Dimitris Koumoulos

Founder-Owner of OneBreath Freediving.

NKUA Graduate – BSc in Sport Science and Physical Education with a specialization in swimming

Freediving Instructor, Apnea Academy / CMAS** – E.O.Y.D.A.** / S.S.I./ AIDA International Master Instructor / PADI Freediver Instructor Trainer

Spearfishing Instructor

Swimming Coach (A), General Secretariat for Sport

Underwater Activities Coach (C), General Secretariat for Sport

Emergency First Response (EFR) Instructor

Dimitris was born on February 1, 1974, in Athens, where he grew up and lives until now. He kicked off his swimming career at the age of 10, as a junior Pan-Hellenic Gymnastics Club (P.G.C) team member (also known as “Panellinios”), where he later starred in the freestyle events, achieving National and Balkan victories, while setting several national records. For many years, he was a member of the Hellenic National Swimming team.

Naturally, after obtaining his Degree in PE & Sport Science with a specialization in swimming, he worked as a swimming coach at numerous celebrated Greek sports clubs, such as P.G.C., the Athletic Nautical Club of Glyfada and Argo.

Familiar with spearfishing since childhood and after withdrawing from competitive swimming, it only came naturally to become more actively involved in freediving. As a result, in 2003, having completed his training as a third-level Apnea Academy student, his freediving journey began.

In the following years, along with his round-the-clock coaching job in the pools, he started training as an assistant instructor in the first ever and largest freediving school in the country, next to Roberto Calich.

This is how his professional involvement with freediving set off.

Next, he became an AIDA Hellas member, competing from 2005-onwards in both pool and open water championships with multiple distinctions, especially in depth competitions. Since 2013, he has been an elected member of the Aida Hellas Board of Directors and from 2015 until early 2019, he served as its President.

CMAS – E.O.Y.D.A(Hellenic Federation for Underwater Activities and Sportfishing) certified Instructor since 2008, Dimitris went on to successfully complete the Apnea Academy Freediving Instructor course in 2010, under the direct guidance and supervision of Umberto Pelizzari.

Along with coaching freedivers, he started building training programs for competitive athletes and spearfishers, who naturally demand more from themselves. Since November 2015, he has been the fitness coach of “Physalis”, the Greek underwater rugby team.

Dimitris founded ONEBREATH Freediving in 2016 and a few months later, a large core of freedivers who wanted to engage more “dynamically” in the sport gathered around him and gradually, a team was formed that trains systematically under his guidance, with noteworthy results.

In 2015, appreciating the positive elements that yoga offers to freedivers, he was accredited as a Hatha Yoga instructor in order to be able to offer even more to his students. After all, the benefits of yoga in freediving are widely known.

In March 2019, he also became the first Greek Apnea Academy instructor trained in teaching mental training.

In September 2019, he was further certified as a Scuba Schools International (S.S.I.) Freediving instructor, while a few months later, he will train in Levico, Italy, in the KAD (Kids as Dolphins) program as a Freediving instructor for ages 7-12 (primary school children).

He is a Coast and Pool Lifeguard Degree holder – recognized by the Hellenic Coast Guard -and is a certified (current) provider of CPR & external defibrillator use by the prominent RTI (Rescue Training International) organization. In December 2016, after successfully completing his lifeguard training course, he was further certified as a Lifeguard Instructor while in January 2019, as an S.S.I. First Aid instructor.

For the last 2 years he has also been active in the sport of underwater target shooting with a notable success in the Biathlon event, which requires both marksmanship and breath-hold skills.

In September 2016, he was certified as an AIDA International competition judge after successfully attending the respective course during the AIDA Team World Championship.

In the summer of 2021, he was certified as an AIDA International Instructor (and Master Freediving Instructor shortly afterwards), while with the aim of cooperating with the country’s diving centers, became a PADI Master Freediving Instructor. In November 2024, he successfully completed the PADI training school in Padova, Italy, graduating as a PADI Freediving Instructor Trainer.

He is also an EFR (Emergency First Response) Instructor for both children and adults.

Competition Organizer (International & Domestic)

In January 2016, he established the ONEBREATH Pool Games, which run systematically to this day.

He has been trusted with organizing most Greek Federation Freediving competitions (both individually and with the Freediving & Underwater Activities club “NIRITIS” which he founded in 2020) and most notably, the Panhellenic Championships.

A top challenge came in September 2017, when he single-handedly organized the competitive-technical requirements for the Authentic Big Blue International depth competition. Held in Amorgos island (as a revival of Luc Besson’s legendary film – “Le Grand Bleu”), which, in itself, made the task very daunting, the competition proved an all-round success, and has since become a world-class sporting event.

In 2023, the Authentic Big Blue competition “moved” to Mytikas, Aetoloakarnania, where it was newly recognized as a foremost sports competition and thus upgraded to a CMAS World Cup event in 2024.

In April 2024, he brought the CMAS World Cup to Alimos, uniting 40 athletes from 12 countries. A mere six months later, in October, he organized the 8th CMAS Freediving Depth Championship in Kalamata (under the auspices of the Ministries of Education, Religion & Sports and Tourism). bringing together 145 athletes from 40 nations. The successful outcome of the latter led to the creation of “DivinGreece”, the Sports Ministry’s Organizing Committee for Diving (at the initiative of the Alternate Minister for Sport, Mr. Ioannis Vroutsis). Dimitris Koumoulos was selected as said Committee’s Chairman, over which he currently presides.

He has served as:

Assistant judge at the 2021 Freediving Depth World Championship (Kas, Turkey).

Technical delegate at the Indoor Freediving World Championship (Belgrade, 2022 & 2024).

Chief judge at both the Freediving Depth World Championship (Kas, 2022), and the Indoor Freediving World Championship (Kuwait, 2023).

Competitive Freediving Background:

Participation in both AIDA and CMAS events:  

– Aida Hellas National Pool Championships (2005-2008, 2010-2019).

– Aida Hellas Panhellenic Depth Championships from 2005 to 2018.

– The EOYDA – CMAS National Pool Championships (2012, 2019-2024).

– Aida International World Depth Championships: In Kalamata for the years 2011 (CNF, CWT, FIM) and 2013 (CNF, CWT) and in 2015 in Limassol, Cyprus (CNF).

Dimitris was both the Captain and Coach of the National Freediving Team in the Aida Team World Championship (September 2016), where Greece ranked fourth in men and fifth in women, respectively.

Among the team’s athletes, stand out:

– Aris Ioannidis (with over 20 consecutive records in pool competitions).

– Alkistis Vouraki (with 6 Panhellenic records in Static Apnea in 2018 & 2019 – AIDA & CMAS)

– Maria Sitti (3 Cyprus records in the DYN, CWT and CWTBF disciplines). 

– Christos Karelos (25 Panhellenic pool and depth records (AIDA & CMAS) & Bronze medalist at the 2021 CMAS World Depth Championship.

– Fayrouz El Mehdawi (30 Panhellenic records in various pool and depth disciplines, achieving 2 CMAS World Records in CWT and CWTBF (in the M1 category) and Gold Medalist (M1) of the 2024 CMAS World depth Championship.

– Anna Iliadou (8 Panhellenic records in pool and depth, Panhellenic record and 6th place in DNFat the 2023 World Championship (Kuwait), 2 World Records and 1st place at the 2024 World Depth Championship (M1) in CNF.

But apart from the Champions, the NIRITIS club currently counts over 30 athletes, involved in competitive freediving and underwater shooting as well as further underwater activities such as, hunting, photography etc.

Distinctions in:

National pool championships:

-3rd place in the Dynamic without Fins (DNF) discipline in 2011, 2017 & 2019 (AIDA). & 2012, 2024 (CMAS).

– Third place in the Dynamic (DYN) discipline CMAS 2012. 

– Second place in Static Apnea (STA) in 2012 & 2013.

– Second place in the Dynamic no Fins (DNF) discipline, from 2019 to 2021 (CMAS).

–Second place in Dynamic Bi-Fins (2019, CMAS).

National depth championships:

-Third place, Free Immersion (FIM) in 2010, 2016 & 2018.

-Second place, FIM, in 2012, 2013, 2015, 2022, 2023.

-Second place, Constant Weight no Fins (CNF), in 2012, 2015 & 2018.

-First place in CNF in 2013, 2014, 2016 & 2017, 2022 & 2023.

Also, several distinctions in apnea preparation competitions (Athens Apnea, Cretan Apnea Games etc).