Gökşin Sipahioğlu (28 December 19265 October 2011) was a

Turkish Turkish may refer to: *a Turkic language spoken by the Turks * of or about Turkey ** Turkish language *** Turkish alphabet ** Turkish people, a Turkic ethnic group and nation *** Turkish citizen, a citizen of Turkey *** Turkish communities and mi ...

photographer and journalist who founded the Paris-based photo agency

Sipa Press Sipa Press is a French photo agency based in Paris. Overview It was founded 1973 by the Turkish newsphotographer and photojournalist Gökşin Sipahioğlu together with American writer Phyllis Springer, concentrating their activities from the beg ...

. He spent most of his life in Paris where the French media dubbed him "le Grand Turc". He also helped found the Kadiköy Sports Club, now best known for the

Efes Pilsen Anadolu Efes Biracılık ve Malt Sanayii A.Ş.''(lit. Anadolu Efes Brewery and Malt Industries)'' produces and markets beer and malt and non-alcoholic beverages in a wide geographical area comprising Turkey, Russia, the Commonwealth of Independe ...

basketball team. He was the editor of the ''Istanbul Express'' and played an active role in the riot against non-Muslims of Turkey on 6 to 7 September 1955. In an interview conducted in 1991 regarding the 1955 riots a brigadier general stated that; "The attacks of 6/7 September were certainly planned by the Special Operations Unit. It was an extremely premediated operation and it accomplished its objective. Let me ask you; wasn't it a extraordinarily successful action?".

Early life and education

Sipahioğlu was born on 28 December 1926, in Izmir, Turkey. He attended the

Lycée Saint-Joseph In France, secondary education is in two stages: * ''Collèges'' () cater for the first four years of secondary education from the ages of 11 to 15. * ''Lycées'' () provide a three-year course of further secondary education for children between ...

Istanbul Istanbul ( , ; tr, İstanbul ), formerly known as Constantinople ( grc-gre, Κωνσταντινούπολις; la, Constantinopolis), is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, serving as the country's economic, ...

and later studied journalism at

Istanbul University , image = Istanbul_University_logo.svg , image_size = 200px , latin_name = Universitas Istanbulensis , motto = tr, Tarihten Geleceğe Bilim Köprüsü , mottoeng = Science Bridge from Past to the Future , established = 1453 1846 1933 ...

Career

Sipahioğlu became a frontline photojournalist from the 1950s onwards. He received international recognition for his 1956 photos of wounded Egyptian soldiers after Israel invaded the

Sinai Peninsula The Sinai Peninsula, or simply Sinai (now usually ) (, , cop, Ⲥⲓⲛⲁ), is a peninsula in Egypt, and the only part of the country located in Asia. It is between the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Red Sea to the south, and is a l ...

during the

Suez crisis The Suez Crisis, or the Second Arab–Israeli war, also called the Tripartite Aggression ( ar, العدوان الثلاثي, Al-ʿUdwān aṯ-Ṯulāṯiyy) in the Arab world and the Sinai War in Israel,Also known as the Suez War or 1956 Wa ...

. Sipahioğlu was one of the few Western reporters or photographers in

Havana Havana (; Spanish: ''La Habana'' ) is the capital and largest city of Cuba. The heart of the La Habana Province, Havana is the country's main port and commercial center.

during the

Cuban Missile Crisis The Cuban Missile Crisis, also known as the October Crisis (of 1962) ( es, Crisis de Octubre) in Cuba, the Caribbean Crisis () in Russia, or the Missile Scare, was a 35-day (16 October – 20 November 1962) confrontation between the United S ...

in 1962 . He conveyed the tension of the time and many of his photographs of the crisis appeared on the front pages of many world newspapers. In 1968 Sipahioğlu's photographs of riots in Paris, between police and student protesters, became enduring images of the uprising. This led him to work for the international photo agencies Black Star and

Gamma Gamma (uppercase , lowercase ; ''gámma'') is the third letter of the Greek alphabet. In the system of Greek numerals it has a value of 3. In Ancient Greek, the letter gamma represented a voiced velar stop . In Modern Greek, this letter re ...

. In 1972 he was sent to

Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the States of Germany, German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the List of cities in Germany by popu ...

to cover the

Olympics The modern Olympic Games or Olympics (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques) are the leading international sporting events featuring summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a var ...

where he chronicled the Palestinian attack on Israeli athletes. The recognition for these pictures led him to launch

the following year, in 1973, along with his partner Phyllis Springer. Sipa went on to represent some of the world's best known photographers. In 2001 he sold Sipa Press to Sud Communication, owned by the industrialist Pierre Fabre, but stayed on as chairman until his retirement in 2003.

Awards and recognition

In January 2007, the French president

Jacques Chirac Jacques René Chirac (, , ; 29 November 193226 September 2019) was a French politician who served as President of France from 1995 to 2007. Chirac was previously Prime Minister of France from 1974 to 1976 and from 1986 to 1988, as well as Ma ...

appointed Sipahioğlu

Knight of the Legion of Honour The National Order of the Legion of Honour (french: Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur), formerly the Royal Order of the Legion of Honour ('), is the highest French order of merit, both military and civil. Established in 1802 by Napoleon, ...

Personal life

Sipahioğlu married Phyllis Springer in 2002. He died on Monday 5 October 2011, in a hospital in Paris at the age of 84.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sipahioglu, Göksin 1926 births 2011 deaths French people of Turkish descent People from İzmir French photojournalists French photographers Turkish photographers Turkish photojournalists St. Joseph High School Istanbul alumni Istanbul pogrom