Alper Sunaçoğlu

Alper Sunacoglu is a 49-year-old open water swimmer from Turkey.

Open Water Swimming Highlights

• On 8 July 2022, he competed in the Open Competition at the 36 km Maratona del Golfo Capri-Napoli in Italy at the age of 49.
• He completed his first big marathon in December 2009, between Mersin and Kızkalesi Turkey. This 50 km cold water swim was done in a wetsuit in 12 hours 22 minutes. All his subsequent reported marathons were done without a wetsuit.
• He completed a 78 km (48.4 miles) marathon swim from Anamur District in Mersin Province, Turkey to Kyrenia Cyprus on 4-5 September 2010, in 26 hours 15 minutes under the auspices of the Turkey Swimming Federation without a shark cage. He broke the previous record of 43 hours 20 minutes set in 1973 by Ersin Aydin, an Honor Swimmer of the International Marathon Swimming Hall of Fame who swam in a shark cage.
• He completed a 30 km swim in the Bosphorus (Istanbul) from Sarıyer Pier to Üsküdar Maiden's Tower with the current on 23 April 2011 in 2 hours 35 minutes. He is believed to be the only swimmer to complete this swim.
• He completed a 60 km swim in the Dardanelles from the Lapseki District to the Karacaören district of Çanakkale on 29 October 2012 in 7 hours 12 minutes.
• On 12 October 2013 he attempted to swim/float 280 km between Turkey and Syria (the point to point distance is less than 140 km - but the swim course chosen was mostly along the coast). He started from the Turkish Mersin/Mezitli coast, swam parallel to the coast and was supposed to finish on the Syrian coast of Latakia. His swim was blocked by the Turkish Coast Guard and the maritime police off Samandağ when he was 15 km from Latakia. He ended on Iskenderun ARSUZ coast by swimming 18 km back. He swam between 05.00 in the morning and 24.00 in the night. Between 24.00 at night and 05.00 in the morning, he rested (and floated with any current) and feed on a inflatable boat with his feet in the water. Over the ~ 5 days his stage swim time was 106 hours of the 125 hours and 42 minutes (rest time 19 hours and 42 minutes).
• He completed a 25 km swim in the Gulf of Izmit in 3 hours and 40 minutes between Değirmendere and Sekapark Port on 21 September 2014.
• He completed a 46 km swim between Didim and Bodrum in the Aegean Sea in 9 hours and 16 minutes on 26 August 2016 he swam. He is believed to be the only swimmer to complete this swim.
• He completed a 95 km swim between Mersin and Silifke in 29 hours and 10 minutes on June 10 2021. He is believed to be the only swimmer to complete this swim.