Editing Martin Strel

{{short description|Slovenian swimmer}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2022}}
{{Infobox person
| honorific_prefix   = 
| name               = Martin Strel
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| image              = Martin Strel-Big River man, World-Renowned Marathon Swimmer.jpg
| alt                = 
| caption            = Martin Strel-Big River Man
| birth_name         = 
| birth_date         = {{birth date and age|1954|10|1|df=y}}
| birth_place        = [[Mokronog-Trebelno|Mokronog]], [[SR Slovenia]], [[SFR Yugoslavia]] (Now [[Slovenia]])
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| monuments          = 
| nationality        = [[Slovenia|Slovene]]
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| occupation         = [[long-distance swimming|long-distance swimmer]]
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| known_for          = Swam world's biggest rivers, holder of 4 Guinness World Records
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| website            = [http://www.martinstrel.com  www.martinstrel.com ]
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}}
{{Verification|date=August 2024}}
'''Martin Strel''' ({{audio|Sl-Martin Strel.oga|listen}}; born 1 October 1954), is a [[Slovenia]]n [[long-distance swimming|long-distance swimmer]], one of the most elite endurance athletes<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.bookdepository.com/Man-Who-Swam-Amazon-Matthew-Mohlke/9781599213583|title=Man Who Swam the Amazon : Matthew Mohlke : 9781599213583|last=Depository|first=Book|website=www.bookdepository.com|access-date=2016-11-26}}</ref> best known for swimming the entire length of various rivers. Strel holds successive [[Guinness World Records]] for swimming the [[Danube]] river, the [[Mississippi River]], the [[Yangtze River]], and the [[Amazon River]].<ref>{{cite news|url=https://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory?id=2864229 |title=Blistering sun main threat so far for Amazon swimmer |publisher=[[ABC News (United States)|ABC News]] |author=Pav Jordan |date=February 9, 2007 |access-date=2007-04-09 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080407073016/https://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory?id=2864229 |archive-date=April 7, 2008 }}</ref> His motto is "swimming for peace, friendship and clean waters."<ref name=yahooJan192006 />

== Swimming history ==
Strel was born in the town of [[Mokronog-Trebelno|Mokronog]], in the [[Slovenia]]n region of [[Lower Carniola]], then part of the [[Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia]]. 
Strel's first two river swims were the [[Krka (Slovenia)|Krka]] river (105&nbsp;kilometres) in his homeland, in 28 hours in 1992, and the boundary [[Kupa (river)|Kolpa]] river ({{convert|62|km|abbr=on}}), in 16 hours in 1993. In 2000, he swam the [[Danube River]] ({{convert|2860|km|abbr=on}}) and achieved the world long distance swimming record ({{convert|3004|km}}) in 58 days. In July 2001, he achieved one more world record — {{convert|504.5|km}} of non-stop swimming in Danube within 84 hours and 10 minutes. He lost 40 pounds of weight.

In 2002, he swam the entire [[Mississippi River]] ({{convert|3885|km|abbr=on}}) in 68 days. In 2003, he swam the Argentine [[Paraná River]] ({{convert|3998|km}}). On 10 June 2004, Martin started swimming down the [[Yangtze River]] ({{convert|4003|km|abbr=on}}, the longest river in Asia, the third longest in the world) in [[China]]. He reached [[Shanghai]] in 40 days on 30 July 2004, one day before planned.

Strel swam the [[Amazon River]], commencing on 1 February 2007,<ref name=yahooJan192006>{{cite news
 |url=https://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20070119/od_uk_nm/oukoe_uk_swimmer_amazon 
 |title=Buckets of blood readied for Amazon swim 
 |publisher=[[Yahoo! News]] 
 |author=Andrei Khalip 
 |date=January 19, 2007 
 |access-date=2007-01-20 
 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070126072245/http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20070119/od_uk_nm/oukoe_uk_swimmer_amazon 
 |archive-date=January 26, 2007 
 |url-status=dead 
}}</ref> finishing 66 days later on 7 April 2007.<ref>{{cite news
|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/6536283.stm
|title=Slovenian completes Amazon swim
|work=[[BBC News]]
|date=7 April 2007
|access-date=2007-04-09}}</ref> This was a record-breaking distance of {{convert|5268|km|abbr=on}},<ref>{{cite web|title=Longest journey swim|url=http://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/world-records/2000/longest-journey-swimming|publisher=Guinness World Records|access-date=1 March 2014}}</ref> longer than the width of the [[Atlantic Ocean]]. He had escort boats that were prepared to pour blood into the river to distract meat-eating fish such as [[piranha]]s.<ref>{{cite video
|people=John Maringouin (director)
|title=Big River Man
|date=2009 }}</ref>

In 2007, the [[Nile]] had been proposed as his next river, but Strel said, "I am not going to do the Nile. It's long but not challenging enough, it is just a small creek. The Amazon is much more mighty."<ref>{{cite news
|last=Muello
|first=Peter
|title=Man Swims 3,272-Mile Amazon in 65 Days
|publisher=Associated Press
|date=April 7, 2007
|url=http://news.aol.com/topnews/articles/_a/man-swims-3272-mile-amazon-in-65-days/20070407161709990001?ncid=NWS00010000000001}}</ref>

He plans to swim across [[Lake Arenal]] on 29 September 2010 as part of his visit to an environmentalist international film festival in [[Costa Rica]]. He plans to swim about 6 kilometres from shore and then back to his starting point.<ref>{{cite news |title=Reconocido ambientalista esloveno nadará en el lago Arenal |first=Pablo |last=Fonseca |language=es |newspaper=La Nación |date=27 September 2010 |url=http://www.nacion.com/2010-09-27/AldeaGlobal/UltimaHora/AldeaGlobal2537040.aspx |location=San José, Costa Rica |trans-title=Renowned Slovenian environmentalist will swim in Lake Arenal}}</ref>

In June 2011 Strel completed his Colorado River Swim challenge for the documentary ''[[Stan Lee's Superhumans]]'' More about the swim can be found at: [http://grandcanyonswim.com Colorado Swim 2011].

Achievements by year:
*2008: Sognefjord, Norway; Loch Ness, UK
*2009: Doha, Qatar; River Thames, UK; River Cam, UK
*2010: Grand Canyon, Arizona, US; Lake Mead, Nevada/Arizona, US
*2011: Lake Ontario, Canada; Lake Simcoe, Canada; Lake Arenal, Costa Rica; San Juan River, Costa Rica
*2012: Saguaro Lake, Arizona, US; Canyon Lake, Arizona, US; Apache Lake, Arizona, US Theodore Roosevelt Lake, Arizona, US
*2013: Lake Powell, Arizona/Utah, US; Robben Island, South Africa
*2014: Bondi Beach, Australia; Shelly Beach, Australia
*2015: Lake Pleasant, Arizona, US; Tennessee River, Tennessee, US
*2016: Rocky Point, Mexico; Alkhobar (Saudi Arabia) – Manamma (Bahrain)
*2017: Manhattan, New York, US; Lake Wörth, Austria
*2018: Alcatraz – Golden Gate Bridge, US
*2019: Farallon Islands, California, US
*2020: San Diego River, California, US
*2021: Mura River, Slovenia

== ''Big River Man'' ==
Strel was the subject and star of a feature documentary entitled ''[[Big River Man]]'' directed by the acclaimed art-house director [[John Maringouin]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://documentarystorm.com/around-the-world/big-river-man/ |title=Big River Man &#124; DocumentaryStorm |access-date=2010-06-14 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100618145323/http://documentarystorm.com/around-the-world/big-river-man/ |archive-date=2010-06-18 }}</ref> The film, which won the "World Cinema Cinematography Award: Documentary" at the 2009 [[Sundance Film Festival]],<ref name="Ward 2009 h803">{{cite web | last=Ward | first=Ben | title=2009 Sundance Film Festival Announces Awards | website=sundance.org - sundance.org | date=January 24, 2009 | url=https://www.sundance.org/blogs/news/2009_sundance_film_festival_announces_awards/ | access-date=February 7, 2024}}</ref> was critically praised for its blend of comedy and drama.{{Citation needed|date=September 2009}} The film chronicled Strel's 3,300 mile historic swim of the [[Amazon River]].

== ''Strel Swimming Adventures'' ==
In 2010, Martin Strel and his son Borut Strel founded a company that offers [https://web.archive.org/web/20110112232632/http://www.strelswimming.com/ swimming adventure holidays] in the Mediterranean and at Lake Powell, Arizona. They currently offer swimming adventure holiday tours at [[Lake Powell]], Arizona, in Slovenia ([[Lake Bled]], [[Lake Bohinj]], and the [[Soča]] River), on [[Croatia]]'s [[Dalmatia|Dalmatian coast]] swimming from island to island, in [[Montenegro]] exploring [[Adriatic]] fjords and coves, and cruising [[Mediterranean]] [[Turkey]]. Strel takes part in some trips.

== Global Center for Advanced Studies ==
In 2013, Martin Strel joined the faculty of The Global Center for Advanced Studies in its newly formed Institute of Adventure Studies.

==References==
{{Reflist|2}}

==External links==
*[http://www.martinstrel.com Strel's official site]
*[http://www.amazonswim.com The Amazon Swim Project site]
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20110112232632/http://www.strelswimming.com/ Strel Swimming Adventure Holidays site]
*[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/talking_point/6389845.stm Diary of Amazon swim at BBC news]

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Strel, Martin}}
[[Category:1954 births]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:Male long-distance swimmers]]
[[Category:Slovenian male swimmers]]
[[Category:People from the Municipality of Mokronog-Trebelno]]
[[Category:20th-century Slovenian people]]
[[Category:21st-century Slovenian people]]