She offered herself 24 km in open water between Taghazout and Agadir
A crossing carried out as part of the Pink Wave project initiated by the young woman who is pursuing her cause to fight cancer.
Challenge met for the high-level sportswoman Nadia Ben Bahtane. The young woman known to be the first Moroccan to have crossed the Strait of Gibraltar by swimming, member of a restricted community of open water swimmers, has just achieved a new feat last Saturday. It linked Taghazout to Agadir by swimming, about twenty km on the high seas. A crossing that required several hours of swimming, endurance and perseverance after good sports and mental preparation. The performance is part of the Pink Wave project initiated by the committed sportswoman, who beyond sporting action, pursues her noble cause of the fight against cancer.
“The idea of carrying out this course was born in August 2018 following the death of my aunt Khadija who succumbed to cancer after a long fight against the disease”, says Nadia with great emotion. For her, this swimming course, for which she was committed, is her way of paying homage to her late relative and following her latest recommendations. “Cultivate love around you and don’t stop what you are passionate about,” her aunt had advised her a few days before her death, she recalls. This crossing is thus both a gesture of the heart to give hope to those suffering from cancer and to raise awareness about early detection. It is therefore quite natural that the association Les Amis du Ruban Rose, whose main objective is to support women suffering from a disease or breast cancer, has associated itself with his sports company.
The sports and committed project Pink Wave also benefited from the support of several companies from the economic world. In organizing the crossing, which began barely three weeks ago, many volunteers were involved. Technically Nadia also had the support of a sports coach friend and the Royal Rescue Federation in particular. “The ocean in its grandeur is unpredictable and in open water swimming there are no landmarks. The experience is truly a lesson in humility,” says Nadia Ben Bahtane, grateful for all the support she received in her project. Today after the crossing, it is a feeling of well-being resulting from the promise kept, but faced with the magnitude of the fight against cancer, she remains committed. For Pink Wave the story has only just begun. As a reminder, Nadia Ben Bahtane is the mother of two daughters.
Marketing and communication director of the Intelcia group, this open water swimming enthusiast was elected woman of the year in 2013 by the World Open Water Swimming Association (WOWSA). In May 2015, the first Moroccan woman to cross the Strait of Gibraltar alone, she joined the Top 50 of the “World’s Most Adventurous Open Water Women” ranking. In August 2015, she was decorated by His Majesty King Mohammed VI with the Wissam of the Mukafaa Al Watania of the Order of Officer.
