars which would be equivalent to $193,723.61 in today’s dollars with adjustment due to inflation and purchasing power). The Cyprus Mail estimated a total gate at the event of between £500 and £700, with the latter being what was believed to be the closest estimate. The conversion of the Cypriot Pound to US dollars would equal to a gate of approximately $919.53 which would be equivalent to approximately $19,373.73 in 2023 US Dollars. Tickets for the event ranged from 1 shilling to 5 shillings (20 shillings made up a Cypriot Pound at the time) and the Cyprus Mail indicated that every section of the stadium was packed, overall marking a pretty good day at the office for promoter Chris Achniotis. The match was also attended by the Governor of Cyprus at the time, Sir Herbert Richmond Palmer (who was indicated as being accompanied by the Commissioner Mr. Montague but it’s unclear to me who this was and what they were the commissioner of), and the Mayor of Nicosia, Themistoclis Dervis.
From left, Jim Londos, referee of the match George Poulias (sometimes spelled as Poulia), Theofilos Tomazos, and event promoter Chris Achniotis (which I’ve also seen spelled as Ahniotis). The top photo comes from the June 5, 1937 issue of the Cyprus Mail while the bottom photo is used with permission and © Costas and Rita Severis Foundation
Londos’s trip to Cyprus came during a rare period of the 1930’s when he wasn’t a reigning World Heavyweight Champion. Despite not being World Champion at the time, his reception in the country was exceptional. The Cyprus Mail wrote that “Jim Londos has created enthusiasm that it is hard to believe could ever exist in Cyprus.” This statement should be taken with a grain of salt, though, as during this time period, the people of Cyprus desired to be part of Greece, rather than Britain, and these quotes are coming from an English newspaper. He was hosted at several receptions during his time on the island and the false promise of his presence at an event at the Nicosia Stadium was even used as a scam to cheat Cypriots out of money. His presence also caused traffic backups due to the influx of people trying to catch a glimpse of the wrestling star.
From top: Jim Londos, referee George Poulias and a ring announcer prior to the start of the Londos/Tomazos bout; Jim Londos locks Theofilos Tomazos in a hold just prior to scoring the final pinfall; Londos tosses Tomazos; Tomazos and Londos lock up as referee George Poulias looks on. Image two comes from the June 5, 1937 edition of the Cyprus Mail. Images one, three and four are used with permission and © Costas and Rita Severis Foundation.
As for the Londos/Tomazos match, the Cyprus Mail described it as “a wrestling match that there is no doubt will be remembered for many [a] day in Cyprus.” Prior to the match, the ring announcer declared the bout “the outstanding event in the sporting annals of Cyprus,” and with the crowd on hand, the description of the match and the reception, this seems as if it could be true.
The match was split into rounds and was set for eight rounds of ten minutes each. The Cyprus Mail commended both wrestlers on their performance but pointed out that Londos looked to be the superior wrestler. The first round started out as essentially a stalemate between the two wrestlers. The second round was where things started to open up more for Londos as he used scissor holds to wear Tomazos down and connected in tossing Tomazos to the mat a couple times to the delight of the crowd on hand. The third round saw Tomazos begin to step up his offense, using some throws to neutralize Londos. However, as the Cyprus Mail points out, Londos was quick to counter and escape. The fourth round seemed to be a bit of a back and forth again until Londos was able to lock Tomazos in a leg submission that visibly wore the Cypriot down. The fifth round would be the last of the match as Londos quickly connected on a devastating slam and followed it up with an “excruciating hold that kept Tomazos down for the count.”
Following Londos’s victory, the fans apparently stormed toward the ring, cheering and hoping for a chance to hear Londos speak. Londos thanked the crowd and got a great reception from the fans on hand. Following the match on Sunday, Londos traveled to Famagusta, Cyprus on Wednesday, June 2nd, 1937 for an exhibition at GSE Stadium. Phil Lions had shared a photo of Jim Londos in a post on the Wrestling Classics board in Famagusta in the past and it doesn’t appear as if Londos wrestled at all during this exhibition. Londos would then head to Limassol, Cyprus on Thursday, June 3rd, 1937 to referee a match between his former opponent Theofilos Tomazos and Christofides. I was unable to track down information on the outcome of that match or of Londos’s performance as a referee.
In July of 1937, the Cyprus Mail reported that promoter Chris Achniotis had declared that Jim Londos was prepared to return to Cyprus if “a good match with a foreign wrestler can be arranged.” However, it doesn’t appear as if Londos ever returned to Cyprus for a wrestling match after the 1937 trip.
Jim Londos is widely considered to be one of the biggest draws in pro wrestling history. His visit to Cyprus in 1937 and the impact it had on a nation going through political and economic turmoil, as well as the thousands of fans that came out to watch the match or just get a glimpse of the star wrestler, is further proof of his status as one of pro wrestling’s all time biggest draws.
