Avram Iancu becomes first Romanian to swim the Bristol Channel

Librarian and endurance swimmer Avram Iancu became the first Romanian to successfully swim across the Bristol Channel. He started the crossing on Thursday morning, July 21, swimming Glenthorne to Porthcawl in quite difficult conditions caused by powerful currents.

“Two months ago I was in the hospital […] and today I swam from England to Wales crossing the Bristol Channel. With this performance, I am honoured to become the first Romanian to cross the famous channel that has particularly strong currents,” Iancu announced on his Facebook page on Thursday.

“I am also honoured to see that this crossing made the hearts of Romanians in Wales and England resonate with this Romanian action,” he added.

According to local Agerpres, Avram Iancu completed the 28-km crossing, which in fact required about 40 km of swimming because of the strong currents, in 10 hours and 45 minutes.

Avram Iancu has become known as an endurance athlete in recent years, mainly due to his performance as a swimmer. He swam across the English Channel without a neoprene suit in 2016, and the following year he swam 2,800 km along the River Danube without thermal protection.

Iancu also participated in the 6633 Arctic Ultra in 2019, one of the toughest ultramarathon races in the world. He crossed the finish line third after more than 206 hours.

(Photo source: Facebook/Avram Iancu)