The President of the Republic of Macedonia, Dr. Gjorge Ivanov, at an official ceremony, awarded the cups and prizes to the winners of this year's, 29th Ohrid Swimming Marathon, to the Macedonian swimmer Evgenij Pop Acev and the Italian swimmer Alice Franco.

President Ivanov, who is this year's winner of the "Klime Savin" award for his constant and generous support of the Ohrid Swimming Marathon, in his welcome address, said that it is his honor and pleasure to be a sponsor of one of the most important sporting events in Macedonia.

"With its quality and rich tradition, the Ohrid Swimming Marathon has secured a place on the map of major swimming competitions. We are honored that each year the Lake Ohrid is a scene of the   dramatic sporting battle involving the world's best marathon male and female swimmers. Ohrid and the Ohrid coast offer impressive scenery and rich cultural and historical heritage as a lasting testament to the creativity and limitlessness of the human spirit. In this harmonious landscape, the Ohrid Marathon fits perfectly, leaving a peculiar sports mark, President Ivanov said.

The World Swimming Federation, for the contribution to the successful organization of this marathon edition, awarded certificates of gratitude to Mayor Nikola Bakracheski and the Municipality of Ohrid, as well as to the Ministry of Interior and the Special Unit "Tigers".

Pop Acev is the first Macedonian swimmer to win this marathon race in the past 29 editions as the Ohrid Marathon is on the "Grand Prix" racing program at open waters by the World Swimming Federation. He swam the "Klime Savin" track from St. Naum to Ohrid, long 30km, for 5:39:42 hrs. It took his colleague from Italy, the best in the women's race, Alice Franco, 5:44:03 hrs to swim the Lake Ohrid.

Tomi Stefanovski also won a medal at this marathon edition, winning the bronze, although he was the fourth to reach the end, because Daniel Blaum who reached the end second, irregularly passed by the last control point of the race and was disqualified. The silver medal in the men's competition went to Matthew Evangelista from Brazil.

In the women's competition, the silver and bronze medal went to the Russian swimmer Anna Mankevich and Esther Nunez Morera from Spain.