Alex Kostich

From Openwaterpedia
Alex Kostich's circumnavigation swim around Pitcairn Island was nominated for the 2019 WOWSA Awards in the World Open Water Swimming Performance of the Year category
Alex Kostich was nominated for the 2016 WOWSA Awards, a recognition of outstanding men, women, performances and offerings around the globe sponsored by the World Open Water Swimming Association in the category of World Open Water Swimming Man of the Year
Alex Kostich teaching the next generation of open water swimmers at the Bora Bora Liquid Festival
Alex Kostich teaching the next generation of open water swimmers at the Bora Bora Liquid Festival
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Alex Kostich swimming around Bora Bora in French Polynesia on 6 December 2013
Susie Rankin Miller's painting of Alex Kostich swimming around Bora Bora on 6 December 2013
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Alex Kostich's training course around Naples Island in Long Beach, California

Alex Kostich, known as the Travel Ninja is an American competitive swimmer, a 3-time Pan American Games gold medalist, former All-American swimmer at Stanford University, and 50-year-old marathon swimmer from California. He is one of the world's fastest open water swimmers and best masters swimmers as well as a former Vice President at Sony Pictures Studios in Culver City, California.

Open Water Swimming Highlights

2019 World Open Water Swimming Performance of the Year Nomination

Kostich's Pitcairn Island circumnavigation swim was nominated for the 2019 World Open Water Swimming Performance of the Year award as follows:

Alex Kostich has succeeded – and lasted – in Hollywood for over two decades, responsible for the promotion of hit movies as his dryland profession. But it is in the ocean where Kostich has set his mark for the ages. After years of planning and closing in on the Circumnavigation Seven with a 19 km circumnavigation swim around Bora Bora, several 4.3 km swims around Naples Island in California, a 20.1 km Swim Around Key West in Florida, Kostich completed his most adventurous and treacherous circumnavigation yet: a 9.8 km very roughwater swim around Pitcairn Island way out in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. Just getting out to one of the world’s most remote inhabited islands took careful logistical planning and had to be delayed for months. Then his window of opportunity closed on him due to inclement weather and he set off not knowing if the swim was even remotely doable. But 2 hours 37 minutes after he started, the small community of Pitcairn will forever remember the island’s swimming pioneer. For mapping out a detailed plan to get to and pioneer a swim around Pitcairn Island located 2,170 km from Tahiti and 6,600 km from Panama, for swimming through heavy surf and wavy conditions with a large degree of uncertainty about finishing, for being bold and adventurous enough to swim outside of his comfort zone, the circumnavigation swim of Pitcairn Island by Alex Kostich is a worthy nominee for the 2019 World Open Water Swimming Performance of the Year.

Writing

Kostich is also a prolific writer and reporter:

o March / April 2011 Issue: "Open Water Swimming"
o January / February 2011 Issue: Featured in "Swimming for a Cause"
o September / October 2005 Issue: "Ready to Tri?"
o July / August 2011 Issue: Featured in "Out in the Open: Alex Kostich"
o November / December 2005 Issue: Featured in "Kostich Clinches Pier-to-Pier and La Jolla Rough Water Swims"
o September / October 2005 Issue: Featured in "A Healthy Life Calls for Balance"

In The Pool And Open Water





Guinness World Record Acceptance Speech


On 4 May 2019, Kostich completed the first 9.8 km solo unassisted circumnavigation swim around Pitcairn Island in the Pacific Ocean in 2 hours 37 minutes 45 seconds to establish a new Guinness World Record.

Global Swimming Summit

Kostich is a featured speaker at the 2016 Global Swimming Summit, a free online summit hosted by Chris Ritter of Ritter Sports Performance that explains and describes open water swimming for people of all ages and abilities. Speakers at the Global Swimming Summit include: Gerry Rodrigues, Lesley Paterson, Gary Hall Sr., Mike Collins, Alex Kostich, Brad Kearns, Glenn Mills, Karlyn Pipes, Tyler Fenwick, Kevin Rindal, Kristian Manietta and Steph Saullo.

2016 World Open Water Swimming Man of the Year nomination

Kostich was nominated for the 2016 World Open Water Swimming Man of the Year award.

Alex Kostich has always been a very fast swimmer. Although he first established his world-class credentials in the swimming pool as a young age-group swimmer and collegiate swimmer at Stanford University and at the Pan American Games, his open water swimming career has been highlighted by winning and finishing on the podium for decades in some of the most competitive ocean swims on the planet. For 24 consecutive years between the ages of 23 and 46, Kostich has finished the Top 10 at the Waikiki Roughwater Swim against Olympians, professional swimmers and men half his age. His track record is unparalleled not only in Hawaii, but also in the Caribbean Sea where he has dominated a number of races like the St. Croix Coral Reef Swim Race that he has won 18 times. For keeping up near-daily hard 8000-meter workouts while working on major Hollywood films, for spreading kind words and sharing his personal experiences about these open water swims on social media, for demonstrating that age is much less a factor in staying competitive than a healthy lifestyle, a passion for the sport, and daily commitment to training, Alex Kostich is a worthy nominee for the 2016 World Open Water Swimming Man of the Year.

External links

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