Aysu Türkoğlu, who started swimming when she was a child, appeared on the podium for the first time in 2015. Aysu, who has participated in more than 60 races in the past 7 years, has a very big goal: English Channel Swimming...
Born in Bodrum in 2001, Aysu started swimming alongside her older sister, who trained hard. He chose one of the clubs in Bodrum. The athlete, who overcame the negativities he experienced with the support of his family, set 2 goals for himself. The first is to study at Ege University Faculty of Sports Sciences and do the sport he loves, and the other is to be the youngest Turkish swimmer to swim the English Channel.
After working with determination, he achieved his first goal and is now in Izmir…
While he was focusing on completing the Channel Swim in July 2020, the Covid-19 pandemic conditions became an insurmountable obstacle for him, like everyone else, for two years. Preparations are now underway for July 2022.
“As an athlete, I want to be the youngest Turkish female athlete to cross the English Channel, one of the most difficult channels in the world, and write my name and the name of our country in the world.” he says. As he said, this free swimming is quite challenging... Rapidly changing weather conditions, waves that suddenly grow when calm, and a distance of 35 to 40 thousand meters to cover.
“I hope to achieve this goal in 2022.”
The English Channel Swim was first undertaken by Captain Matthew Webb on 24 August 1875. This swim takes place in the channel where the North Sea flows between England and France. This distance is 36 kilometers as the crow flies. Depending on the conditions, this distance reaches up to 42 km. The water temperature is around 13-17 degrees. During this challenge, there is an observation boat and it accompanies you during the transition, and nutritional support can also be taken from the boat while making the transition. The English Channel is one of the 7 ocean crossings selected by WOWSA (World Open Water Swimming Association). WOWSA (World Open Water Swimming Association), headquartered in America, is an international organization that carries out the activities of supporting, organizing, promoting, recognizing and rewarding open water swimmers and open water swimming events.
This difficult transition also has some strict rules. In accordance with the rules set by the Channel Swimming Association, touching the boat, using thermal protectors and wearing swimsuits that facilitate swimming are strictly prohibited. In 2022, Aysu will also be included in this 'human struggle against nature', which was initiated by Matthew Webb 150 years ago. Turks are among the swimmers who have completed nearly 3000 people so far. 15 individuals 6 teams.
Aysu Türkoğlu, who grew up in the southwest of our country with the dream of a little swimmer and participated in dozens of races to realize it, trained tens of thousands of km in swimming and lived a highly disciplined life, continues to be an inspiration for all of us, especially little swimmers.
