HALKWEB- Turkey's first Turkish female ice swimmer, 6-time World Champion, Guinness World Record holder, inspirational speaker and ‘Beyond Limits’ Deniz Kayadelen, the author of the book, competed at the European Ice Swimming Championships not only against her rivals, but also against sleepless nights, the responsibility of motherhood and the limits of the body.
At the European Championships in Molveno, Italy, where 550 athletes participated, the races took place in 1°C freezing water. Kayadelen became the European Champion by winning two gold medals in two days in the 100 m Butterfly (age category) and 250 m Freestyle races. Kayadelen also won the gold medal in the 50 m Butterfly category on the second day of the championship. The champion athlete achieved a great success by making 3 out of 3 in the championship.
Deniz Kayadelen, who became the World Champion last year while pregnant, came to the top again this year as a fresh 5-month-old mother. Kayadelen, who struggled with sleepless nights, milking and breastfeeding, physical fatigue and mental pressure throughout the championship, became a great source of inspiration by competing in 1 degree water despite all these difficulties.
Kayadelen, who came to the championship with her daughter this time, presented the medals she won to her daughter. She dedicated her swim to all women, mothers and future generations.
Deniz Kayadelen, known for her approach that brings sports, work and life together, once again emphasized her strong message with her performance at Molveno:
“Miracles are waiting for you outside your comfort zone. Never underestimate yourself.”
Deniz Kayadelen, Turkey's First Turkish Female Ice Swimmer, Wins Double Gold at European Championships
She became a mother 5 months ago, emerged from 1°C cold water with medals pic.twitter.com/iXskw0NUPZ
- Halkweb (@Halkweb) February 5, 2026
“To show the power of Turkish women”
World record holder swimmer Deniz Kayadelen said in her statement after the medals she won: “As a new mother, my hands and feet froze in the minus one degree water outside. I swam all my strokes for you to show the power of Turkish women and to inspire new generations. Being a new mother gave me a different strength and motivation. I will continue to represent Turkey all over the world. Bakırköy Ataspor, named after our founding leader Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, continue to create miracles beyond limits for all Turkish people, for all mothers. I will continue to create my own miracles and inspire new generations as long as I can. I would like to extend my endless thanks to all my supporters. Tomorrow I have the 50-meter butterfly and 100-meter freestyle races and my goal there is to win a gold medal. I dedicate all the medals I won to my daughter.”.
Medal Record Holder Club: Ataspor
In 1997, Sait Babaoğlu, the founding president of Bakırköy Ataspor, the first club founded in Turkey with Atatük's name, and currently serving as the president, made evaluations to HALKWEB about Deniz Kayadelen's success.
“In the history of Turkish sports, we are one of the clubs that have brought medals to Turkey in world championships. With the last two gold medals won by Kayadelen, we have reached 22 gold medals and 77 medals in total.”.
Bakırköy Municipality evicted the club's office!
‘Noting that as the ’Ataspor“ community, it is an obligation for them to work harder and do the best, not the best, Babaoğlu responded to our question ”What kind of support does Bakırköy Municipality give to your club?" by stating that he was very upset about this issue:
“Unfortunately, I cannot say anything about this because they have nothing to say. I think the Bakırköy they manage and the Bakırköy we live in are different! Because they also evacuated the 30 meters of office space used by our club.”
Babaoğlu stated that with these medals, the number of gold medals won by Kayadelen in European and World Championships reached 8 and said, ’Deniz Kayadelen is the pride not only of our club but also of Turkey.“.