A world association deleted all swims of Tsanko Tsankov.
In addition, WOWSA announced that no subsequent swim of his would be ratified, regardless of the conditions in which it was done.
That was reached after his swim on September 6 along the Danube River. Then the 37-year-old Tsankov announced that he had traveled 108,250 km from the Vidin village of Koshava to Kozloduy in 18 hours, 12 minutes and 32 seconds. without stopping or touching solid objects, which he says is a world record. However, the reality turned out to be quite different.
“With immediate effect, Mr. Tsanko Tsankov is permanently banned from future swim ratifications by WOWSA. This decision follows clear evidence of falsified GPS data from his attempt to swim the Danube River on September 6, 2024, which Mr. Tsankov and his team did not were able to examine or explain,” the world association said in a statement
WOWSA also pulled out a list of achievements and records that Tsanko Tsankov claimed to have made over the years, but which are not legitimate, but are either forgeries or exaggerations.
Here they are:
1. Swimming in Burgas Bay (world record)
Claim: Tsanko Tsankov is the first person to swim the Burgas Bay at a distance of about 44.7 km in 14:24:34
Problem: This is a local achievement with coverage in the Bulgarian media. This swim was done in a neoprene suit, which provides buoyancy and a thermal advantage. Official open water swimming records do not recognize wetsuit swimming for record purposes.
Reality: This swim is not certified by international open water organizations, making it primarily a local achievement certified by local authorities. .
2. 12-hour swimming in a pool (world record)
Claim: Tsankov claims to have broken the 12-hour swim record by swimming 50.6 km in a 50-meter pool on August 22, 2020, breaking Martin Strel’s 1996 record. Media claims “The record will be recognized by the International Swimming Federation (FINA), as specialized licensed equipment has been installed in the pool to track Tsankov’s touches every 100 meters.”
Problem: Slovenian Martin Strel claims he swam 43km in 1998, not 1996 when he did 41.2km, but Strel’s records are also self-declared and only locally recognized, but not and officially recognized by Guinness World Records (GWR) or other official governing bodies for open water swimming.
Reality: Guinness World Records do not have a 12-hour category. They only recognize 24-hour swimming in a men’s and women’s pool. This Tsankov swim has not been certified by international open water organizations, making it primarily a local achievement. FINA (now World Aquatics) does not recognize 12-hour pool swim records. The official GWR records for 24-hour swimming in a 50m pool are: men: 105.6km by Velko Rogosic (Hurr) in 2006; women: 96.4 km by Yulia Astashova (Russia) in 2011
3. Multiple National Champion
Claim: Tsankov is a multiple state champion of Bulgaria in nine individual swimming disciplines.
Reality: This claim is legitimate within Bulgaria and represents Tsankov’s competitive success at the national level. These are national titles and do not necessarily correlate with international recognition or world standards in open water swimming records.
4. No international ratification
Common problem: Tsankov’s claims of independent open water swimming records are not recognized by international organizations such as MSF, WOWSA or even Guinness World Records. His swims, especially those in wetsuits, are against the rules that govern official open water swimming world records. None of these swims are ratified by governing bodies that maintain the sport’s international standards.
Local focus: His achievements are mainly covered in the Bulgarian media and gain significant local support. They lack official recognition.
5. “World Ice Swimming Champion”.
Claim: Tsanko Tsankov calls himself “world champion in ice swimming”.
Problem: This is misleading because Tsankov won an age group category at an International Winter Swimming Association (IWSA) event, not the overall title.
Explanation: There are two main governing bodies for ice swimming: the International Winter Swimming Association (IWSA) and the International Ice Swimming Association (IISA). Each has different rules and recognition levels. Tsankov’s victory was based on an IWSA age group, but the World Champion title implies an IISA overall victory, which he did not achieve.
6. Gibraltar Swimming
Claim: Tsankov claims to have completed three of the Oceans Seven swims, including the Strait of Gibraltar
Problem: His swim off Gibraltar was in a wetsuit, which is against Oceans Seven rules.
Explanation: Oceans Seven is an open water challenge. You can swim in Gibraltar in a wetsuit as long as you like. But Tsankov’s Gibraltar swim in a wetsuit disqualified him from official recognition as part of the Oceans Seven. He continues to claim this achievement on platforms such as Instagram, where he calls himself “The Lord of Gibraltar”.
The wider problem involves Tsanko Tsankov’s pattern of exaggerating achievements, such as calling himself “World Ice Swimming Champion” and “Lord of Gibraltar”.
There is no internationally recognized record for the 12-hour pool swim category – only a self-proclaimed record by Martin Strel exists. Without verifiable international recognition or adherence to standard rules, Tsankov’s achievements remain of limited credibility and unrecognized by the global open water swimming community.