Serbia swam for the Epiphany Cross: Women dominated the race through ice cold water (PHOTO) (VIDEO)
On this day, since ancient times, we swim for the honorable cross
Young water polo player Djordje Miletic from Cuprija was the first one to swim to the Epiphany Cross on the competition held on Great Morava in Cuprija.
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Deputy Mayor of Cuprija, Ilija Paunovic, gave Miletic the gold coin as a gift of the municipality.
The cross was lovered into Morafa from the Great Bridge and 33 competitors from Cuprija and Paracin participated in the competition.
Miletic is 17 years old and he is a member of Water polo club from Paracin.
A liturgy and a prayer were held in the local church before the competition.
115 swimmers in Cacak, three among them were girls, and Andjelko Kovacevic swam to the cross in Morava, he was the last year's winner, according to the ozonpress.net.
Around 2.000 people watched the entire event. The organization was raised to the significantly higher level this year. StagePro raised the stands for around 1.500 visitors and the swimmers reached the plateau over the bridge.
The entire event had a humane character. The activists of the Red Cross gathered money for families in Cacak who were socially endangered, while they held blood donations in the premises of the city stadium from 10 am to 15 pm for the Cacak hospitals.
The Epiphany Academy will be organized tonight at 7 pm in the Cultural Center where all swimmers and winner of the race will be presented. The art program will be performed by students of the Gymnasium, cultural and artistic society Dule Milosavljevic Zele, and Biljana Krstic and her ensemble Bistrik will also perform.
A woman was the first to reach the cross in Prokuplje this year, which is also the first time a female participant ever competed in this city.
Swimming was also organized on Morava in Trstenik and the winner was Marko Milicevic from Trstenik for the third time.
- Now I have three crosses in my collection, I will leave the honorable cross to others next year - Marko said to Tanjug, who swam with around 30 other competitors.
Church of Holy Trinity from Trstenik was the organizer of the fifth Epiphany swimming, and the municipality Trstenik helped to organize the swimming.
Radomir Milunovic, Assistant to the President of the Municipality of Trstenik, told Tanjug that the goal is to hold the Epiphany swimming every year.
- This is what keeps us going because we descend on the river and then we spiritually and sportily organize the Epiphany swimming. I would like to thank the Church Municipality Trstenik because they took part in the organization of the event - Milutinovic said.
One of the participants of the swimming for Honorable Cross, Aleksandar Andjelkovic from Novi Sad, after getting out of the city lake near Cultural Center of Zrenjanin, proposed to his girlfriend!
He placed an engagement ring on the finger of his girlfriend Jelena Stuparski, also from Novi Sad, in front of the many witnesses.
Traditional swimming for the Cross was held today in Sremska Kamenica on the coast of Danube near the stadium "Fruskogorac", and eighteen-year-old Aleksa Bobar reached the cross.
Bobar said that this was his first time swimming for the Honorable Cross and that he is very happy because he reached it first.
- My basic goal was to swim for the cross, and the victory is just a bonus. It was cold at first, but it became wormer because of the adrenalin, and much easier afterward - Aleksa said, who is a member of the senior swimming national team of Serbia.
Bojana Lalic also swam for the honorable Cross, and she was one of the five women who stood side by side with the men.
- At first, I thought it will be easy, I was nervous at the start. When I jumped in the water the first swing was the hardest, and then everything went well - Bojana said.
Liturgy was held in the monastery of the Birth of Holy mother of God before the competition itself, and 140 swimmers participated in the event. The cross, which was 33 meters away from the starting position, was placed in the water by a member of the city council for youth and sport, Ognjen Cvijeticanin.
It is interesting that there were those who couldn't swim among the applicants, and one of them jumped into the water, proving that tradition sometimes has to be stronger than fear.
Epiphany is a Christian holiday marking the baptism of Christ on the Jordan River and God appearing in the form of a pigeon with the words: "This is my son and listen to him."
Marija Stosic, a student of Faculty of Sport and Physical Education, was the fastest in swimming for an honorary cross on the South Morava in Vladicin Han.
Marija was the only woman who jumped into Moravia and swam for the cross, along with thirty men, Haninfo writes.
This is the second year in a row that swimming is being organized on Morava on the Epiphany and the patron of the whole event is the municipality of Vladicin Han.
All the participants were at the liturgy this morning in the temple of Knez Lazar, and the procession was started on the streets of Vladicin Han to the sports center and Morava river where the swimming took place.
The bravest Belgraders swam today for the Holy Cross, on Ada Ciganlija besides other places, and the fastest among them was a twenty-one-year-old member of the military academy Sava Stankovic. Swimming took place on Zemun as well.