The Senate of the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens announced the establishment of an Endowed Chair named “ATHINA IOANNI MARTINOU”, accepting the corresponding proposal from benefactor and honorary doctorate holder Mr. Athanasios Martinos. This decision, according to the NKUA announcement, marks the first -historic- establishment of an endowed chair at the first and largest university in the country.
Born in 1926, Athina I. Martinou (née Metheniti) was the wife of Ioannis Martinos, with whom they had four children, Thanasis, Andreas, Konstantinos, and Eleni. She played a catalytic role in the Martinos family’s decision to enter the shipping business in the mid-1960s and the purchase of the cargo ship “Thanasis”. The founding of Thenamaris in 1971, and the subsequent management of the company by her three sons, Thanasis, Dinos, and Andreas, served as the cornerstone for the further development and establishment of the family in the international shipping scene.
Athina I. Martinou passed away in 2024, leaving behind a significant legacy in Greek and international shipping, as well as a rich body of social contribution work.
Athina Martinou’s grandchildren continue her vision by having established the Athina I. Martinou Foundation, whose primary purpose is to support non-profit organizations operating in Greece as well as the implementation of a Scholarship Program. The foundation’s philanthropic action has a nationwide scope and cross-sectoral coverage, emphasizing issues related to the sea.
The Rector of the University of Athens, Professor Gerasimos Siasos, stated among other things: “The first Endowed Chair in the history of our University is a living example of how generosity and social contribution can enhance knowledge, research, and healthcare. We express our gratitude to Mr. Athanasios Martinos, a great benefactor and honorary Doctor of the University for his continuous and multi-faceted support as well as for the important national work that he, his wife Marina Martinou, and his family carry out. Mr. Athanasios Martinos carries out his colossal social work with a stunning humility, possessing a disarming kindness of soul, characteristics of the great national benefactors of our homeland”.
