After his feat of swimming non-stop from Calvi to Monaco, Noam Yaron reflects on this completely crazy adventure. He specifically discusses his most intense moment and the environmental impact worldwide.
Just over two weeks ago, Swiss swimmer Noam Yaron took on a crazy challenge: to cross the Mediterranean from Calvi to Monaco by swimming without coming out of the water. Unfortunately, for health reasons, he had to get back on the boat guiding him during his crossing just two kilometers from the finish. After several days in intensive care, Noam Yaron is regaining his sensations. He reflects on his achievement.
Despite your advanced equipment, you encountered a problem with saltwater. Was this something you had anticipated?
“Of course! It’s something I had already experienced during my first attempt of 103 km in 48 hours in 2024. I had already encountered chafing from the suit and the salt when coming out of the water. We worked notably with firecutters. This worked very well for me during the crossing. However, we did not expect the injuries to be so deep.
The only thing we could have improved on the logistical side was to designate a pocket at the back of the suit that could unzip to relieve myself in the water without having to remove the suit. It’s not glamorous, but it’s part of the game. Knowing that I wasn’t allowed to exit the water, removing the suit takes a lot of energy.
During your crossing, you had several episodes of hallucinations…
So yes, hallucinations are something I’ve already faced during my first attempt Calvi–Monaco. I had been swimming for 48 hours and 103 km. Hallucinations usually set in after 24 to 48 hours, and for me,
it was around 48 hours.
At first, it’s very light: the brain confuses for example my swim lane with a snake. Then, gradually, the entire reality transforms. For instance, I saw the boat as a castle, I imagined myself in a garden, I even saw myself out of the water. Several times I said to the team: “but we’re out of the water, we’re disqualified!” In the end, I thought it was over.
It took significant effort to understand what I was experiencing, see what I was seeing, and put myself back in the real environment: water, swimming. It was very complicated. At first, I was progressing quickly, but the hallucinations we anticipated were very intense and really slowed me down. There were moments when I swam less, asked questions, exhausted myself, had breathing difficulties, or even swallowed sea water. The currents and the wind made everything even more complicated.
The number one difficulty was really managing the hallucinations. I imagined being in China, Thailand, I felt like I was in a swamp and the swim lane around me was actually lily pads, I felt that when I touched the outside of my swim lane, I touched sand, and I saw shadows of distorted people like in Spirited Away passing in front of me. The crazy part is that I remember almost all the details: the discussions with the team, the breaks, the only thing I haven’t yet managed to fully recall is the exact sequence of days and nights, because to me, it wasn’t day and night: it was one long crossing, but I roughly remember everything.
You’ve learned to sleep while swimming. How did this come about?
I trained for it very little because I quickly became sensitive to hypnosis. I discovered that with a specialist, a former doctor who transitioned to Chinese medicine and is an internationally renowned expert. His mission is to train as many people as possible so that these techniques continue to be used, which is extremely useful for his patients.
Initially, he didn’t want to see me because he didn’t understand the mission of using hypnosis to push oneself, sleep, and swim longer. He wondered if it was sustainable for the body and performance. I told him: “listen, if one day you have a patient who cancels, I’ll come.” And that’s what happened. We immediately got along, and he told me that my ability to learn this technique was incredible.
By the end of the first session, I was able to hypnotize myself. Gradually, I realized that I could sleep while swimming. Initially, I wanted to train in hypnosis to sleep while swimming, not just lying on my back and closing my eyes, but truly sleeping and rejuvenating my body. This method allowed me to sleep while swimming , which was much more practical to keep moving forward and avoid being drifted by waves, winds, and currents during breaks.
Will there be one last attempt?
Why should I? The challenge was largely successful, even though I didn’t set foot in Monaco. I’m very happy with what we accomplished. I swam much more distance than planned. No human has ever swum as long in these conditions, both in terms of kilometers and hours.
To tell you, the Mediterranean reference is 140 kilometers, I did 50 kilometers more. Typically, the longest recorded swims in the world last between 50 and 60 hours, I swam 102 hours, almost double. It doesn’t make sense, at least to me, to pursue this adventure which, in my eyes, is more than successful, and that’s all that matters.
What are your future projects, whether another athletic challenge or on the environmental front?
There are several things on the agenda! The first is to produce a documentary. It will trace the athletic challenge but also talk about the environmental aspect. Next, I’d really like to write a book to share my feelings, my hallucinations, my preparation. Explain how an ordinary guy managed to achieve a performance that many consider superhuman.
Finally, the last project is to keep fighting for the environment. More specifically the Ocean, with a capital O, which represents all the waters of the world, including the Mediterranean. I’ve had the honor of being named ambassador of the international campaign Together Free Ocean, launched by billionaire and philanthropist Michael Bloomberg in the US. I’m very happy to be able to raise this topic internationally with more than 25 globally recognized organizations in the sector. The goal is to convince leaders and governments to achieve 30% ocean protection by 2030.
There’s also politics which might be a solution to have a concrete and real impact. And finally, at the end of September, from the 20th to the 30th, will take place our concrete action, which we’ve been leading for 4 years, the Waterlover Challenge. It involves collecting cigarette butts worldwide. Anyone can participate on our website. People can take photos of their collection and then we tally them. Last year, we collected more than a million cigarette butts in 10 days.
According to you, what was the most beautiful or intense moment of your crossing?
It was both at the same time! It happened during the first night. I was swimming peacefully, fully in control, without any hallucinations. Then, all of a sudden, I felt a big tap under my belly. I looked below and saw a tail. And then I thought, it’s a shark trying to taste me. That’s how sharks test their prey. I immediately stopped and alerted my team. And suddenly, out of nowhere, a baby dolphin appeared and did a few laps around me before leaving.
It scared me at first, but then it clearly became one of the most beautiful moments. And it allows us to talk about sharks. Many people fear them, but they are an extremely threatened species in the Mediterranean. It’s more about humans being dangerous to sharks than the other way around. They are important for the ecosystem, they have a role that must be highlighted to protect them.
What would you say today to the little boy you were who always finished last in swimming?
I would tell him to keep believing that nothing is impossible. The only limits we set are those in our heads, and no one can tell us what we’re capable of. You have to do it for yourself, not for others. You can champion causes dear to you through sports.
I’m greatly looking forward to continue to push the limits of what’s possible and defend this cause that is particularly dear to me. Water is a source of life that we absolutely need. I think this is not yet fully understood, and we need to truly reset our priorities. The Mediterranean is among the most polluted seas in the world and we absolutely need to protect it before it’s too late.”
