Theophano

The Empress Theophano Prize ceremony in the Rotunda in Thessaloniki on Wednesday celebrated the Special Olympics, recognizing their significant contributions under Dr Timothy Shriver's leadership.

The fifth annual Empress Theophano Award is being awarded to the Special Olympics organization, a global movement to end discrimination against people with intellectual disabilities.

In the fourth award ceremony of the pan-European Empress Theophano Prize, which took place in Thessaloniki on Thursday evening, attention was not on the stunning Rotunda, the city landmark that served as a temple in Roman times, a Christian church in the Byzantine era and a mosque under Ottoman rule; nor was it on the distinguished guests who attended the event.

Two Turkish-German scientists were awarded Greece's Empress Theophano Prize on Oct. 13 for saving millions of lives with the development of the first vaccine against the coronavirus, according to the Empress Theophano Foundation.