THE SEA IN THEM – THE NEWS

Have you seen the waters in the Halikuna of Corfu? If so, then you understand why the blue of the sea was always the kingdom of Spyros Gianniotis. A name synonymous with endurance, strategy and steadfast determination, Gianniotis carved a hand with a hand an indelible sign in the world of swimming. For the first time he was in the pool of the Corfu Municipal Swimming Pool, the one who today bears his name, at the age of 4 and completed his career at 36, with an unforgettable silver Olympic medal.

He also loved Olympiacos. He wore a red -white cap in 1998 for the first time and remained a Piraeus athlete for 18 consecutive years, contributing decisively to maintaining their absolute domination in the JIT Pan -Hellenic Championships. As he confessed on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Association, « we had difficult and glorious moments, but above all we wrote history ».

Although he loved water and activities related to it, Gianniotis’ systematic involvement with swimming was played by his mother, British Brenda Swinni, who was also a swimmer and championship in the United Kingdom.

Two generations, one route. From the first hands in the waters of faith, in the medals of eternity

Stamina and stubbornness

He started at short distances, but since his adolescent years he turned long distances, following the paranoia of his then coaches, Costas Tombrou and Antonis Alamanou. At the age of 16, his talent does not fit on the island of Fayaks and, with the whole support of his family, moves to Thessaloniki on his own to work with Vangelis Voultsos, the coach who formed him sports and spiritually.

Shortly thereafter comes the first participation, out of a total of five, in the Olympics. Both in 2000 in Sydney and 2004 in Athens, Gianniotis descends into the pool races. The OAKA swimming pool is applauded as it has two of the first 4 Greek participation in the finals (400 m and 1,500m free). Ends 7th in the 400 and 5th in 1,500.

Since 2007 he has been leaving the « protected environment » of the pool and testing the routes in the high seas. These are very demanding races, as the conditions of each race depend on the natural environment in which they are carried out, the physical contacts are many and hard, and the distance that swimmers are required to cover makes the proper regular preparation of each race.

The frustration of 2012

The first great distinctions come quickly, and it also gets the baptism of fire in the race at the Beijing Olympics (10th). In the three years 2011-2013, it is the top 10km. During this time it wins 7 gold and 4 silver medals in world championships and world cups. However, the absolute marginal moment of his career comes in 2012, at the London Olympics when he stays in 4th place and out of the podium. He is very serious about retiring, as the next Olympics will have closed 36.

Fortunately for all of Greece, but mainly for himself he recalled and participated in the most important open sea race in the history of the Olympic Games. That morning of August 16th an entire country watches Gianniotis reach a hand with his hands closer to the medal. In a shocking finish, he has first passed the imaginary finish line and is announced as a winner. After a 15 -minute thorough examination of the Photo Finish, however, it turns out that Vertman was second but first touched the horizontal touch surface. This touch certifies that an athlete finished.

The Olympic medal has been the destiny of Gianniotis since he took the first dives in the Corfu swimming pool. If one had to bring the first Olympic medal to the history of Greek swimming, it was him. At the same time, Gianniotis remains the oldest swimmer to rise on an Olympic podium.

With the colors of Greece he won a total of 23 medals (7 gold, 9 silver, 7 bronze) in international events. With Olympiacos he was a protagonist in the 18 Pan -Hellenic Championships the team won in his clubs in the club. Until recently he was the polynomial of the event, until the other red -white Apostle Christos surpassed him.

They dived for a few seasons in the same swimming pools of the Pan -Hellenic Championships and celebrated wins and titles with Olympiacos, and were together at the Olympic mission in 2016 in Rio.

This coexistence was enough for Gianniotis to inherit Christos, always under the watchful gaze of Nikos Gemelos, the mentality of an Olympian wearing the cap of Europe’s leading polyharmonic club.

The Apostle Christos is one of the athletes who are the incarnation of the « laurel ». If the emblem of Olympiacos needed to get human existence, many would be the ones who would say that it should take the form of Christ.

Smiles and pride: Apostle Christos celebrates the silver medal in the 200m backstage in Paris. A historical moment dedicated to the 100 years of Olympic

As a child

Olympiacos from his genus, raised in Papastratio, was devoted to swimming from an early age. His inclination was short distances and his backstructed and talent stood out immediately. He became a key executive of the Olympic Swimming Team, providing steadily excellent performance and playing a decisive role in the numerous victories of the club at national level. His individual sovereignty in the National Championships in the national championships was immediately translated into valuable points for Olympiacos, consolidating his position as an undisputed leader in Greek swimming. He proudly wore the red -white cap, contributing to the inheritance of the club’s excellence and inspiring countless young swimmers from a very young age.

The undisputed support he received in adolescence from Olympiacos, at the time when the athletic displacement was opened beyond the Greek border, was decisive for its evolution. In 2013 and 2014 he sweeps medals in international events in his favorite supine. In 2016 comes the first participation in the Olympics, but the first warning shot, the bronze medal in the 100m backstroke at the London European Championships.

Success is repeated in 2018 in Glasgow. He builds his confidence by dipping into pools with licenses or half-speech platforms of the health restrictions of COVID-19, but is not affected. It has been established among the top in the back: Gold in the 50m backstroke and silver in the 100m backstage. The European Championship of Rome in 2022 and two years later in Belgrade makes it 2/2 in gold.

At Olympic

2024 has been shown to be his year. In Doha he wins his first medal in the world championship, the bronze in the 100m backstroke. The climax, however, comes a few months later on European territory at Paris La Défense Arena. On August 1, Christos goes up to the dread of the second route and, after 4th place in the 100m backstroke, prepares to dive again for his first Olympic medal, this time in the 200m backstage. The odds are not on its side, because the times it has made until the final are average. And yet Christou is ahead of 3/4 of the race and will need a brave last 50ar by Hungarian Mr. to leave him in second place.

« The medal is a gift for the 100th anniversary of Olympiacos, » Christou will later say.

It was his first Olympic medal, the first of Greece in a pool race in the history of the Olympic Games, and only the second, after that of Gianniotis in 2016. But it was mainly an answer to the question that « eats » where the Olympic land of 100 years now: « How much do you love it? » So much.