Kocaeli International Open Water Swimming Championship Golden Cup 2022, which will be held with the participation of 60 athletes from 10 countries on Saturday, September 10, under the leadership of Kocaeli Metropolitan Municipality, was launched.
60 athletes from 10 countries will participate in Kocaeli International Open Water Swimming Championship Golden Cup 2022, which will be held at Kandıra-Kerpe Public Beach in partnership with Kocaeli Metropolitan Municipality, Kocaeli Provincial Directorate of Youth and Sports and Turkish Swimming Federation. The launch of the competition, which will also include 21 athletes from the Turkish National Team, was held at the Kerpe and Kumcagiz Youth and Sports Camp. To launch; Kocaeli Metropolitan Municipality Youth and Sports Services Department Head Şemsettin Yıldırım, Kocaeli Metropolitan Municipality Youth and Sports Services Department Sports Branch Manager Alparslan Arslan, Turkish Swimming Federation Open Water Swimming Technical Committee Member Sabri Bozca, European Swimming Union Len Delegate Aleksandar Malenko, Hungarian National Team Athlete Olympic swimmer Ana Olasz, swimming provincial representative Talha Altuntaş attended.
‘We are holding the 101st of our national and international organizations’
Stating that they are working with the mission of the sports capital Kocaeli, Kocaeli Metropolitan Municipality Youth and Sports Services Department Head Şemsettin Yıldırım said, “Our Kocaeli Metropolitan Municipality is in cooperation with the World Swimming Federation, European Swimming Union, Turkish Swimming Federation, Kocaeli Provincial Directorate of Youth and Sports. We will hold the Kocaeli International Open Water Swimming Championship Golden Cup 2022 Races in Kandıra – Kerpe Public Beach, the distinguished district of Kocaeli, at 10:00 on the day of. We have carried the Open Water Swimming Championships, which have become traditional every year within our municipality, to the national level with the Turkish Swimming Federation Open Water Swimming Turkey Championship and the National Team Selection Competitions held in August, and we continue to go further with every step by bringing them to the international level with this competition. With this organization to be held, we are holding the 101st of our national and international organizations with the institutions we cooperate with within the Youth and Sports Services Department.
‘We expect 60 athletes from 10 countries to participate’
Stating that they are striving to accustom young people to sports and to raise successful athletes to a higher level, Yıldırım said, “We aim to organize Kocaeli Rally Turkey Rally Championship, Youth Balkans Judo Championship and International Karate Championship this month together with Kocaeli Automobile Sports Club and Motor Sports federation. Our very valuable Olympic and world-class swimmers will be here at the international GOLDEN CUP Championship that we will hold at the weekend. Athletes participating in the organization are elite athletes (with World, European and Olympic degrees) invited by the Swimming Federation and the International Open Water Swimming Federation. We expect 60 athletes from 10 countries (Turkey, Italy, Spain, Slovenia, Czech Republic, Hungary, Ukraine, Germany, Croatia and Macedonia) to participate. 21 athletes from the Turkish national team will participate in the competition. Kocaeli International Open Water Swimming Championship Golden Cup 2022 is a 10km race. This distance is the Open Water Swimming Olympic Distance. Golden Cup is a competition organized by LEN (European Swimming Association) and FINA (World Swimming Federation) in 5 stages a year. We will host all the athletes and coaches participating in the competition in our camp located in Kerpe and Kumcagiz before the competition, and in this way, we will introduce our country and contribute to sports tourism. We want to announce here that we aspire to the World Open Water Swimming Championship and the European Open Water Swimming Championship to be held in our region in 2023,” he said.
‘Kocaeli is a city especially known for open water swimming champions’
Sabri Bozca, Member of the Open Water Swimming Technical Committee of the Turkish Swimming Federation, said, “Kocaeli is a city known especially for open water swimming champions. When open water is mentioned in the world, Kocaeli also comes to mind. We will have 21 athletes from our Turkish National Team. 5 of these athletes would win 9 medals for our country in the European Youth Championship in June this season. These medals were the first medals in our open water swimming history. Our athletes who won medals in Europe, such as Emir Batur Albayrak and Burcu Naz Narin, will also be here and represent our country.
‘I can’t wait to swim in the Black Sea’
Hungarian swimmer Anna Olasz said, “First of all, I would like to thank Kocaeli Metropolitan Municipality. I had never swam in Turkey before. I am very excited for the race. Conditions are very good, I can’t wait to swim in the Black Sea. “I hope to be a part of these races in the coming years,” she said.
