Makronissos Beach, Sunday 21 January 2024
The organisation of our first festival was, by all accounts, a great success! … with 200 registered swimmers!
Some overall numbers:
It was a somewhat cloudy day, with an almost calm sea... a good day for winter swimmers... which was especially enjoyed by all 200! Participation was free and swimmers came from all over Cyprus, as one can see from the numbers above.
The festival was declared open by the Deputy Minister of Tourism, Mr. Kostas Koumis.
The beach of Makronissos was transformed with inflatable fish (which in the end were distributed to the children) and the entrance with an arch with balloons. The various areas were separated, and the following kiosks operated: one that sold sea swimming equipment, another where lifeguards showed what one should do in case of an accident, and others offered coffee, food, soup and drinks (zivania, offered by LOEL), there special areas for the Tai Chi class, the Beach Volleyball exhibition, a space for children.
At 10.00 the registration of swimmers started and the kiosk with coffee and savoury opened.
Between 10.15 – 10.45 Savvas Adamou taught a Tai Chi class... with over 30 participants!!
At 11.00 the swimmers entered the sea all together laughing and shouting. The most courageous stayed for the whole of 30 minutes! Coming out of the sea, a cup of hot trahana soup was waiting for them!
Since the morning, Georgia Leva has been looking after children playing games. In the area there was also a banner with fish from the seabed where everyone stood in front of and had their photo taken.
The presenter of the event was the excellent Sofia Tsantila, who welcomed the Deputy Minister of Tourism, the Mayor of Ayia Napa Mr. Christos Zannettos, the Mayor of Deryneia Mr. Andros Karagiannis and all the attendees. Afterwards, Andreas Larkou, President of the ANWS Club, welcomed the swimmers friends on behalf of the Club. In his speech, the Mayor referred to the fact that many communities around the world have embraced winter swimming as a social activity, that his and the Municiality’s response were immediate, offering both services and man power, because he believes that such an initiative contributes positively to the promotion of Ayia Napa as a year-round tourist destination. Finally, the Deputy Minister promised the support of his Deputy Ministry, saying that from next year the word 'International' will be added in order to open it to visitors outside our country.
Commemorative plaques were awarded to the youngest and ... the most mature!
The day closed with Maria Ioannou, a physiotherapist, giving a short speech on the benefits of winter swimming.
Four Beach Volleyball teams competed against each other to the great joy of adults and children.
It was a weekend full of fun, getting to know each other, ... and of course swimming. Our swimmer friends from Limassol and Paphos came from Saturday evening and spent the night at Limanaki Beach Hotel and Nelia Gardens Hotel. All together (123 people) we had fun at the Fish House restaurant with good food, good music, dancing
Our group has 67 members, mainly from the surrounding area, but also from Nicosia and others residing in the area.