Greek Surgeon Runs 517 Kilometres Along to Honour Fallen Soldiers

Greek general surgeon Stergios Arapoglou has completed a 517-kilometre run across the mountains of northern Greece in 15 days, tracing the Metaxas Line to honour the soldiers who defended the fortifications against Nazi Germany’s invasion in April 1941.

Arapoglou, a surgeon at Hippocrateio Hospital in Thessaloniki, began his journey at 7 am on October 3 at Nymfaia Fort in Rodopi, the easternmost fortification of the Metaxas Line. He completed the challenge on October 18 at Machine-Gun Post 9 above Ano Poroia, in Serres.

Along the way, he passed 21 forts and machine-gun posts across the regional units of Rodopi, Xanthi, Drama and Serres. He dedicated the run to remembering the soldiers who died or disappeared while defending Greece’s northern frontier.

Despite having completed much longer endurance challenges, Arapoglou described this route as the most difficult he had attempted.

“I had to climb and descend the mountains repeatedly, reaching inaccessible places and often facing extreme conditions,” he told the Athens-Macedonian News Agency (AMNA). “These were abandoned, dangerous places, with great solitude and wild animals such as wild boars, wolves and bears.”

A demanding journey through remote mountains

Arapoglou ran alone, as he had during previous long-distance challenges. A friend followed him by car wherever roads allowed, and the two arranged meeting points for sections where the route climbed into the mountains.

At night, after completing his daily target, Arapoglou stayed in small provincial hotels that he had booked in advance. He resumed the journey the following morning.

He had also studied the route extensively before setting off, inspecting the terrain in person and preparing for possible physical difficulties and changes in weather.

“I always conduct a detailed reconnaissance of the route. I visit the locations and see them for myself before carrying out the plan,” he explained. “I had prepared scenarios for dealing with anything my body might throw at me or any problems caused by the weather. I was ready for everything.”

An idea born at Roupe l Fort

The idea emerged in 2022, when Arapoglou passed through Roupe l Fort while planning an earlier endurance challenge. There, he met Lieutenant Colonel Nikolaos Girbatsis, the fort’s officer in charge, who was researching the Metaxas Line for his doctoral thesis.

Girbatsis was locating and documenting the fortifications’ machine-gun posts and reconstructing plans that had disappeared.

Arapoglou realised he could turn that research into a route linking the forts and machine-gun positions, then run the entire distance on foot.

His latest challenge follows a similar project in 2023, when he covered 3,064 kilometres from Evros to Crete, passing 65 Holocaust memorials to honour victims of Nazi atrocities and draw attention to the issue of German reparations to Greece.

Since leaving organised ultra-distance races in 2012, he has designed his own journeys, spanning hundreds or thousands of kilometres, to bring attention to different historical and social issues.

Calling the names of fallen and missing soldiers

Arapoglou said the people who defended the Metaxas Line mattered more to him than the fortifications themselves. He considers the line one of Greece’s major engineering and fortification projects of the 20th century, built entirely using Greek designs and labour.

The soldiers came from across Greece, and many did not know precisely where they stood near the Greek-Bulgarian border. In April 1941, they faced the German military machine as its air force, artillery and divisions attempted to break through the defences.

“They did not hesitate to stand against the greatest war machine of that era,” he said.

To honour them, Arapoglou searched the archives of the Hellenic Army History Directorate for the names of soldiers killed or listed as missing. He organised the names by fort so he could commemorate the men at the very locations where they had fought.

At each fortification, he recorded a short video explaining its history, construction date, military purpose and garrison size, before reading out the names of those killed or missing.

He published the videos on social media almost in real time. Two GPS devices tracked his progress, allowing people to follow the route online. Residents in the areas he crossed also sought him out to meet him along the way.

“By completing this route in this way, it effectively became a journey of remembrance,” he said. “Many of the roll calls took place on mountain peaks and ridgelines, and they became memorial services. Hearing all the names was like bringing those soldiers’ platoons back to life. Many of us, even older people, have largely forgotten them.”

The enduring mystery of the missing

Arapoglou said the stories of the missing soldiers moved him most. Many had served at forward outposts and positions covering the front line when German forces launched their attack on April 6, 1941.

“At 5.15 am on April 6, when the Germans began firing their artillery and the first shells arrived, these men were literally obliterated,” he said. “If you are in a trench and an 88-millimetre shell comes straight at you, how can you escape?”

Many left no grave where relatives could visit to remember them. In numerous cases, their names remained in military records for decades without anyone knowing where their remains lay.

“Even today, 85 years later, nobody can know where they are,” he said.

Arapoglou also argued that Greece still lacks a comprehensive academic account of the Battle of the Metaxas Line. He said individual authors have documented the battle, but no official Greek scholarly publication has yet covered it in the way he believes it deserves.

For him, preserving historical memory means more than recounting military events. It also means restoring the identities of the people who experienced them and recognising the values they upheld under extreme conditions.

“Nobody and nothing can stand above our flag. When we choose the right role models and follow them, our flag is never lowered,” he said.

‘I am not the protagonist’

Arapoglou has worked as a practising general surgeon at Thessaloniki’s Hippocrateio Hospital for 25 years. Long-distance running has remained a central part of his life, alongside dozens of marathons, ultramarathons and other endurance challenges.

In 2018, he crossed mainland Greece from Ormenio in Evros to Cape Tainaron, covering 1,519 kilometres in 23 days. In 2023, he completed his 3,064-kilometre journey from Evros to Crete.

Although his latest route covered fewer kilometres, he said it demanded more than many of his previous challenges.

He completed the 517-kilometre journey without sponsors, paying the expenses himself, as he had for his earlier projects. He insisted that his personal achievement should never overshadow the soldiers and families at the heart of the undertaking.

“I am not the protagonist. The protagonists are the missing, the fallen and their families,” he said.

Arapoglou believes such an undertaking requires five qualities: determination, faith in the vision, soul, heart and deep knowledge. He associates determination with character and perseverance, faith with commitment to the vision, soul with courage in the face of fear, heart with physical endurance, and knowledge with meticulous preparation.

Ultimately, he said, these qualities matter only when a person can communicate their meaning to others in a simple and understandable way.

(Source: AMNA)

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