Courtesy of WOWSA, Huntington Beach, California.
Ice swimming, winter swimming, and cold water swimming were all celebrated globally during the WOWSA Awards campaign last year where people from around the world voted for the annual awards.
The renowned ice swimmer Henri Kaarma of Estonia [shown above] was voted as the 2014 World Open Water Swimming Man of the Year.
The renowned cold water researcher and physician Nataliya Fatyanova, M.D. of Russia was voted as the 2014 World Open Water Swimming Woman of the Year.
The Russian ice swimmers Alexandr Brylin and Grigorii Prokopchuk were voted as the 2014 World Open Water Swimming Performance of the Year for their physically punishing Diomede Islands Swim.
Even the Step Out Of The Ordinary Blue Letter Campaign, created and managed by Ireland’s Pádraig Mallon and Camlough Lake Water Festival, was voted as the 2014 World Open Water Swimming Offering of the Year. The campaign inspired many athletes to do their own bit of cold water swimming.
These WOWSA Award winners and their 2015 counterparts (see nominees here and below).
“Chillswim is proud to announce that we will be hosting the World Open Water Swimming Awards on Friday February 5th 2016, at a Gala Awards Dinner at the Low Wood Bay Resort Hotel, Windermere, Lake District,” says Colin Hill. “This function takes place the night before the Big Chill Swim weekend and includes the 2014 and 2015 WOWSA Awards.”
“For generations, Windermere has played an important role in the sport of open water swimming. Whether Windermere has hosted British Long Distance Swimming events or international marathon competitions or mass participation linear swims or ice swims, Windermere is an ideal and historic place in the hearts of open water swimmers,” describes Steven Munatones. “Besides giving honor to open water luminaries like Henri Kaarma, Dr. Nataliya Fatyanova, Alexandr Brylin, Grigorii Prokopchuk, and Pádraig Mallon, Colin Hill and Steph Cox will also host the recipients of the 2015 WOWSA Awards in a large international gathering of open water swimmers of all ages and abilities. It is the ideal location to celebrate these open water heroes and heroines.”
Among the nominees of the World Open Water Swimming Awards, the swimmers come from Mexico, Hungary, Great Britain, France, U.S.A., Germany, Macedonia, the Philippines, India, Czech Republic, Italy, Canada, Australia, Finland, South Africa, Argentina, the Netherlands, Spain, New Zealand, Jersey, Switzerland, Turkey, Denmark, Israel and Russia.
“Each one of these swimmers makes or has made a significant impact locally and internationally on our sport,” says Munatones. “The WOWSA Awards are meant to honor the men and women who embody the spirit of open water swimming, possess the sense of adventure, tenacity and perseverance that open water swimmers are known for, and have most positively influenced the world of open water swimming in 2015.”
These nominees include the following inspirational groups of individuals and offerings:
2015 World Open Water Swimming Man of the Year nominees:
1. Antonio Argüelles (Mexico) Channel Swimmer Redux
2. Attila Mányoki (Hungary) Prolific Ocean Swimmer
3. Ben Hooper (Great Britain) Transoceanic Challenger
4. Benoît Lecomte (France/U.S.A.) Transoceanic Adventurer
5. Christof Wandratsch (Germany) Ice Swimming Record Holder
6. Evgenij Pop Acev (Macedonia) FINA Grand Prix Champion
7. Ingemar Patiño Macarine (Philippines) Pinoy Aquaman
8. James Tout (U.S.A.) Long-overdue Triple Crowner
9. Lewis Pugh, OIG (Great Britain) Ocean Advocate
10. Rohans More (India) Oceans Seven Adventurer
11. Rostislav Vitek (Czech Republic) Ice Swimmer Extraordinaire
12. Simone Ruffini (Italy) Olympian & World Champion
To vote for the World Open Water Swimming Man of the Year, visit here.
2015 World Open Water Swimming Woman of the Year nominees:
1. Alex Cape (Canada) Freshwater Adventurer
2. Aurélie Muller (France) Olympian and World Champion
3. Bridgette Hobart Janeczko (U.S.A.) Prolific Marathon Swimmer
4. Chloë McCardel (Australia) Channel Swimmer & Coach
5. Elina Makïnen (Finland) Ice Swimmer
6. Elizabeth Fry (U.S.A.) Double Downing
7. Lorna Cochran (South Africa) Nonagenarian Swimmer
8. Pilar Geijo (Argentina) FINA Grand Prix Champion
9. Rachelle Bruni (Italy) Olympian & FINA World Cup Champion
10. Renata Novakova (Czech Republic) Ice Swimming World Champion
11. Sharon van Rouwendaal (Netherlands) Olympic Cross-over Speedster
12. Tita Llorens (Spain), Marathon Swimmer
To vote for the World Open Water Swimming Woman of the Year, visit here.
2015 World Open Water Swimming Performance of the Year nominees:
1. Andreas Fath (Germany) Swim for Science
2. Andrea Fazio (Italy) Like Father, Like Son
3. Christian Reichert (Germany) FINA World Cup Champion
4. Dan Projansky (U.S.A.) Butterflying Marathoner
5. Jim Clifford (U.S.A.) Oldest Triple Crowner
6. Fast and Frozen (International) Two-way North Channel Relay
7. Ganga Avahan (India) Stage Swimmers
8. Jordan Wilimovsky (U.S.A.) Olympian & World Champion
9. Kelly Gneiting (U.S.A.) Sumo Swimmer
10. Kimberley Chambers (New Zealand) Farallon Freestyler
11. Matthew Moseley (U.S.A.), Lake-River-Ocean Swimmer
12. Mike Arbuthnot (South Africa) Midmar Mile Founder
13. Nejib Belhedi (Tunisia) Camel Swim
14. Night Train Swimmers (International) NT300 Relay
15. Oceans Seven Relay (International) Global Crossings
16. Susan Simmons (Canada) Swimming with Multiple Sclerosis
17. Swim The Eden Expedition (Great Britain)
18. Team Nadadores Locos (U.S.A.) Two-way Farallon Islands Relay
19. The Old Men And The Sea Relay (U.S.A.) Catalina Cruisers
20. The Deep Enders (U.S.A.)
21. Theodore Yach (South Africa) Robben Island Swimmer
22. Trent Theroux (U.S.A.) Comeback Circumnavigation
23. Wendy Trehiou (Jersey)
To vote for the World Open Water Swimming Performance of the Year, visit here.
2015 World Open Water Swimming Offering of the Year nominees:
1. Axis Buoy by FINIS (U.S.A.)
2. Best Places To Swim by Orca (New Zealand)
3. Chillswim Coniston by Chillswim (Great Britain)
4. Find A Way by Diana Nyad (U.S.A.)
5. IOLITE by Stephen Holm, Raymond Rogers, Justin Peck (U.S.A.)
6. Lake Geneva Swimming Association by Ben Barham (Switzerland)
7. Madswimmers Charity Swims by Jean Craven (South Africa)
8. Samsung Boğaziçi Kıtalararası Yüzme Yarışı (Bosphorus Cross-Continental Swim) by the National Olympic Committee of Turkey (Turkey)
9. Sting No More™ by Dr. Angel Yanagihara (U.S.A.)
10. Swim Across America (U.S.A.)
11. The SwimCross (Switzerland)
12. SwimEars® by Hans Henrik Heming (Denmark)
13. Swimmit by Ivan Peralta (Spain)
14. SwimTrack by Evan Morrison (U.S.A.)
15. WEST (Water World Swimming Therapy) (Israel)
16. World Ice Swimming Championships (Russia)
To vote for the World Open Water Swimming Offering of the Year, visit here. Voting continues until December 31st 2015.
Copyright © 2015 by World Open Water Swimming Association