Armenian Swimmer Makes History With 74-Kilometer Nonstop Swim Across Lake Sevan in 34 Hours

Armenian swimmer Hovhannes Gabrielyan has completed a 74-kilometer nonstop swim along the length of Lake Sevan, spending about 34 hours in the water in one of the most ambitious endurance swims ever attempted on Armenia’s largest lake.

Gabrielyan finished at Piruze Beach in Tsovagyugh, where friends and supporters were waiting for him. He was presented with a symbolic medal before being placed under medical supervision to recover from the prolonged physical effort.

His relatives said he was in good condition following the swim.

Gabrielyan’s achievement follows decades of long-distance swimming attempts on Lake Sevan, a high-altitude freshwater lake that sits about 1,900 meters, or 6,200 feet, above sea level. Cold water, altitude and rapidly changing weather can make extended swims particularly demanding.

One of the lake’s best-known endurance swims dates to 1990, when Igor Nersisyan spent nearly 16 hours swimming across Sevan. Reports from the time put his actual route at roughly 63 kilometers, while the straight-line distance between his starting and finishing points was about 45 kilometers. The swim was also used to draw attention to environmental problems facing the lake.

Armenian endurance swimmer Ashot Petrosyan later completed a series of increasingly long swims on Sevan. In 2008, he covered more than 55 kilometers in about 11 hours after earlier swims of 18, 25, 33 and 40 kilometers.

Gabrielyan had already come close to completing his own 74-kilometer challenge.

During an attempt in August 2025, he spent 23 hours and 37 minutes in the water before the swim was stopped for medical reasons. By then, he had covered about 52 kilometers in a straight line and approximately 68 kilometers based on his actual swimming route.

This time, he made it to the end.

The 74-kilometer swim took roughly a day and a half without interruption, surpassing the distances reported in several of Sevan’s best-documented endurance swims and marking a new milestone in the lake’s long-distance swimming history.

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