Romania ranked first in the nations standings at the European Open Ice Swimming Championships held in Molveno, Italy, winning a total of 19 medals, including six gold, seven silver and six bronze, and will host the World Championships next year, according to the organisers, the International Ice Swimming Association.

President of the national Ice Swimming and Open Water association (ISOWR) Paul Georgescu told AGERPRES that more than 1,000 swimmers from around the world are expected to participate in the event to be held in Oradea at the beginning of 2027.

'It will be a great show. Oradea was chosen because in 2024 we organised the first European championships and the feedback from everyone was outstanding. I hope we will live up to the competitors' expectations,' said the ISOWR president.

The Molveno competition brought together more than 500 participants from almost 35 countries. Romania was represented by 26 athletes, 12 elite and 14 masters aged over 25, including swimmers who competed for the first time in water with a temperature close to zero degrees Celsius.

Photo credit: Luisiana BIGEA / AGERPRES Photo

'It was an unforgettable experience. I feel extraordinary. I am grateful that I could be here. It was both hard and easy. In the 100m breaststroke the water felt warmer than in the 50m breaststroke. In the 4x250m freestyle relay I froze, but after seeing the result we achieved, I warmed up,' said 19-year-old Paula Boleacu at the end of the competition.

She is a 12th-grade student at a high school in Suceava, a swimming instructor and is preparing for university admission. In Molveno, she won a silver medal in the 50m breaststroke and another silver with the 4x250m freestyle relay.

Photo credit: Luisiana BIGEA / AGERPRES Photo

'I did not expect to win these medals. I took two mock baccalaureate exams and it went quite well, with a fairly high average. Some teachers at school support me, others do not know what I am doing. My friends know about my training, as does my form teacher. I try to do my homework as quickly as I can and swimming helps me relax,' Boleacu said.

Among the athletes who climbed the podium most often at the closing awards ceremony was Vladimir Romaniuc from Tulcea, aged 20, currently a student in Bucharest.

Photo credit: Luisiana BIGEA / AGERPRES Photo

'It was a competition that showed me that it is possible. I have been participating in such events for three years and this one proved that I can do more and that the work I put in pays off. What matters most in competition is the work done behind the scenes, but also the mental side. I think that makes the difference in the water,' said Romaniuc, European champion in the 50m and 100m breaststroke.

In Molveno, he defeated Adrian Nae from Pitesti, holder of the world records in the same events recognised by the Guinness World Records, but he does not see him as a rival, instead describing him as a friend who helps him achieve his 'best possible self'.

'Last year, when I was in Molveno, I did not expect to achieve such performances and world records, and after a lot of work I had to take a recovery break. That is why I did not have preparation as consistent as before, but I am very happy that I shared the podium with my colleague Vladimir and that I reached the podium in the 50m breaststroke. I am extremely happy for myself that I managed to complete the podium and very happy for Romania and for Vladimir that he kept the bar high,' said Adrian Nae.

Photo credit: Luisiana BIGEA / AGERPRES Photo

In addition to the athletes who scored points for Romania in the overall standings, competitors aged over 25 also won medals, many of them swimming instructors or coaches. For Cezar Moscaliuc, a former performance swimmer and founder of the Ice Swimming Suceava club, the Molveno competition was a double challenge, both as an athlete and as a coach.

'The water was very cold on the first day. In the 100m backstroke, around the 80-metre mark I swallowed some water and told myself I had never eaten ice cream that cold,' said Moscaliuc.

Photo credit: Luisiana BIGEA / AGERPRES Photo

'The biggest challenge is to compete and be a coach at the same time. As an athlete, I need time alone to focus so that my result is competitive and, why not, to bring home a medal as an example for the other children. At the same time, my athletes need my energy just as much, so I only competed in the first three days and won two silver medals and one bronze,' he added.

Romania hosted the first European Ice Swimming Championships ever organized by IISA in 2024, when it won nine medals. AGERPRES (RO - writing by: Luisiana Bigea; EN - writing by: Adina Panaitescu)