Eda Savcıgil is a Turkish national ultra marathon and ice swimmer with international credentials in open sea and cold water disciplines. Representing Türkiye on the international stage, Savcıgil is renowned for her first-place finish and course record set at the Maratona del Golfo Capri-Napoli open water race held in Italy. Continuing her career toward the goal of the "Oceans Seven" — a series of seven of the world’s most challenging open water crossings — the athlete is distinguished by her exceptional physical and mental resilience under extreme weather and water conditions.

^{Eda Savcıgil and her family (AA)}

Eda Savcıgil, from İzmir, is the daughter of Dilek Savcıgil and Ayhan Savcıgil. She began swimming at a young age. As of 2026, Savcıgil is a senior high school student, simultaneously preparing for university while pursuing her demanding athletic career. Sources list her age in 2026 as either 17 or 18.

Having shown interest in swimming from childhood, Savcıgil has earned numerous placements in various competitions. Driven by her passion for cold water, she transitioned her career to open water swimming. She initially took up open water swimming as a hobby and has been training in this discipline for three years as of 2026. In addition to enjoying cold water swimming, she found that swimming in icy water brought her greater joy and thus turned to the extreme sport of ice swimming.

Eda Savcıgil’s first experience swimming in icy water occurred at the Winter Swimming World Championships, organized by the International Winter Swimming Association from 2 to 8 March 2026 in Oulu, Finland. Competing in the 100 metre breaststroke event, the national athlete achieved third place despite the harsh conditions.

She competed under extremely difficult circumstances due to a storm during her race. Upon exiting the water, she reported losing sensation in her hands and being unable to remove her swim goggles due to freezing effects. In addition to her third-place finish in her event, she secured two fourth-place results and one sixth-place finish in other competitions at the championships in Finland.

Given the immense physical and mental endurance required for ultra marathon and ice swimming, Eda Savcıgil follows a strict and rigorous training regimen. Her coach is Okan Ulaş, President of the İzmir Swimming Triathlon Sports Club. Additionally, during her preparation for international competitions and in her coaching, she receives guidance from Bengisu Avcı, the first Turkish athlete to complete the Oceans Seven.

Due to the challenges of conducting cold water training in Türkiye’s climate, Savcıgil uses ice baths and vats to acclimatize her body to zero-degree temperatures. One month before the competition in Finland, she began ice bath training, gradually increasing her exposure from five minutes to three minutes in water at 0°C to build physiological adaptation. In addition to ice bath sessions, she prepares for competitions through long-distance open water swims in cold seas.

One of Eda Savcıgil’s greatest career achievements came at the Maratona del Golfo Capri-Napoli race held in Italy. In June 2026, she swam the 28-kilometre open water course from the island of Capri to Naples.

^{Eda Savcıgil (AA)}

Savcıgil completed this demanding distance solo in approximately nine hours, winning first place and the overall 2026 championship title. This achievement set multiple historic records:

• She became the first Turkish athlete to complete the Capri-Napoli course solo.
• She became the youngest athlete ever to successfully complete this challenging course.
• She broke the overall course record, finishing ahead of all male and female competitors.

Despite suffering a minor injury a week before the race, Savcıgil did not withdraw and overcame the obstacle to claim victory. She described this race as "the most physically and mentally demanding competition I have ever faced."

The primary and most significant goal of Savcıgil’s career is to complete the "Oceans Seven" — seven of the world’s most challenging open water channels. She continues to train relentlessly in both pools and open seas with the aim of becoming the fastest Turkish athlete to complete the Oceans Seven. In line with her future objectives, she has planned training routes covering extremely long open water distances of 25, 26, 28, 30 and 50 kilometres.

Eda Savcıgil places great importance on sharing her experiences and professional discipline with young individuals. In this context, she participated as a speaker at an event held on 4 May 2026 at the Işıkkent Education Campus.

During her talk, she recounted her journey into ice swimming, the key factors she focuses on during training, and how she maintains mental and physical resilience under extreme weather conditions. She emphasized the importance of setting goals, sustaining motivation, and working with patience and determination. She also shared with the audience her celebrations after achieving success and the personal details that inspire her.