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Extreme athlete Paul Bieber: According to his own statements, he gained twelve kilograms, among other things, in order to be able to swim four ice miles this winter
Photo: Felix Kästle / dpa
Extreme swimmer Paul Bieber broke the German record for the most ice miles on Sunday in Lake Constance.
For the sixth time, the 38-year-old swam at least one mile with a maximum water temperature of five degrees, overtaking the previous record holder Bruno Dobelmann (five ice miles).
Bieber had already covered two of his ice miles in early 2021, the other three are from January and February of this year.
Bieber needed 36.03 minutes for the 1694 meter long distance and his sixth ice mile on Sunday in Wasserburg.
The average water temperature was 4.2 degrees – in bright sunshine.
As Bieber exited the water, he cheered and wrapped himself in a winter coat.
He now has to warm up for about an hour, so he assumes.
"For me personally, this is the most important record because it simply requires the most effort," said the extreme athlete.
"You keep going to your limits, which is very challenging for body and psyche." In order to be able to swim four ice miles this winter, he gained twelve kilograms, among other things.
Trained by the world record holder
Extreme swimmer Bieber had already broken the German record in distance ice swimming last year with 2210 meters in Lake Constance.
The Allgäu native is trained by world record holder Hamza Bakircioglu, who swam 3,450 meters in 2018 in the 4.1-degree cold Sonthofen quarry pond.
Bieber already has his sights set on the next records: Four ice miles within 24 hours would be a world record over the span of a day, 14 ice miles in total would be the world record for a single swimmer.
"I'd be interested in those," Bieber said.
An overview of the German ice mile records can be found on this website.
Bieber's latest ice mile was not noted there as of Sunday afternoon.
mbo/dpa
