This is not just about swimming.
The Alpine Seven started with my cancer. Today I swim to raise awareness for people living with an illness. And to raise funding for NF Kinder.
The Alpine Seven is built around one belief: No one should hide because of a diagnosis.
Seven complete crossings of the greatest alpine lakes in Austria, Germany, Switzerland and Italy. Over 330km of open water, swam non-stop, without a wetsuit.
Inspired by the Ocean Seven — the most demanding open-water challenge in the world — The Alpine Seven is its freshwater counterpart. No ocean currents. But cold water, altitude, unpredictable wind, and distances that have been completed by only a handful of people on earth.
Four lakes done. Three to go.
Lake Attersee — brutal elbow pain two and a half hours in. Keep going.
Lake Constance — 65km. First Austrian ever. 6th person on earth.
Wörthersee — after a full week of gastroenteritis. Started anyway. Not for records. Not for glory. To prove — in real conditions — that the system works.
Lago Maggiore – the two days up to the swim I had been in a tough mental state. Started anyway and found my rhythm to finish.
The Alpine Seven is built around one belief: No one should hide because of a diagnosis.
I know, because I did. In 2016 I got cancer. I went from Bundesliga water polo to a body that could barely walk 500 metres. I know what it means to live with an illness. The fear. The waiting. The fighting.
That is why this project exists. I started The Alpine Seven to raise awareness for people living with an illness. And to raise funding for NF Kinder, who care for children with neurofibromatosis and their families. 100% of all donations go directly to them.
Every crossing is a demonstration: endurance mindset and discipline, applied consistently, produce what looks impossible from the outside. Even at 5% capacity.
“Resilience is not a feeling. It’s a decision made at the moment you most want to stop.”
A variety of beautiful 7 lakes located in Austria, Germany, Switzerland and Italy.
Distances range from 17 km to 73 km, allowing swimmers to progress through varying levels of difficulty and endurance. The lakes offer unique challenges, from cold water and altitude to unexpected wind patterns and wave conditions.
Distance 39KM
Before I started Lake Constance, the odds of finishing were about 5%. 65 kilometres, non-stop, no wetsuit. I finished as the first Austrian ever.
That is the principle every crossing carries: Make 5% your 100%. Not talent. Not perfect conditions. A decision, repeated stroke by stroke.
Attersee with elbow pain from hour three. Wörthersee after a week of gastroenteritis. Maggiore after two of the hardest days in my head. Conditions are never perfect. You start anyway.
And every kilometre raises money for NF Kinder.
Distance 20 KM
Completed: Elbow pain at 2.5hrs. Kept going.
Distance 65 KM
Completed: First Austrian ever. 6th person on earth.
Distance 17 KM
Completed: Full week of gastroenteritis beforehand. Started anyway.
Distance 61 KM
Completed: 1st Austrian ever. 3rd person on earth.
Distance 59 KM
Only the 2nd person ever.
“Your help goes to NF Kinder, so they can care for children and families affected by Neurofibromatosis.”
“We are a patient organization of those affected for those affected. Therefore, we know best what measures are necessary to improve the quality of life of people with NF in Austria.
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