Preparations for the 2017 Samsung Bosphorus Cross-Continental Swimming Race gained momentum today as the Turkish Olympic Committee (TOC) and Samsung Electronics Turkey held a press conference at Olympic House to announce their celebrity guest swimmers Lexie Kelly and Doug Woodring.
The unique event, organised annually by the TOC and its partner Samsung, will see a record-breaking 2200 swimmers from 49 countries take part in the open water race on Sunday 23 July. The 6.5km race sees participants swim along the Bosphorus strait crossing from Asia to Europe.
Swimming alongside them will be this year’s TOC honorary celebrity guest swimmers Lexie Kelly and Doug Woodring. Both swimmers are American, and Lexie, a professional marathon swimmer, holds two open water swimming records and was nominated for the 2012 World Open Water Swimming Performance of the Year award. Doug, also a competitive swimmer, was nominated for the 2017 World Open Water Swimming Man of the Year award for his contributions to the sport and his tireless efforts to bring the world’s attention to the plasticity of the world’s oceans.
The first Bosphorus race, held in 1989, saw 68 swimmers take part, including four females and 64 males. It has since evolved into a world-famous international swimming event attracting thousands of participants from all across the globe. Last year it was selected as the "World's Best Open Water Swimming Event" by the World Open Water Swimming Association (WOWSA).
President of the TOC, Professor Dr. Uğur Erdener, said:
"The TOC and city of Istanbul are delighted to host the 29th edition of the Bosphorus race. This unique event has contributed to Turkey and Istanbul’s growing reputation as a world class destination for international sporting events and has raised sports awareness domestically. It also contributes to the city’s tourism with swimmers travelling from as far away as Argentina, New Zealand and Australia. With the support of our sponsor Samsung Electronics Turkey, the race’s popularity has grown significantly resulting in booming participation levels year-on-year. This year, the foreigners’ quota was filled within 16 hours whilst Russians filled their 400-person quota within an hour.
"On behalf of the TOC, I would like to extend a warm welcome to all foreigners taking part in Sunday’s race and wish all participants the best of luck as they make the crossing from Asia to Europe."
The 29th Samsung Bosphorus Cross-Continental Swimming Race will begin at 10am local time on Sunday 23 July where swimmers will take off from Kanlıca on the Asian side of Istanbul and finish the race in Kuruçeşme Cemil Topuzlu Park on the European side.
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