Martin Strel, the Slovenian ultramarathon swimmer, recently completed another remarkable feat by having swum the greatest distance – almost 4,200 kilometres of the longest and most majestic Asian river, the Yangtze. Martin Strel returned to Slovenia on 4 August and at 6 p.m. on 5 August he met up with his loyal supporters during a Sport in the City event held in Aleja mladih (the Avenue of the Young) in BTC City.
After 50 days of uninterrupted swimming, Martin Strel can pin another trophy on his wall, having defeated the Yangtze, Asia’s longest river, and completed another outstanding world swimming accomplishment, as well as having broken his own Guinness world record in ultramarathon swimming. Throughout his journey down the river, Strel was accompanied by a full support team that attended to his every need, while ensuring the uninterrupted flow of events and safety. The Yangtze, or the Blue River as the Chinese call it, rises in Tibet to become the longest river in Asia (6,300 kilometres), running through 10 Asian provinces and flowing east to the East China Sea near Shanghai. Martin Strel overcame all of the traps of the Yangtze, again proving himself the world’s best ultramarathon swimmer.
Strel’s achievement would have been impossible without his benefactors, again offering their kind support and helping him to realise his dream. The BTC company, one of Martin’s main sponsors and long-standing patrons of his outstanding achievements, prepared a warm and welcoming reception at 18.00 on Thursday, 5 August for Martin and his loyal team on the Avenue of the Young in BTC City. BTC management representatives had many surprises up their sleeves, including symbolically conferring the brochure of the lost continent and water city Atlantis on Martin, which was merely one of the many surprises to come.
Martin took a photo with 10 visitors who were presented with a T-shirt, bearing his autograph, while all supporters and followers of the great Slovenian ultramarathon swimmer were entertained by the remarkable Trkaj, who had prepared another wonderful surprise for Martin. Strel’s new personal and world record and safe return home was also commemorated by an exhibition of photos of the Yangtze adventure that opened on Wednesday, 4 August 2004 at Hall A in BTC City.
BTC continues to celebrate its 50th anniversary. On Friday, 13 August a Festival of 50-Year-Olds will be organised by BTC and Nedeljski dnevnik, a weekly newspaper, on the Avenue of the Young in BTC City. Over 300 50-year-olds have already entered the Festival, during which all participants will be presented with honourable memorial medals to commemorate this significant event. The Festival of 50-Year-Olds, to be hosted and moderated by the memorable Tone Fornezzi-Tof, an indispensable member of Nedeljski dnevnik, will feature a range of sports activities and a compelling and entertaining programme.
For more information:
Marketing and Public Relations Department BTC plc
Šmartinska 152
SI – 1533 Ljubljana
Phone: 01 585 13 19
Fax: 01 585 13 76
e-mail: maja.oven@btc.si
