Peace Route Swim Success From Northern Cyprus To Turkish Mainland

Courtesy of WOWSA, Huntington Beach, California.

Nine athletes of Hacettepe University Youth and Sports Club Association Master Swimming Team started swimming Northern Cyprus as part of World Peace Day on September 1st. The Peace Route Swim began at the Mersin Taşucu Harbor in the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus and finished on the Turkish mainland in the town of Silifke in Mersin. It was swum in the opposite direction of the 2019 edition of the same swim.

Along the way, they encountered many sea creatures, sharks, warm water, warm weather, and varying sea condition during the tranquil conditions during the daytime hours and turbulent conditions at night.

Turkish swimmers Erman Akkaya (55), Temel Yakşi (60), Nükhet Atilgan (46), Mehmet Hilmi Soylu (43), Pelin Çelik (48), Zafer Özdem (60), Deniz Kayadelen (33), Burçak Tümay Pekel (33), and Murat Meto (47) started on Wednesday, September 2nd at 4:20 am and finished on Thursday, September 3rd at 5:50 pm. Their official time was 37 hours 30 minutes over the 91.27 km (48 nautical miles) as the 9 swimmers each completed four one-hour legs.

Copyright © 2008 – 2020 by World Open Water Swimming Association