The Beltquerung Between Denmark And Germany
Courtesy of WOWSA, Huntington Beach. Sergio Salomone explains about one of the world’s most challenging channel swims: the 25 km Beltquerung.
The 25 km channel swim is in cool waters (16°C) of the Fehmarn Belt (Danish: Femern Bælt, German: Fehmarnbelt), a strait in the western part of the Baltic Sea between the German island of Fehmarn and the Danish island of Lolland.
After the first unprecedented crossing in 1939 by local swimming pioneer Karl-Heinz Rauert, the top ten swimmers who have traversed between Rødby in Denmark and Puttgarden, Germany include the following channel swimmers:
1. Christof Wandratsch in 2005 in 5 hours 11 minutes
2. Sergio Salomone in 2010 in 6 hours 5 minutes
3. Manyoki Attila in 2011 in 6 hours 8 minutes
4. Yasutaka Kurokawa in 2010 in 6 hours 24 minutes
5. Heike Braun in 2006 in 6 hours 25 minutes
6. Claudio Plit in 2000 in 7 hours 28 minutes
7. Kirsten Seidel in 2003 in 9 hours 3 minutes
8. Jürgen Fussi in 2011 in 9 hours 35 minutes
9. Claudia Markwardt in 2005 in 10 hours 22 minutes
10. María Inés Mato in 1999 in 11 hours 4 minutes
Copyright © 2011 by World Open Water Swimming Association
Southern California native, born 1962, is the creator of the WOWSA Awards, Oceans Seven, Openwaterpedia, Citrus Corps, World Open Water Swimming Association, Daily News of Open Water Swimming, Global Open Water Swimming Conference. He is Chief Executive Officer of KAATSU Global and KAATSU Research Institute. Inductee in the International Marathon Swimming Hall of Fame (Honor Swimmer, Class of 2001) and Ice Swimming Hall of Fame (Honor Contributor - Media, Class of 2019), recipient of the International Swimming Hall of Fame's Poseidon Award (2016), International Swimming Hall of Fame's Irving Davids-Captain Roger Wheeler Memorial Award (2010), USA Swimming's Glen S. Hummer Award (2007, 2010) and Harvard University's John B. Imrie Award (1984). Served on the FINA Technical Open Water Swimming Committee and as Technical Delegate with the 2011 Special Olympics World Summer Games, and 9-time USA Swimming coaching staff.
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