Romania’s Avram Iancu completes historic swim across Europe, covering 4,448 km from North Sea to Black Sea

Romanian open-water swimmer Avram Iancu announced Friday, August 8, that he has successfully swum across Europe along the famous Rhine–Main–Danube waterway, from the North Sea to the Black Sea. The 4,448 marathon swimming, completed in three stages over a total of 170 days without a wetsuit, marks what he says is a world first: crossing an entire continent by swimming.

“I reached the final destination! Today, at 18:25, after 40 days of swimming, I arrived at the confluence of the Main–Danube Canal with the majestic Danube River. I have swum across all of Europe without a wetsuit, from the North Sea to the Black Sea,” Iancu wrote on Facebook, adding that he is now the first person to complete the entire route by swimming.

The achievement could earn him the distinction of completing the world’s first “Triple Crown of River Stage Swims” challenge. This recognition would crown three major swims: the Danube (2,860 km in 89 days, completed in 2017), the Rhine (1,032 km in 48 days, completed in 2023), and the Main–Danube Canal (556 km in 40 days, completed this year and pending ratification).

In total, Iancu has spent 177 days swimming, over just three years.

He acknowledged the personal sacrifices behind the record, expressing emotion as he addressed his family: “With tears in my eyes, I want to apologize to my daughters for all these absences from their childhood. But I know they understand, perhaps better than anyone, the sacrifices I have had to make - and why.”

He dedicated this latest swim to the message of a “United Europe.”

Avram Iancu’s long-distance swims have often carried symbolic meaning. In 2017, he swam the entire length of the Danube to mark a decade since Romania joined the European Union, a journey documented and ratified by the World Open Water Swimming Association. In 2023, he swam the Rhine from Konstanz in 48 days to support Romania’s bid to join the Schengen Area, a challenge also officially recognized by the World Open Water Swimming Federation.

(Photo source: Facebook/Avram Iancu)