The 5th edition of the IISA World Championships will run from Jan. 12-15 in Samoëns, France, with close to 500 swimmers from 42 countries expected to compete.
Last year was the first time in my life that I attended the ice swim world championship and swam in 5 different races and won 3 gold and 2 silver medals. It was an unbelievable experience. This year I have decided to join the race again and its amazing to see all the different swimmers coming from all around the world.
I will be the only person who will represent Turkey and will swim 50m, 100m Butterfly and 100m and 250m Freestyle in 2-3 degrees of ice water.
Friday around 12 am : 100m Butterfly
Saturday: 100m Freestyle & 50m Butterfly
Sunday: 250m Freestyle
Live Stream on YouTube: Click here: International Ice Swimming Association TV - YouTube
The detailed programm with the exact times is here click: IISA-WC-Samoens-2023-Start-Program.pdf (internationaliceswimming.com)
The Zurich lake was above 7 degrees so far. It was not easy to find a place to train properly in the ice water. This time I have trained a lot in Caumasee Switzerland with the Founder of Ice Swim 4 Hope - Jeannette (IceSwim4Hope - www.iceswim4hope.ch). We motivated each other and had many freezing moments. I also had the chance to train in Serpentine London with further passioned ice water fans - the community DirteaTribe. The water temp. was around 3-4 degrees.
Beside that I did crossfit, running, further lake swims and pool sprint trainings. Mental training and wim hof breahting excercises complementing the physicall preparation.
During the countdown of the world championship I reflected this statement:
Success is sometimes more heavy than failing
Why? If you are a gold medal finalist there is no more steps to reach the peak. And being a gold medalist, staying at the peak is not easy. Its easier to fail, there are more steps below. How would be a life staying always at the peak? Being always number one? Winning always the gold medals? I leave the answer to you.
For me: Winning is not the ultimate goal. Its not about the destination its more about the journey.
The Journey of
Joy
Friendship
Hope
Love
Dedication
Passion
Self Fulfillment
Giving your best
Support & Collaboration
Exploring yourself
Unlocking potential
Overcoming fears
Believing in yourself
Self motivation
Stepping into the unknown
Body mind soul connection and control
So excited to join this IISA championship again with joy, focus and dedication.
You can find further details about the event here:
All races can be followed via Life Stream on Youtube:
Here you can see the overall program:
More Info about IISA:
THE INTERNATIONAL ICE SWIMMING ASSOCIATION ("IISA")
IISA was born in 2009 and the term “ICE SWIMMING” was first coined. Ice Swimming is swimming in water temperature of 5.0C / 41.0F unassisted, with a silicon cap, pair of goggles and standard swimming costume. IISA has established a comprehensive set of safety and swimming rules together with worldwide swim records. IISA has members in 73 countries and Ice Swimmers [1km+] in 43 countries
See you in the World Championship!
Photo by: Jeannette - Ice Swim 4 Hope