Eda Savcıgil sets dual records in Catalina channel swim

İZMİR

Ultra-marathon swimmer Eda Savcıgil displays the Turkish flag.

Clocking in at 10 hours and 27 minutes, national swimmer Eda Savcıgil has made history at the Catalina Channel, becoming both the fastest woman and the youngest Turkish athlete to complete the swim.

The national athlete completed the 32-kilometer Catalina Channel leg of Ocean Seven challenge’s seven stages while breaking two records, according to the statement of İzmir Provincial Directorate of the Youth and Sports Ministry.

Starting on the night of Oct. 1, Savcıgil began swimming the route stretching between Santa Catalina Island and California and completed the route on the morning of Oct. 2.

Throughout the stage, Savcıgil was accompanied by canoeist John Trevino and a boat carrying her coaches, the referees and her father.

Coached by Bengisu Avcı — the first Turkish athlete to complete the Ocean Seven challenge — the Savcıgil is reportedly continuing her preparations for the next leg of the Ocean Seven series, the Molokai Channel. Being approximately 42 kilometers long, the stage is considered one of the world’s most challenging swimming routes.

Alongside this groundbreaking achievement, the 18-year-old national athlete placed third in the 100-meter breaststroke at this year’s Winter Swimming World Championship held in Oulu, Finland.

Savcıgil also won the general classification championship title as the first Turkish athlete to complete the historic Capri-Naples (Vesuvius) race in Italy, completing the parkour in nine hours.