Background
Melissanidis was born in Munich, Germany to parents Evaggelos and Aikaterini, Greek nationals who were working in Germany.
Melissanidis was born in Munich, Germany to parents Evaggelos and Aikaterini, Greek nationals who were working in Germany.
He has two siblings, Maria and Spiros. When Melissanidis was 2 years old his family returned to Thessaloniki, which he considers his hometown. Melissanidis began training gymnastics and classical ballet at the age of 9 and a half.
At his first Junior European Championships in 1991 Melissanidis placed a modest 18th in the all-around, but earned a bronze medal on the floor exercise, placing ahead of future World Champions Ivan Ivankov and Yordan Yovchev.
In 1994, his first year competing as a senior, Melissanidis enjoyed success on the world stage. At the 1994 World Championships he tied with Great Britain"s Neil Thomas for the silver medal on floor.
Melissanidis" fortunes changed after 1994: at the 1995 and 1996 Worlds he did not qualify for a single event final. Melissanidis continued competing after 1996, winning the vault title at the 1998 European Championships in Saint St. Petersburg.
He represented Greece at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, but, struggling with injury, competed only on vault and high Barometer
Melissanidis has two vaults named after him in the Code of Points. Both are variations of the Yurchenko double back. In the current Code of Points, his vaults carry A-score difficulty ratings of 6.6 and 7.0.
In recent years, Melissanidis has been active in various social and athletic causes.
He is a supporter of Greenpeace, and, in 2003, publicly supported the Melina Mercouri Foundation"s campaign to return the Elgin Marbles to Greece. A gymnastics hall in his hometown of ThessalonĂki has been named in his honor.
He was also one of the torchbearers in the 2004 Summer Olympics Opening Ceremony in Athens. As of 2008, he was a student at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in Los Los Angeles
He was also an invited guest of the 2008 Olympic competition in China and toured Chinese universities as an International Olympic representative.