Swimming
Swimming non-stop around Ibiza? Germany's Nathalie Pohl just completed it!
Extreme swimmer Nathalie Pohl has already conquered the Oceans Seven and now she’s just become one of the first people to circumnavigate the Balearic island in a mammoth swim of just under 31 hours.
From the cold, rough waters of the Northern Channel between Ireland and Scotland, to the warm waters of Hawaii’s Molokaʻi Channel, German extreme swimmer Nathalie Pohl is no stranger to the world of open ocean swimming.
In September 2024, the 30-year-old became the first German woman to complete one the greatest challenges in swimming – the Oceans Seven. Swimming’s equivalent of mountaineering’s Seven Summits involves crossing seven of the world’s toughest straits, including the Strait of Gibraltar, for which she set women’s record time of 2h 53m.
Now, however, Pohl has done something no other swimmer has ever achieved before by swimming in a relay non-stop around Ibiza – a distance of more than 104.5km that took 30h 57m 49s to complete.
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Swimming around Ibiza: How it was done
Pohl and Donaldson cross the line as world-record holders
© Daniel Toni Jais/Red Bull Content Pool
Swimming with Scottish partner Andy Donaldson, the current record holder for the fastest ever Oceans Seven swims, the duo became the first swimmers to take on the challenge of circumnavigating the famous party island. Swimming as a relay team and alternating every two hours, the duo followed a strict set of rules to ensure that the challenge is recognised as an official world record.
Failure wasn't on their minds. “For me, challenge means pushing my limits and overcoming fears. It's precisely where things get uncomfortable that I grow – as an athlete and as a person,” said Pohl before embarking on the marathon feat.
“Circumnavigating Ibiza is a project that was unique in many ways. Thirty hours in the water means extreme physical strain, sleep deprivation, hunger and cold. At the same time, it’s a huge mental test to stay focused for so many hours. But that's precisely why it appealed to me: proving that with determination, team spirit, and passion, you can make the seemingly impossible possible.”
Pohl was shadowed by a support boat
© Daniel Toni Jais/Red Bull Content Pool
I'm overjoyed. Not only that we set a world record, but I'm also proud of the great team performance with Andy
For Nathalie, swimming is more than just sport. It's freedom, passion and a constant search for new adventures: "When I swim in the ocean, I feel at home. Every wave, every current challenges me, but that's exactly what makes me stronger - not just as an athlete, but also as a person."
They alternated swimming the 104.5km ultramarathon distance, becoming the first duo ever to achieve this feat. They raised over €150,000 for the DAVG hilft eV (German Association for the Promotion of Women's Rights). Even though it was very tough, as the two battled against currents and waves - especially toward the end - after their performance, Pohl said: "I'm overjoyed. Not only that we set a world record, but I'm also proud of the great team performance with Andy."
From the third quarter of the swim onward, they had to contend with extremely difficult conditions, Pohl added: "The high waves, the current, and, in my case, seasickness, took a toll on us. I don't even want to mention the sleep deprivation."
She was used to swimming at night and long distances in the open ocean, but pushing herself to the limit for almost a day and a half with only two-hour breaks each day was new and absolutely exhausting.
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Who is Nathalie Pohl?
Pohl and Donaldson in the water together
© Daniel Toni Jais/Red Bull Content Pool
Pohl’s journey into open-water swimming began in 2014, when, after years of swimming in a pool, she decided to try the open sea. “I always felt confined in the pool. With that first jump into the sea, I suddenly felt this freedom – I knew immediately that I had found my path,” she remembers.
Since then, Pohl has pushed herself to become one of the world’s best open-water swimmers and has been on incredible adventures around the globe as part of her Oceans Seven quest and other open-water quests. For example, whilst crossing the Molokaʻi Channel in Hawaii she swam through swarms of poisonous jellyfish, while during her swim of the Cook Strait separating New Zealand’s North and South Islands, an albatross tried to bite her and dolphins then accompanied her for hours.
“There's so much to discover, even when you're only surrounded by water. The ocean is full of life, and that's exactly what fascinates me,” said the native of Marburg, who’s also an avid ambassador for ocean conservation.
It was during her Cook Strait preparations when Pohl also met her Ibiza swimming partner, Andy Donaldson.
“We met in New Zealand. Back then, we were both waiting for good weather for the crossing of the Cook Strait – a leg of the Ocean's Seven,” she recalls. “All the swimmers train together in a bay beforehand and because the wait took almost five weeks, we eventually started talking. We got along well; Andy had also completed the Ocean's Seven. This is how the idea of tackling something together that would be almost impossible to achieve alone was born.
“Circumnavigating Ibiza seemed realistic to us. To work well together in the water, mutual trust is essential. We know each other well and see many things in a similar way. Our passion for extreme swimming brought us together. We're simply a good team and can motivate each other.”