consulate events
Predrag "Peja" Stojakovic at De La salle School
On June 13th, three-time NBA ALL-STAR player Predrag "Peja" Stojakovic spoke to students at De La Salle School, the Greek-French private school in Thessaloniki, at an event on “Sports and Education” organized by the U.S. Consulate General Thessaloniki. Deputy Principal Officer Elaine A. Paplos gave opening remarks to the 300+ students who attended, commending Peja’s dedication to public service. The students of De La Salle prepared a detailed DVD of Peja’s career from his young age as a player of a Serbian team, to his professional career as a PAOK B.C. player (a local Thessaloniki team) and finally showing highlights of his 9-year career with the NBA. After thanking De La Salle for hosting him, Peja talked about his career emphasizing the challenges he faced in becoming a professional basketball player, including the hard work and long hours of practice. He went on to say that De La Salle students are very lucky to have the opportunity to combine studies and athleticism, an opportunity he did not have when he was their age. [Peja left Belgrade with his family in 1993 during the Yugoslav wars and moved to Thessaloniki at age 16 in order to play professional basketball, eventually becoming a Greek citizen.] Peja, who currently plays for the NBA’s New Orleans Hornets, signed autographs for the children and shot three-pointers in the outdoor school basketball court.
For more information about Predrag “Peja” Stojakovic’s professional career, click on the wikipedia article: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peja_Stojakovic