DOVER, England. Petar Stoychev, the only person to swim under 7 hours in the English Channel, knows the value of preparing himself in every aspect of the sport. He trains, he eats, he travels and he races like the 11-time professional marathon swimming champion he is.
While shaving down is not for everyone or even for most open water swimmers, for Petar it works.
“I shave down – full body – for every big race. It’s very good and helpful. You feel much faster in the water. It’s easier to put on sunscreen protection, your numbering, Vaseline and so.
Your body hair doesn’t keep your warm in the water. I also shaved for my English Channel record. I believe shaving is necessary for competitive open water swimming.”
While shaving is not for everyone, one of the greatest professional marathon swimmers in the world tells us how little things work for him.
Part 2 of this 3-part series on shaving down is here. Part 3 of this 3-part series is here. Introduction to this 3-part series is here.
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. Note: WOWSA only recommends products or services used or recommended by the community. WOWSA does not receive compensation for links or products mentioned on this site or in blog posts. If it does, it will be indicated clearly on that specific post. See WOWSA's privacy policy for more information.