The Authentic Marathon Swim race comes 2,500 years later, at the place where it started, in Artemision. The authentic marathon swimming route performed by Skyllias together with his daughter Hydna revives by uniting the legend with history.
The great historic sporting event includes 10km, 3km, 1,5km and an 800m swimming race for kids to be held on September 4-6, 2020, at Pefki, Evia in the Municipality of Istiaia-Edipsos.
The event prioritizing the absolute safety of its athletes, will provide everyone with a high-quality safety lifeguard buoy, giving them an extra motive to choose The Authentic Swimming Marathon. The swimming route will be held at the straits of Artemision where the average water temperature is between 23-26 degrees Celsius. Specialized lifeguards and lifeboats will contribute to the safety of the race. Different categories will be formed for swimmers depending on the total number of participants, while a separate category will be formed for those wearing wetsuits in the 3km and 1.5 categories. The event offers race timing for all swimmers. The Authentic Marathon Swim will be held with the approval of the Hellenic Swimming Federation, according to FINA regulations.
The noteworthy event will be honored by the presence of the silver Olympic medalist, world champion in open water swimming and member of the International Marathon Swimming Hall of Fame, Spyros Gianniotis. Prominent personalities of international swimming will take part at The Authentic Marathon Swim. Among them, the 2 Time Olympian from Japan Olympic Team, Yasunari Hirai, the Hungarian ultra-marathon swimmer, Oceans Seven holder and member of the International Marathon Swimming Hall of Fame, Attila Manyoki, hall of famer and 11 consecutive times winner in major international open water marathon swimming FINA series, Petar Stoychev, world open water swimming masters champion, Vicky Kouveli, bronze medalist in world & European open water swimming championships and 4 time Olympian Marianna Lymperta and the elite of the Greek national open water swimming team.
Entries for the event are underway and interested parties can participate by completing the available form through the following link: https://www.myrace.gr/en/event/2407/registrations.html.
Check the event’s specially designed page and discover the accommodation packages and special offers which are valid for the participants: https://www.authenticmarathonswim.com/accommodation.
The Authentic Marathon Swim is held under the auspices of the Greek National Tourism Organization, is listed in the “Thermopylae-Salamis 2020” Anniversary framework and is organized by the Municipality of Istiaia-Edipsos. The award-winning Active Media Group is responsible for the event’s Sports Production.
The Authentic Marathon Swim has joined the Greek actions of the #BeactiveHellas 2020 programme of the European Commission and is held under the auspices of the General Secretariat of Sports.
The event has joined the swimming community Global Swim Series (GSS).
The history of The Authentic Marathon Swim
Skyllias and his daughter Hydna, were the very first “marathon swimmers”, according to the publicized works of global history. According to Herodotus, the story of Skyllias and Hydna explains that in 480 B.C. they were arrested by Persians and boarded onto their ships, as the Persians wanted to use the pair of proficient divers for an extensive exploration of underwater treasures from shipwrecks of that time and age. Subsequently, the historical swimmers realized that Persians planned on using them in an upcoming naval combat in Artemision, meaning that Skyllias and Hydna would have to face their Greek compatriots. The Ancient-Greek heroes jumped into the sea, sliced the ropes from the anchors of Persian ships and started swimming towards Artemision in order to inform the Greek Naval Forces. The historical achievements of Skyllias and Hydna have been recorded from Herodotus, “The Father of History”, who has praised them for their unique swimming ability and the importance of the information they offered to the Greeks, allowing the Naval Forces to prepare for their upcoming Battle of Salamis and their eventual triumph. In this manner, 2.500 ago, the first ever marathon swim was recorded in history.
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