BCT Gdynia Marathon

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BCT Gdynia Marathon 2012 start
BCT Gdynia Marathon 2012
BCT Gdynia Marathon 2012 winners: Petar Stoychev and Christine Jennings
BCT Gdynia Marathon 2013 Poster
2014-2015 WOWSS offers 13 races around the world including the Open Race of the BCT Gdynia Marathon

The BCT Gdynia Marathon is an amateur and 20.5 km (12.7-mile) professional marathon swim between the Hel Peninsula and the city of Gdynia in Poland. The event is organised and sponsored by Baltic Container Terminal in Gdynia and held annually in late August. The event also includes an open water swimming race of 2.95 km and a 4×200m relay race held on 25 August 2013.

History

The marathon swim of the Gulf of Gdańsk is indisputably the oldest open water swimming marathon in Poland. The first race was held on 4 July 1963 with a support and engagement from Polish Navy. The swimmers took off at 4:55 am from the beach in Hel on the Hel Peninsula to cover 22 km way to Sopot City. 9 out of 12 swimmers reached the other shore.

Gdynia Marathon

The Morski Maraton Pływacki BCT Gdynia is currently organized by Tomasz Pąchalski who offers a US$10,000 first prize for both men and women and US$28,000 in overall cash prizes. The 19.5 km event took place 23-25 August 2013. "The BCT Gdynia Marathon is the first of its kind - a major open water swim - in Poland for a long time. We would like to invite open water swimmers from all over Europe and other continents as well," explained Pąchalski. "Our priority is safety of our competitor, so we decided to limit the field to 15 athletes. The expected temperature of the water is rather low (16-18°C), so it very important to have experienced open water swimmers."

Location

Gdynia is a large coastal city in Bay of Gdańsk on the south coast of the Baltic Sea. Hel Peninsula is a long 35 km sand bar separating the Bay of Puck from the Baltic Sea.

World Open Water Swimming Series

The BCT Gdynia Marathon - The Open Race is part of the 2014-2015 World Open Water Swimming Series.

World Open Water Swimming Performance of the Year Nomination

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It is one of the World's Top 100 Open Water Swims and was nominated for the 2013 World Open Water Swimming Performance of the Year.

Prize Money

The total pool of prizes amounts to US$28,000, including two first-place cash awards of US$10,000 for the overall female and male winners. The event`s participant limit is 15.

Organisation

It is organized by Mikołaj Nałęcz- Nieniewski and Paulina Olczyk with the assistance of Tomasz Pąchalski, Marathon's Sport Director. Dagmara Łuczka is its press spokesperson and Krzysztof Szymborski is the President of the event's title sponsor Baltic Container Terminal.

History

BCT Gdynia Marathon recalls tradition of open water swimming marathons that took place in the 1960s and early 1970s in the Bay of Gdansk. In 2011 pilot edition was held, with 3.5 km long route and over 50 participants. Experience gained from organising the race led to decision to hold full, 10 mile long, swim between Hel Peninsula and city of Gdynia in 2012 and a longer 19.5 km race in 2013.

Event Information

Date: 23-25.08.2013 (decision will be made according to weather conditions)

Website: BCT Gdynia Marathon

Class: Pro with shorter race for less experienced swimmers

Wetsuit: Yes (see event`s statute for detailed info)

Type: Sea

Length: 20 km (18,5 in 2012)

2013 Edition

The BCT Gdynia Marathon was announced in March 2013 and took place on the weekend between 23rd and 25th of August. Apart from main race, shorter swim was held allowing less experienced open water swimmers to compete.

2014-2015 World Open Water Swimming Series Events

1. aQuellé Midmar Mile in Pietermaritzburg, South Africa in February. Race director Wayne Riddin
2. Miami Mile in Miami, Florida, U.S.A. in April. Race director Jonathan Strauss
3. El Cruce in Cancún, Mexico in May. Race director Rafael Hernández
4. Jax Coco Shek O Challenge in Hong Kong in July. Race director Doug Woodring
5. Henley Mile in Henley-on-the-Thames, United Kingdom in July. Race director Tom Kean
6. Hellespont and Dardanelles Swim in Turkey in August. Race director Simon Murie
7. Aichi Crossing in Nagoya, Japan in August. Race director Yutaka Shinozaki
8. BCT Gdynia Marathon – Open Race in Gdynia, Poland in August. Race director Tomasz Pąchalski
9. Waikiki Roughwater Swim in Oahu, Hawaii in September. Race director Kaia Hedlund
10. Swim The Island in Italy in October. Race director Matteo Testa
11. The Five in Hong Kong in October. Race director Doug Woodring
12. King and Queen of the Sea in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil in December. Race director Pedro Rego Monteiro
13. Stroke for Egypt in the Red Sea, Egypt in December. Race coordinator Mohamed Marouf

2015-2016 World Open Water Swimming Series

The event is part of the 2015-2016 World Open Water Swimming Series (WOWSS), a global series of open water swimming competitions. FINIS and Ocean Recovery Alliance present the global open water swimming, a 17-race series spans Africa, North America, South America, Asia and Europe and includes some of the world’s most innovative, enjoyable, beautiful and signature open water swimming competitions.

1. Cold Half Extreme Marathon Swim in Hong Kong. Race director Doug Woodring
2. aQuellé Midmar Mile in Pietermaritzburg, South Africa in February. Race director Wayne Riddin
3. Miami Mile in Miami, Florida, U.S.A. in April. Race director Jonathan Strauss
4. El Cruce in Cancún, Mexico in May. Race director Rafael Hernández
5. Swim Challenge Cascais in Cascais, Portugal. Race director Jorge Paulo Pereira
6. Jax Coco Shek O Challenge in Hong Kong in July. Race director Doug Woodring
7. Henley Mile in Henley-on-the-Thames, United Kingdom in July. Race director Tom Kean
8. Vibes & Scribes Lee Swim in Cork, Ireland in July. Race director Joe Donnelly
9. Hellespont and Dardanelles Swim in Turkey in August. Race director Simon Murie
10. BCT Gdynia Marathon – Open Race in Gdynia, Poland in August. Race director Tomasz Pąchalski
11. Waikiki Roughwater Swim in Oahu, Hawaii in September. Race director Kaia Hedlund
12. International Masters Open Water Swim in Shizuoka, Japan in September. Race director Yutaka Shinozaki
13. Cruce Aguas Abiertas Golfo Dulce in Costa Rica in September. Race director Joe Bernini
14. Swim The Island in Italy in October. Race director Matteo Testa
15. The Five in Hong Kong in October. Race director Doug Woodring
16. King and Queen of the Sea in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil in December. Race director Pedro Rego Monteiro
17. Stroke for Egypt in the Red Sea, Egypt in December. Race coordinator Mohamed Marouf

2012 Contestants

BCT Gdynia Marathon participants (not all). From the left: Megan Melgaard, Chris Bryan, Jan Urbaniak, Trent Grimsey. Natalia Charlos, Petar Stoychev, Grzegorz Radomski, Mallory Mead, Christine Jennings

Women:
1. Pilar Geijo (Argentina)
2. Mallory Mead (USA)
3. Christine Jennings (USA)
4. Megan Melgaard (USA)
5. Natalia Charlos (Poland)

Men:
1. Petar Stoychev (Bulgaria)
2. Trent Grimsey (Australia)
3. Chris Bryan (Ireland)
4. Benjamin Konschak (Germany)
5. Krzysztof Pielowski (Poland)
6. Grzegorz Monczak (Poland)
8. Sebastian Karaś (Poland)
9. Jan Urbaniak (Poland)

2012 Results

1. Petar Stoychev
2. Trent Grimsey
3. Christine Jennings
4. Natalia Charlos
5. Benjamin Konschak
6. Pilar Geijo
7. Chris Bryan
8. Krzysztof Pielowski
9. Sebastian Karaś
10. Megan Melgaard
11. Jan Urbaniak
12. Mallory Mead
13. Grzegorz Radomski
14. Grzegorz Monczak

Prize Money

US$28,000 total and US$10,000 for the first place in both the men and women's category

BCT Gdynia Marathon 2011 awards ceremony

With a current annual handling capacity of some 750.000 TEUs, and a potential capacity of 1.2m TEUs, the Port of Gdynia's Baltic Container Terminal (BCT) is the leading container terminal in Poland and one of the largest in the Baltic region. 2007 record-breaking result - 493 860 TEUs, consolidates and places BCT in the top 3 container terminals in the Baltic region overall.

Contact

Name: Tomasz Pąchalski, Marathon`s Sport Director

Email: maraton@bctgdyniamarathon.eu

Phone: +48 600 365 944

Video

External links

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