From Israel Hayom...| 6 Israelis break world record for longest open-water swim |
Israeli relay team swims over 236 miles from Cyprus to Israel to raise awareness about marine pollution • Environmental Protection Minister Amir Peretz: The fact that the swimmers could tell when they entered Israeli water shows there is work to be done.
A year and a half of training came to an impressive end Saturday morning when six Israeli swimmers -- coach Ori Sela, Oded Rahav, Udi Erel, Ben Enosh, Doron Amosi, and Luc Chetboun -- broke the Guinness World Record for the longest open-water relay distance swim.
The six swam 380 kilometers (236 miles) from Paphos port in Cyprus to Herzliya Marina in Israel. The event, titled the Cyprus Israel Swim for Clean Seas, was held in cooperation with Zalul, an Israeli NGO devoted to keeping the sea clean, and dedicated to raising awareness about marine pollution. The six are also members of Zalul's Sea Guardians group.
"We've made history. A total of 124 hours of swimming, 14,000 strokes in the water for each of us," the swimmers said.
The swimmers said that on Monday, they encountered a "horrible" current. "But suddenly at sunset 12 dolphins appeared and it boosted our morale."
The swimmers set off last Sunday afternoon. Erel was the first in the water, followed by each team member in a predetermined order with no alternates. Each man swam for an hour at a time, averaging 2 to 4 kilometers (1.2 to 2.5 miles) by the time he was relieved.
"We trained for the swim for a year and a half. The training included long-distance swimming as well as practices in all sorts of extreme conditions -- really cold water without wet suits and very high waves that even surfers were way of," Sela said.
"In practice as well as during the swim itself it was important to us to keep the group injury-free. Of course, along the way we worked on special exercises to protect our shoulders and backs and we constantly practiced keeping ourselves safe in the day and at night -- swimming with floats, in a group, keeping in a pack. Watching out for each other all the time," Sela continued.
The sea wasn't always calm, they said. But the hardest thing was swimming surrounded by plastic bags. "It was a hurtful, humiliating experience. The sea is a haven for the body and the soul and must be kept clean for years to some," they said.
The group's 380-kilometer swim broke the previous record of 366 kilometers (227 miles) set last year by a group of Americans. After the new record is verified, the Guinness Book of World Records is expected to announce the Israeli swim as the longest open-water relay swim in history. The World Open Water Swimming Association is also expected to confirm the new record and has already informed the Israelis that they are candidates for the organization's World Open Water Swimming Performance of the Year Award.
The swimmers were welcomed at an official ceremony. Environmental Protection Minister Amir Peretz said, "The fact that while still swimming, the swimmers realized exactly at what point they entered Israeli waters compels us to continue to work to fight pollution and dirty water."
Zalul Executive Director Maya Jacobs expressed her excitement. "It's not every day that we get a chance to help break a world record and a Guinness Book record," she said.
"These six wonderful people have dedicated their achievement of such importance to protecting the sea and helped raise awareness for the Sea Guardians group. Thanks to them, thousands of people who understand that we have to work to protect the sea have joined," Jacobs said
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