An open water ultra-marathon took place with two Egyptian swimmers to be the first in Egypt to swim 30 kilometers together on Saturday in Ras Sidr.
The first swimmer, Wael Al-Gharbawy, 55, swam 30 kilometers in 15 hours, 32 minutes and 45 seconds, and is the first in his age group to swim this marathon and the first to do so in Egyptian waters. He continued the last two hours after sunset which was one of the most difficult challenges he'd ever faced.
The second swimmer, Zeina Essam, 22, is the third Egyptian swimmer to swim this marathon, in 13 hours and 30 minutes, and is the first to do so in Egyptian waters.
They challenged themselves and continued the marathon regardless of the sea's difficulties where they swam half the distance against the tide.
“It was impossible regarding the obstacles we faced but in the end it was totally worth it, I was very tired and exhausted but I managed to think about the history I would be making that day so I was inspired and felt fully confident,” said Essam to “Trendify”.
The event was organised by Swim19 Academy and was under captain Omar Al-Hadad’s supervision who also trained swimmer Wael Al-Gharbawy while Captain Hussein Amer, the Egyptian national team captain for long distance swimming, trained swimmer Zeina Essam.