After five years of success in all kinds of endurance events on dryland and in the open water – from ice swimming to marathon swimming competitions, para swimmer Tina Deeken and fellow German Tobias Prüßner had planned a tandem swim in the 22 km IJsselmeerzwemmarathon, but the event was previously cancelled due to poor weather conditions.
While they later completed a 30 km swim through the various lakes and canals in Súdwest-Fryslân, starting from the coastal town of Stavoren, Deeken and Prüßner swam via Workum to picturesque Hindeloopen. From there, they continued via Koudum back to Stavoren. Deeken recalled, “It was this unique experience of nature far away from people that made this marathon swim an absolute highlight.”
Finally in their fifth year of tandem swimming, Prüßner and Deeken completed their crossing of the IJsselmeer.
Swimming across the IJsselmeer (Ijsselmeeroversteek) is the longest challenge on the Dutch open water swimming calendar and is highly regarded in the Dutch open water scene. After the duo never got started in recent years due to poor weather conditions (storms and thunderstorms), the Covid pandemic, and flooding in the Netherlands, this year’s weather forecast initially looked promising.
Deeken explained, “The time window specified by Martine Stam of MMSports, the organizer and boat captain, was from Friday to Sunday. Depending on the weather conditions, the most suitable day is chosen, or if the weather is too bad, an alternative route is swum – as we did last year with the Súdwest-Fryslân Marathon over 21 or 30 km – or the slot is canceled.
Luck was on their side.
Deeken said, “Friday, July 18th was chosen as the most suitable day for the crossing. Preparations for the start were made, and at 9:30 am on Friday, we both jumped from the support boat into the IJsselmeer just behind the harbor exit in Stavoren to start the crossing as a tandem. The conditions were not perfect, but not impossible either, with wind speeds between 2 and 4 on the Beaufort scale with the water temperature approximately 20.5°C.
Due to the strong side waves, I decided not to swim the entire crossing, as my disability would have prevented me from stabilizing my body for the entire duration, but to approach the crossing in a relay-style swim, completing half of the Para-IJsselmeer crossing.
Tobias coped well with the conditions and worked his way meter by meter across the IJsselmeer, always supported by the boat crew, who provided the necessary feeding every half hour.“
The duo passed an important milestone after 3 hours 30 minutes when they left the official buoy marking the center of the crossing behind them. Many sailboats and motorboats lined the swimmers’ path until just over 7 hours when they swam side by side into the port of Medemblik, reaching the quay wall 21 km after 7 hours 23 minutes.
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