Braving the icy waters, participants across Serbia embraced tradition in the annual Swim for the Holy Cross, marking a major event in the Orthodox Christian calendar. The eleventh swimming event at Staro Jezero, near the city center of Kikinda, gathered 47 men and women who demonstrated courage and faith.
The swimmers crossed a course 33 meters long, symbolizing the 33 years of Jesus Christ's life.
The swimming for the Holy Cross, in which there are no winners, is organized by the Royal Order of Knights, with the support of the City Assembly, the City Municipality of Stari Grad, the Public Enterprise Belgrade Fortress, the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the Gendarmerie, and the Special Anti-Terrorist Unit, under the patronage of Lynda Karađorđević.
Before the swimming began, participants attended a liturgy at the Church of Ružica and received the blessing of the water. A procession then moved towards the swimming location, where a cultural, artistic, and sports knightly program was organized. "After the knightly swimming event, discussions were held with the swimmers and organizers," reported Večernje Novosti.
Aleksandar Puača, the Deputy Mayor of the City Municipality of Stari Grad, emphasized the unifying nature of the holiday. "It is an honor to be here among the knights of today. Cold weather did not deter us, as in previous years, and this holiday unites us around the Holy Cross," Puača said, according to Večernje Novosti.
According to Kurir, 18-year-old Veljko Karanović from Kikinda was the first to swim to the Epiphany Cross at Staro Jezero. "The water was cold, but the feeling is special, especially when I swam to the Epiphany Cross. This was my first participation, and I heartily recommend it to others," Karanović said. A student at the Technical School Mihajlo Pupin and a swimmer for the club Velika Kikinda, Karanović exemplified the spirit of the event.
Three women also entered the cold water, just a few degrees above zero: Jovana Todorov, who had participated in previous years, and first-time swimmers Maja Telečki and Radojka Đurđev. "I am a member of the Diving Club Orka, but also a swimming coach at Velika Kikinda. I had a special motivation, which was to overcome my fear of murky water. Since the water is holy today, I had the courage to face myself and overcome my fear. The feeling is extraordinary," Telečki told Kurir.
Radojka Đurđev participated with the support of her husband and son. "Željko and Jovan participated last year and announced my participation. Here, the promise is fulfilled. The Đurđev family plans to participate in the swimming for the Holy Cross next year in even greater numbers," she said.
In Banatski Veliko Selo, 37-year-old economist and former national representative in carp fishing, Branko Ugrinić, carried the Holy Cross out of the cold water. Ugrinić dedicated the Holy Cross, a symbol of faith and Christianity, to his sister, who died a few years ago in a traffic accident near Subotica.
Participants were required to meet certain conditions before entering the cold water, including being at least 18 years old and undergoing a medical examination. Dr. Tamara Urošević, a cardiologist, provided detailed information about the requirements. "Participants who are interested must undergo a cardiological examination before swimming. The cardiologist will listen to them, perform an EKG, to determine if they are hemodynamically stable, if they have arrhythmias, what their pulse is, whether it is accelerated or slowed, we will measure blood pressure, and if necessary, we will perform an ultrasound of the heart. In addition, they need to do basic laboratory analyses from blood," she told B92.
Dr. Urošević also advised on the importance of preparation before entering the cold water. "Therefore, it is most important that before jumping into the water, they warm up their muscles," she stated. She emphasized the physiological responses to cold water immersion: "Considering that now the temperature difference between the water and the air is not great, this is good for our competitors, so from that side we do not have a large difference. However, it is also a matter of body temperature, so it is necessary that before the race, participants adapt to the cold air, that just before the race they get wet, so the body feels the cold water."
The tradition of swimming for the Holy Cross is associated with the Epiphany and the baptism of Jesus Christ, as well as the day dedicated to Saint John the Baptist, who baptized Him in the River Jordan. "The Feast of the Cross is celebrated in memory of the believers who were the first to accept Christianity," noted Večernje Novosti.
Zoran Mrđenović, the president of the Royal Order of Knights, recalled that the association renewed the tradition of swimming for the Holy Cross on the Feast of the Cross in 1999.
In another event, fourteen-year-old participant Nemanja Milošević swam for the fifth time and expressed his commitment to continue in the coming years. "I feel wonderful. The support of the knights and policemen means a lot to me, and when I jumped into the water, I felt that with God's help, everything is possible," Milošević shared with Večernje Novosti.
The first to reach the Holy Cross in one of the events was Dragan Milošević, a member of the Security Service of the Correctional Institution in Belgrade (Padinska Skela), as reported by Večernje Novosti.
This article was written in collaboration with generative AI company Alchemiq