Andreas Waschburger successfully crosses the Cook Strait in New Zealand
Tonight, Andreas Waschburger successfully swam across the Cook Strait. The extreme swimmer tackled the infamous channel between New Zealand’s North and South Islands in a time of 5 hours, 13 minutes and 57 seconds. The islands are 22 km apart at the closest point, but Waschburger swam 24.6 km due to currents.
He set out from South Island on Tuesday morning (25 March 2025) at around 10:45 a.m. local time, under the watchful eye of renowned skipper Philip Rush. ‘Waschi’ had already spent a week hoping in vain to get going, and this was his last possible start date. Sadly, the currents and various tides today made it impossible for Waschburger to achieve a world record. Andrew Donaldson’s world record (4 hours, 33 minutes, 50 seconds) therefore still stands. Despite the challenging conditions, especially the strong currents and a water temperature of 15-16 degrees, Waschburger was able to show impressive form and overcome the forces of nature.
The currents in the last 5 km in particular made things very difficult. I felt like I was swimming on the spot. It stretched out like chewing gum, and for a short time I was worried that I would be defeated here, like other swimmers before me. I am therefore incredibly happy to have made it. I had fantastic support from my team!
Andreas Waschburger
Crossing the Cook Strait is the third part of Waschburger’s Ocean’s Seven project. After his successful world records in the English Channel and the Moloka’i Channel in Hawaii, ‘Waschi’ is therefore continuing his impressive streak of open water swimming. This achievement puts Waschburger one big step closer to his goal of completing the Ocean’s Seven.
Boris Röder, Head of Corporate Communications at URSAPHARM Arzneimittel GmbH, also appreciates Andreas Waschburger’s exceptional performance:
We are very proud of Waschi and another phenomenal performance. Once again, he has shown what humans can achieve with the necessary willpower and perseverance. We are looking forward to further adventures with Waschi and will of course be continuing to support him.
Background: The Ocean’s Seven is the biggest challenge in open water swimming and consists of seven of the hardest channel swims in the world. As well as the Cook Strait, these include the English Channel, the Moloka’i Channel and the Tsugaru Strait in Japan. The Cook Strait was named after British explorer and sailor James Cook. Strong currents, storms and sharks are particular dangers. Only around ten attempts are made to swim across it each year.