Last fall I registered for a 3k open water swim competition off the island of Spetses, Greece, a 3-hour ferry ride from Athens. This proved to be the most challenging open water swim of my life, and at certain points I considered throwing in the towel! Thankfully I kept going and finished well, missing a 3rd place podium award (for my age group) by a mere 30 seconds. Darn! Today’s podcast guest is Dr. Marina Coutarelli, the founder of both the Spetses Mini Marathon and Spetsathlon events. Dr. Coutarelli is an award winning PR and communications professional who has a knack for launching some of the most successful brand campaigns in her native country of Greece and beyond. In our live interview conducted in her beautiful office in the Athenian suburb of Kifissia, Marina and I discuss the 3k open water swim, sports tourism and extending tourism season past August in Greece, best things to do while on the island of Spetses, the Greek lifestyle of living in the present, and her take on color and branding. Dr. Coutarelli is the founder and CEO of Communication Lab, a boutique communication agency based in Athens, Greece, specializing in PR, media relations, social media and crisis management. Learn all about both the Spetsathlon and Spetses Mini Marathon events at  <a href="https://spetsesmarathon.com/"> https://www.spetsesmarathon.com</a>.<a href="https://www.lfbcolor.com/">https://www.lfbcolor.com/</a>

Episode 9: Talking Sports Tourism + My 3k Swim With Spetsathlon + Spetses Mini Marathon Director Marina Coutarelli