Marko Pejchinovski - Lake Ohrid two-way

Ohrid - St. Naum - Ohrid

44.8 km (27.8 miles)

15 hours, 33 minutes on 31 July 2021

Observed and documented by Zoran Rodic

Contents

Swimmer

  • Name: Marko Pejchinovski
  • Gender: Male
  • Age on swim date: 15
  • Nationality: North Macedonia
  • Resides: Ohrid

Support Personnel

Observer: Zoran Rodic. Physical Education Professor, Certified Lifeguard, with a Certification for First Aid, and member of the jury for Ohrid Swim Marathon from 2007 till 2016.


Escort Vessels

  • Lake Legend (OH-971), Ohrid
  • unnamed (OH-943), Ohrid

Swim Parameters

  • Category: Solo, nonstop, unassisted.
  • Rules: MSF Rules of Marathon Swimming, without exception or modification.
  • Equipment used: Textile swimsuit, goggles, earplugs, grease.

Route Definition

Ohrid - St. Naum - Ohrid

  • Body of Water: Lake Ohrid
  • Route Type: multi-way
  • Start & Finish Location: Ohrid Harbor (41.111914, 20.799159)
  • Turnaround Location: St. Naum (beach to (right) of Black Drim river) (40.914966, 20.743107)
  • Minimum Route Distance: 44.8 km (27.8 miles) (map)

History

No known previous swims of this route. There is a longstanding professional race in this same body of water: Ohrid Swim Marathon


Swim Data

  • Start: 31 July 2021, 05:08:15 (Europe/Skopje, Central European Summer Time, UTC2).
  • Finish: 31 July 2021, 20:41:40
  • Elapsed: 15 hours, 33 minutes, 25 seconds.
  • Split Times: 7:34:43 (Leg 1) + 7:58:42 (Leg 2)

Summary of Conditions

Feature Min Max
Water Temp (C) 22 25
Air Temp (C) 20 32
Wind (kph) 0 25

GPS Track

Trackpoint frequency: 30 minutes. Download raw data (CSV).

Click to expand map.

Speed Plot

Nutrition: Maltodextrin carbohydrates from My Protein mixed with water and NUUN tablets – orange taste. Feeding every half an hour - 200ml. Extra chocolate and Lecadol - (Paracetamol with vitamin C) when he feel pain in his shoulders.


Observer Log

Original, then translated.

Download PDF

Observer Narrative Report

Original, then translated.


Swimmer Narrative

What inspired you to do this swim?

My biggest inspiration for this swim was my mother. My mother has cancer, so I really wanted to dedicate this swim to her. I also wanted to do something unique; something no one has everdone before-to be the first and only person to swim this route. I came up with the idea the same night I thought of the comeback swim.

Please describe how you planned for the swim:

One night I devised the route. It was the same night when I devised the comeback route, and it was really simple:why not swim the same route as I did for the comeback swim (Ohrid – St. Naum); but this time I go back and forth (Ohrid – St. Naum – Ohrid).This idea turned out to be perfect. I trained for 9 months (5 to 6 times a week), and the majority of the training was done in a small swimming pool.

How did the swim go, generally? Did you face any unanticipated challenges?

The swim started at 5am and it was going really well until I felt my body shut down for a split second. This happened a few km before the halfway point. I felt like I didn’t have energy in my body until I said a motivational speech in my head which gave me the push I needed. I finished half of the swim pretty strong. I rested for a couple of minutes and then I started swimming back, it was going really well until I had my second shut down for a split second and everybody thought I was ina crisis, but I knew that wasn’t the case. I couldn’t recover from the second shut down until my brother jumped into the water to motivate me, and honestly, that really helped me to start swimming faster. I was more motivated than ever and this motivation lasted for 2 and a half hours until my body started hurting. I couldn’t feel my arms and my stomach hurt really badly. So, I was feeling really demotivated because I knew how much I trained for this. However, my mindset didn’t change. I said to myself: “I don’t care how much my arms and my stomach hurt, I am going to raise my hands at the end and I am prepared for the worst to make that happen.” I started swimming the fastest I ever swam and eventually I reached the end, raised my hands happily and was welcomed by my whole family.


Photos

Click to enlarge.


Video


Media


Appendix A: Weather