ÖTILLÖ Swimrun Acquires Ödyssey Swimrun: The USA’s Leading Swimrun Organiser
In a bold statement of intent, ÖTILLÖ Swimrun (owned by Swimrun AG) have acquired Ödyssey Swimrun. This exciting aquisition marks a new chapter in ÖTILLÖ’s history and expansion into the US market.
Ödyssey’s Lars Finanger, Aaron Palaian and Brent Molsberry will continue to manage the US races.
In a press release, Christian Pirzer, Chairman of Swimrun AG said:
“Our journey with ÖTILLÖ started in 2015, after I met Michael in Engadin, when he was looking for help to expand and create an event series around ÖTILLÖ. The last eight years have been an exciting time, with great wins and even bigger challenges especially during the pandemic. We came out stronger and better prepared from this time and now have the right setup to further grow the great sport of Swimrun and the ÖTILLÖ brand. Lars and Aaron did a fantastic job in the US. We are proud to welcome them to our team. They will continue to develop Swimrun in the US market, but also help us to improve our overall product wordwide.”
For Lars Finanger, President of Swimrun USA Inc:
“Joining the ÖTILLÖ family is a dream come true. Back in 2014, I had the opportunity to race at the World Champs through the legendary Stockholm Archipelago course and knew it was my calling to bring the amazing sport of Swimrun across the pond to the US. Thankfully Jeff Cole shared this vision and together we launched Casco Bay Islands, in Jeff’s backyard of Portland, Maine. We were met with adventure-minded athletes craving this new style of endurance racing. We earned their trust and they continue to tell all their friends about how incredible their experiences are with Swimrun. These past seven years we’ve welcomed thousands of athletes from all corners of the endurance world into the Swimrun community and we know that partnering with ÖTILLÖ will give us even more credibility to reach even more athletes in the future.”
Lars Finanger (left), Jeff Cole (centre, sadly no longer with us) & Anders Malm (right
