User:Noamarkou

Amphibiathlon

The sport as well as the name, of Amphibiathlon was initiated by Noa Markou. It compromises of the two basic forms of locomotion on land and water, running and swimming. They are also the two basic endurance sports that are widely practiced.

The combination of running and swimming has most likely been practiced for as long as man has existed, being that they are the main means of locomotion over land and water. At some point people started practicing running and swimming together as a sport under various different formats, which typically adapt to a given terrain and conditions.

Noa Markou started practicing Amphibiathlon in 2000 on the famous beach of Bondi, in Sydney Australia. There he would run along the beach for roughly 45 minutes and then directly jump in the ocean for a swim of an equal time length. Other times the running and swimming would alternate more frequently, as in 10-15 minutes of each done consecutively for a certain period of time.

After moving to the island of Crete in Greece, in 2004 Markou started working as a lifeguard. Of course his previous experience and training in Amphibiathlon was exactly what was required in this new occupation. Eventually, wishing to add variety to the sport, he sought out new courses and added trail running to the equation. Henceforth, a trail run (usually coastal) followed by swimming allowed the sport expand beyond the beach version and explore new terrain.