Ahead of his attempt to swim the 180 kilometres from Calvi to the Principality in 72 hours, Monaco Life’s Niki Borisova met with Swiss endurance swimmer Noam Yaron to learn about the motivations behind this incredible quest.
Next month, Noam Yaron, a 27-year-old endurance swimmer, will dive into the waters of the Mediterranean in Calvi, Corsica, and begin a long 180-kilometre swim to Monaco. He will be hoping to break the record for the route by completing the journey in roughly 72 hours, as well as raise awareness on an array of environmental issues.
“Water is a part of me as I’ve been swimming since I was eight years old,” says Yaron, who found his way into the sport following a childhood injury sustained during judo training. “I was terrible at swimming at first, to the point where my coach told me I shouldn’t continue, but that just pushed me to say that one day I will become national champion, quite a statement for a nine-year-old.”
Nine years later, Yaron fulfilled his dream and became a national champion at the age of 18. Since then, he has proved himself time and time again as a competent and confident endurance swimmer.
In 2021, he completed an approximately 80-kilometre swim across Lake Geneva, swam across the five largest lakes in Switzerland in 2022 and participated in one of the world’s biggest triathlon events in 2023, an event that covered more than 750 kilometres and 13,000m of elevation in just seven days.
Yaron’s next adventure, the Calvi to Monaco project, will be held during the month of August. He hopes to set a new record for the longest swim in a wetsuit without exiting the water, and he will also be swimming day and night in a bid to complete the swim in record time.
But this is more than a personal challenge, it is part of a broader campaign to raise awareness on environmental issues, particularly water preservation and biodiversity.
“The Mediterranean Sea is very close to my heart”
“For me, doing all these challenges is a way to actively spread awareness and collect funds to create an impact in the long term,” he shares. “The Mediterranean Sea is very close to my heart. [The location of] my very first challenge, Lake Geneva, is connected to the Mediterranean Sea through a river, which is well known to be very polluted. This creates a real link between my first and my upcoming challenge.”
The Mediterranean Sea is one of the most polluted seas in the world, and recent studies have indicated that only 0.23% of its waters are under significant protections (being fully or highly protected).
Yaron has aligned his swim with the EU Biodiversity Strategy for 2030, which aims to achieve these significant protections for at least 10% of the EU’s seas by the end of the decade, and he has partnered with the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).
“It’s very important for me to promote best practices to the general public so that we can avoid polluting these waters and have a more sustainable consumption of water and plastic, one of the most polluting objects related to humankind,” he explains.
He is also hoping to encourage authorities in this part of the Mediterranean to implement a speed limit for the shipping companies that traverse the waters of the Pelagos Sanctuary between France, Monaco, Italy and Corsica.
See more: Pelagos backs new course to help save ensnared cetaceans
“This would help the marine species as it would reduce the possibility of collision with these boats,” he says.
In preparation
With a start date set for 18th August, Yaron is currently in the midst of his preparations for the swim.
“For me, what is very important is understanding the environment I will be swimming in,” he tells Monaco Life, before explaining how he will be undertaking two “dress rehearsals” ahead of the challenge. For the first, he will try to swim between 12 and 24 hours with the goal of experiencing a day through night swim.
On top of the physical demands, the Calvi to Monaco swim will be Yaron’s first swimming challenge in the Mediterranean’s salty waters, a completely different environment to his previous lake-based swims.
“There are so many parameters that I need to consider,” he says.
Yaron’s advantage is that through his previous feats, he has built up incredible endurance, making his body capable of swimming through prolonged periods.
“This does give me confidence to complete this crossing,” he says.
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Regarding mental preparation, Yaron has a perhaps surprising take on the stresses of the challenge, saying, “Being stressed in the water keeps me awake.”
Environmental factors also play a big role in his preparation, as a suitable weather window, something Yaron didn’t need to prepare for before, must be found, and the motion of the currents must be favourable.
“Wind, of course, also plays a key role as it predicts the currents on the surface and potentially the next phase of waves,” he explains.
As such, the swim is scheduled for any time between 18th and 31st August, and he hopes to arrive at Le Meridien Beach Plaza in Monaco well before 3rd September.
He has a strong team behind him, people he has worked with before, and says, “It’s reassuring to know you are in good hands.”
Collective philanthropy
For this swim, and with future endeavours in mind, Yaron has launched an innovative fundraising website platform developed in collaboration with Ufoundation, a non-profit fintech company, that allows individuals to symbolically contribute to preserving the marine environment by purchasing sections of the 180,000 cubic meters along the swim route, thus becoming co-owners of the longest swim title. Each cubic meter, except the first and last, is available for a nominal fee, contributing to the broader goal of marine conservation.
“The goal is to gather people around the cause and to be a part of something big,” said Yaron.
After the swim, a group of experts will gather to evaluate a number of water conservation and biodiversity protection projects that are in need of funding. The “co-owners” of the swim will also have the opportunity to vote for their favourite project, and the winning project will receive the funds collected by Yaron’s supporters.
“What we are trying to build through this platform is collective philanthropy,” he says.
Looking ahead
He has already reached 15 million people through the website and its awareness campaign, saying, “It’s one of the most impactful and successful awareness campaigns using sports, and we see that it is confirming the method of communication.”
With a large social media following of more than 360,000 and a monthly reach of up to 6.4 million on Instagram alone, Yaron hopes to continue spreading awareness using his social media presence.
“Hopefully, I will also set a new challenge for 2026, with new funding, new ideas and new goals,” he reveals.
To find out more about Noam Yaron’s swim challenge and his goals for the project, click here.
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Pelagos Sanctuary goes digital with new immersive conservation experience
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Main photo credit: Noam Yaron Production / Nightcall Studio
