February 8, 1981 remains engraved as one of the most tragic moments in the history of Greek sports. This year marks 40 years since the tragedy of Gate 7.
On Sunday, wreaths were laid in memory of the 21 victims.
In attendance was Olympiacos Owner Vangelis Marinakis, club manager Pedro Martins, players and Mayor of Piraeus Giannis Moralis, amongst others.
On 8 February 1981, Olympiacos hosted AEK Athens for a league match, which ended 6–0, in an unprecedented triumph for the host team of Piraeus.
During the last minutes of the game, thousands of Olympiacos fans at the Gate 7 rushed to the exit, to get to the stadium’s main entrance and celebrate with the players, but the doors were almost closed and the turnstiles still in place, making the exit almost impossible.
As people continued to come down from the stands, unable to see what happened, the stairs of Gate 7 became a death trap; people were crushed, tens of fans were seriously injured and twenty-one young people died, most of them by suffocation.
*More on GCT: Olympiacos condemns desecration of monument at Gate 7
