Mother Hopes Body Found in Bosphorus Is Not Her Missing Son
Svechnikov«s relatives told MSK1.RU they are now traveling for identification.
The mysterious disappearance of Russian swimmer Nikolai Svechnikov in Turkey during the 37th intercontinental swim in Istanbul may be solved. Today, during cleanup work in the Bosphorus waters, workers discovered the body of a man in a swimsuit. Svechnikov«s relatives told MSK1.RU they are now traveling to identify the body.
The relative shared details of the family«s ongoing wait for official confirmation.
«The police called; I»m now going for identification. I don«t have any more information yet,» Alena, a relative of Nikolai Svechnikov living in Istanbul, told MSK1.RU.
«Nothing is known for sure yet, but we assume there»s a 99% chance it could be him,« Alena told MSK1.RU.
Nikolai Svechnikov«s mother is now preparing to fly to Turkey. The family has also requested assistance from the Russian General Consulate in Istanbul.
Near the shore in the Kuruçeşme area of Beşiktaş, workers noticed a man«s body in the sea and reported it to the police. Specialists who arrived at the scene retrieved the body from the water. The deceased was wearing a swimsuit.
Turkish police now suspect the deceased may be Russian swimmer Nikolai Svechnikov, who disappeared last year on 24 August. Law enforcement has already notified Nikolai«s relatives.
There is also no news yet for the swimmer«s mother, Galina Svechnikova, who is currently in Russia. For now, she learns everything from the news, which she has been following constantly for several months.
«I was glad that during yesterday»s storm in Istanbul and on the Bosphorus, his body wasn«t washed up. But now, after this news about the found man, on the contrary, I don»t know what to think,« Galina Svechnikova told MSK1.RU.
In January, the swimmer«s wife, Antonina Svechnikova, tried to meet with President Vladimir Putin and ask for his help in the search. The swimmer»s family had already been offered a certificate of death for their relative. Earlier, Nikolai Svechnikov«s mother Galina spoke in detail to MSK1.RU about her son and that ill-fated day. She believes Nikolai survived and does not remember what happened to him.
The body of the man found in the Bosphorus has been sent to the morgue of the Istanbul Forensic Medicine Institute for a comprehensive examination.
For Nikolai«s birthday, his mother Galina flew to Istanbul to meet with representatives of the Russian General Consulate. They promised to arrange a meeting with the head of the region to discuss the search for the swimmer. In turn, Galina Svechnikova»s lawyer met with a Turkish prosecutor—they were assured that Nikolai was still being sought and that a criminal case had been opened against the swim organizers.
The family is convinced that Turkish authorities know what happened that ill-fated day in the Bosphorus but are hiding the truth about the fate of the Russian swimmer. All news about what happened in August 2025 in Istanbul to Russian swimmer Nikolai Svechnikov is collected in a special section.
