Swimmer's Parents Fly to Istanbul to Identify Body
The parents of Russian swimmer Nikolai Sveshnikov flew into Istanbul today, a correspondent for MSK1.RU reports from the airport. The athlete disappeared five months ago during a swim across the Bosphorus. Yesterday, Turkish rescuers discovered the body of a man in a wetsuit: the Sveshnikov family plans to go to the Istanbul morgue for identification.
«We came to Istanbul to give DNA samples,» swimmer«s mother Galina Sveshnikova told MSK1.RU. »We will definitely look at the body found in the Bosphorus, because he has certain tattoos. A mother knows her son, in any case I need to see him. That is my first wish. I don«t know if an autopsy has been done yet. If it is him, I really want to know what happened to him.»
In a conversation with MSK1.RU, Galina described how she learned that a man resembling her son had been found in Turkey. It happened yesterday during work to clean the Bosphorus water area.
«Alena called (a relative of the family who lives in Turkey) and said there was such news. Then we started scrolling through the media and saw a video of him being pulled from the water. For me, it was a terrible shock. I think such videos should not be made,» the woman expressed her opinion.
Despite the fact that the relatives have not yet taken a DNA test, news appeared almost immediately that it was Nikolai Sveshnikov who had been found in the Bosphorus. Galina explained why such a conclusion was drawn.
«The biggest coincidence here is that he is in a wetsuit and his left arm is covered in tattoos. That»s already a lot to go on,« the swimmer»s mother told MSK1.RU.
As his mother admitted, she flew to Turkey «with terrible feelings.» She still believes that the deceased man found is not her son. Furthermore, the family hopes to get an answer to the main question: what happened to Nikolai.
«Now a lot of media are writing that it is definitely him,» said Galina Sveshnikova. «I really hope it is not him. It»s premature to say so for now. I want to take the DNA test, to see him. You recognize your child in any case. And we want to know the reason and what happened to him.«
According to Galina, after the DNA tests, the family plans to transport the body to Moscow.
«If it turns out to be him, we will transport him to Russia, take him to his homeland. We want to go to Moscow, because his family is there. And we wanted to move to Moscow to be close to him,» the swimmer«s mother told MSK1.RU.
Candidate for Master of Sports in swimming Nikolai Sveshnikov took part in a race across the Bosphorus in August 2025. The athlete started alongside three thousand participants but never reached the shore. The search for the Russian national began only 12 hours later. According to Nikolai«s loved ones, he was an experienced swimmer and was capable of covering the distance. Swimming across the strait had long been the Muscovite»s dream. All news on this story is collected in a special section.
The swimmer«s family had already been offered a death certificate for their relative, but the family refused, believing that Nikolai would be found. Previously, the athlete»s mother Galina told MSK1.RU in detail about her son and that ill-fated day.
