Greek sailor Markos Spyropoulos is taking on one of sailing’s ultimate challenges, with the Mini Transat event.
Spyropoulos, a sports sciences graduate from Aristotle University of Thessaloniki has been sailing since his youth and earned many distinctions.
In order to be able to qualify for the Mini Transat, Spyropoulos had to have completed at least one of two 1,000 mile races and also have accumulated 1,500 miles in total with his boat.
As a single-crew challenge the boat is required to be over 6.5 metres long if it is to be considered eligible.
Spyropoulos has currently covered over 1,400 miles in his official races, while his next challenge will take him from Marseille, France all the way back to Athens. Spyropoulos hails from Kastoria and has been sailing for over 20 years. He was a member of the Greek national rowing team from 1984 until 1990.
Spyropoulos has navigated over 300,000 nautical miles in events all around the world, while in 2014 he participated in the Oyster World Rally.
The Mini Transat is one of the greatest sailing challenges worldwide, starting from La Rochelle harbour in France, via the Canary Islands of Spain, then ron to the finish line in Martinique.
Spyropoulos’ participation in the extreme challenge also highlights his passionate ecological message for plastic-free oceans throughout the world.