‘Eco mermaid’ joins beach clean-up effort
A GUINNESS world record holder helped clean up Algadi beach as part of “World Clean-up Day”.
World Clean-Up Day ambassador Merle Liivand, an environmental activist from Estonia dubbed the “eco mermaid”, who holds the Guinness world record for the longest swim with a monfin, joined staff from Near East University (NEU) sport sciences faculty and the dean of the students’ social responsibility unit to collect litter from Alagadi beach.
She also took part in an online seminar moderated by NEU sports sciences lecturer Deniz Erdağ as part of a workshop to raise awareness about the “climate crisis”.
NEU sports sciences dean Prof Mehtap Tiryakioğlu said: “I would like to thank the dean of students for their support and contribution to the awareness workshop project, which embraces environmental awareness and respect for all living creatures. We are honoured to welcome Guinness world record holder Merle Liivand to our project.”
NEU Dean of Students Prof Dudu Ozkum Yavuz expressed her “happiness” that the awareness workshop project took place with Ms Liivand’s participation.
The swimmer set a new world record for the third time this year, on her 30th birthday, when she swam 30km off Miami Beach, Florida, without using her arms and propelling herself with just her mermaid-like fin, in nine hours and 19 minutes.
Ms Liivand is a major advocate against marine pollution and uses her long-distance, open-water swims as a means to draw attention to this growing environmental issue.
“We looked at videos of how seals, dolphins, whales, sharks, or turtles will get stuck on fishing nets or plastic. They can’t use their fins and they can’t flip around and be happy animals,” she told Guinness World Records.