Nine days left for the first ever Amazon swim attempt

January 23rd, 2007

Martin Strel, a world record-setting swimmer, will attempt next February 1st to swim the entire Amazon river, from its source in Atalaya, Peru, to Belem, Brazil, where it spills into the Atlantic.

A demanding enterprise that not only defies the river’s 3375 miles (5430 km), but also the many perils Strel will find along the way: piranhas, anacondas, crocodiles, and a wide range of parasites that could well infect him with malaria, dengue fever, cholera, yellow fever, river blindness and elephantiasis.

Strel, though, is not new to demanding challenges. He holds the honour of being the first and only person to swim the Danube, the Mississippi, and the Yangtze rivers. However, none of these were fertile area for infectious diseases nor home to crocodiles and other predators.

But as he swims, cameras and monitors will be attached to him, allowing doctors to track his moves and treat his medical ailments. Indeed, an Amazon Virtual Medical Team, consisting of volunteers from around the world, will provide health care services using telemedicine and advance technologies 24/7 for the duration of the trip to the swim team.

So why id he doing it? Strel has a variety of reasons, which are summed up as follows:

I have always been looking for the challenges of impossible and the Amazon is going to be the next one. I have previously completed all of my swims, among them the Danube, the Yangtze, the Paraná and the Mississippi River, so I am convinced I will complete my next and most challenging one. I have been swimming for years under slogan ’swimming for peace, friendship and clean waters’ and I decided to dedicate the Amazon Swim to the preservation of the Rainforest as well as to finding the cure for Alzheimer’s disease and other neurodegenerative disorders that affect the brain of millions of people.

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