Andreas Waschburger
Andreas Waschburger from Saarbrücken has been among the world elite of open water swimming for the 5, 10 and 25 km distances for many years. With eighth place at the Olympic Games, countless European Championship medals, World Cup wins and a second place in the 2016 overall World Cup, ‘Waschi’ has swum his way into many Saarland locals’ hearts.
Waschi has recently begun a new chapter of his career by tackling the fresh challenges of extreme swimming. Since early 2023, he has set various new ice swimming world records and gained titles at the world and European championships. He has won two gold and two silver medals, most recently at the Ice Swimming World Championship in Molveno (Italy).
On 8 September 2023, Andreas Waschburger crossed the English Channel from Dover to Calais in a new world-record time of 6 hours, 45 minutes and 25 seconds, fulfilling a long-held dream. A year later on 6 October 2024, he set another world record on the Moloka’i Channel in Hawaii by completing the 44-kilometre stretch in 9 hours, 55 minutes and 10 seconds. However, this adventure is nowhere near over: the ‘Ocean’s Seven’ offers at least five more appealing challenges.
We are excited to see his next adventure.
Shortfacts
Playerscard
- Year of birth1987
- NicknameWaschi
- Height1.90 m
- Weight82 kg
- ProfessionPolice commissioner
- MottoNever give up!
Sporting successes
OCEAN’S SEVEN
THE ULTIMATE CHALLENGE IN LONG-DISTANCE SWIMMING
Follow the path of the Saarland swimmer through the seven most difficult ocean channels and get exclusive insights and news about the Ocean’s Seven.
MEDIA LIBRARY Andreas Waschburger
Andreas Waschburger FAQs
Andreas swam in his first competition at the age of six. He switched from the pool to open water in 2009.
Andreas Waschburger is happily married.
In the final years of his career, Andreas Waschburger is seeking to gain further successes at the highest levels of swimming. He is currently planning to tackle the new challenges thrown up by the Ocean’s Seven marathon swimming series.
‘Waschi’ currently holds three world records for ice swimming and has won numerous world and European championship titles in this discipline since 2023. He came eighth in the 10-kilometre distance at the Olympic Games in London at the age of 25, and a year later he won a bronze medal at the Universiade in Kazan. His greatest triumph so far was crossing the English Channel from Dover to Calais on 8 September 2023 in a new world-record time of 6 hours, 45 minutes and 25 seconds. On 6 October 2024 he set another world record by swimming across the Moloka’i Channel in Hawaii in 9 hours, 55 minutes and 10 seconds.
Yes, although Andreas Waschburger is partially released to enable him to complete training and competitions, you could still come across him in uniform on deployment with the Saarland police.
The Ocean’s Seven is an epic marathon swimming challenge, the swimming equivalent of the Seven Summits mountaineering challenge. It consists of seven of the hardest channel swims in the world. The Ocean’s Seven are the English Channel, the North Channel, the Strait of Gibraltar, the Catalina Channel, the Moloka’i Channel, the Tsugaru Strait and the Cook Strait.