On Sept. 12, 2025, our Peace Run team member Vasanti (68) from Germany accomplished the iconic "20 Bridges" open water marathon swim around Manhattan Island, dedicating it to PEACE in honour of the United Nations 80th anniversary, the 55th year of Sri Chinmoy Peace Meditations at the United Nations and the International Day of Peace coming up on Sept. 21st. The Peace Torch of the Sri Chinmoy Oneness Home Peace Run was lit at the start and at the end and carried on the boat by her local boat crew Pipasa and Jamini. Her swim time was 9 hours 34 minutes, current-assisted. The swim is organised by New York Open Water (NYOW), who provide the accompanying safety boat and kayak including pilot, observer and kayaker.
It was Vasanti's longtime dream to swim around Manhattan, but for a slower swimmer it became only possible recently, with separate starts now in smaller groups of similar speed and the start time adjusted accordingly to the tidal currents, so the swim would be mostly current-assisted. It was very special for her to swim in honour of the UN anniversary and at the same time celebrate a personal 40th anniversary of her first English Channel swim of Sept. 9, 1985.
Sharing the Peace Torch with her kayaker Daria (Dasha) and Jamini - and ready to go!
Pipasa and Jamini - happy and enthusiastic helpers - for a peaceful adventure!
Boarding at the North Cove Marina for the swim start at Pier A. Sri Chinmoy (1931-2007), founder of the Peace Run, will be with us in spirit.
Swim start at Pier A arund 10:20 am, together with another slightly faster swimmer from Brazil with her own boat and kayak.
One World Trade Center (or Freedom Tower) in the background. Praying for a world of real oneness, transcending all divisions created by man.
Lady Liberty in the background.
Brooklyn Bridge - bridge no 1
Second bridge - Manhattan Bridge - and choppy waters with wind against current for the first 2,5 hours or so, as expected. Luckily no hold-up by ferries or other boats.
Approaching the United Nations and Roosevelt Island. We were allowed to pass on the left - a few days later due to UN General Assembly security operations, swimmers had to pass on the right and swim 21 bridges!
Feeding break in front of the United Nations. A UN worker friend came out to cheer us (we did not see her, she saw us) - thank you Samahita!
"Troubled waters" in front of the UN - our prayers were for the lofty vision of the United Nations to prevail and become stronger, in spite of all its current challenges and shortcomings due to human nature.
No 3 - Ed Koch Queensboro Bridge - how many times have we crossed it during the New York City Marathon?
Passing Randalls and Ward Island - where we held multiday Sri Chinmoy Ultra Races for so many years. The East River becomes calm and peaceful before merging into the Harlem River. It feels calmer than Lake Zurich to swim along this green island so close to the shore. All is good. ( I was not sure how long I would have lasted in conditions like near the UN.)
Pipasa and Jamini enjoying the peaceful journey and the sunshine. Water temperature 22-23°C, air similar. Very little wind.
Feeding the swimmer is an uneventful job for the boat crew: only every 1 or 2 hours the kayaker comes up to the boat to replace bottles for the half-hourly feeds the swimmer receives from the kayak.
Madison Avenue Bridge
Alexander Hamilton and Washington Bridge, connecting Manhattan and the Bronx
Approaching the end of the tidal Spuyten Duyvil Creek - where it merges into the mighty Hudson River. Spuyten Duyvil swing bridge (no 19!) already visible in the distance.
Toilet break for the boat crew while the kayak accompanies the swimmer - Henry Hudson bridge - no 18 - in view.
Crossing Spuyten Duyvil swing bridge into the Hudson at 4:15 pm, more than 1 hour earlier than scheduled!
Boat Pilot Nick and Observer Camilla
I was literally swept through this swing bridge while trying to wait for my kayaker to take an urgently needed break - such fun to ride the tide!
And the Hudson so peaceful ... I had expected so much more headwind and chop!
The last of 20 bridges, the George Washington Bridge, approaching fast!
Large ships on the Hudson
Passing Columbia University
Vastness and peace - and I am reminded of Lewis Pugh's quote at the end of his Hudson River stage swim: "Sky above, water below, peace within..:"
The wind picks up again against the current - but we are still ahead of schedule. I feel a bit chilly, but hot ginger tea and some heart drops help.
Swimming into a magical sunset - in choppy waters.
Not far now, still with the current - trying to enjoy the last miles into the night.
Finishing at Pier A
So happy and grateful to have made it, and so much faster than expected: over 1 hour ahead of schedule, in 9 hours 34 min. 07 seconds. We had a fast current, they said. And I "finished strong", NYOW posted :). I had expected around 12 hours or more, with much more wind in the forecast, and was even a bit worried before for lack of training. My last Lake Zurich swim 2024 (26 km) was 12 h 20 - what a fast ride here! And it seems I have now become the oldest female to swim around Manhattan, at age 68 + 9 months!
With my Kayaker Dasha of NYOW, who was such a great "feeder", fullfilling so many extra requests towards the end! (warm miso soup, hot ginger tea, dates....) Big achievements are never achieved solo - it needs a team.
With our 20 Bridges T-Shirts. A big thank you to all helpers and all the inner and outer support from near and far! And of course also to pilot Nick, observer Camilla, as well as to Hannah and Rondi and the whole team of New York Open Water for organising this amazing event so well and so safely! What would our world look like, if everyone worked together and supported each other- instead of fighting???!!!
More helpers and supporters: Bahula (left), multiple English Channel helper, and Samahita (right) - retired and current UN staff. (Here at the 3100 Mile Race which is currently going on into October.)
And of course a big heart of gratitude to our team founder Sri Chinmoy, who has been the main inspiration behind so many of our self-transcendence long distance adventures and peace activities, and who I felt was with us all the way.
The next day I took a bike to Manhattan by subway, with the intention to make the 20 Bridges swim into a Peace Triathlon by biking some 50 km all around Manhattan with the Peace Torch and then running a symbolical 5 miles from Pier A to the United Nations. But the higher gears started to malfunction. So I lit the Peace Torch at Pier A - the start and finish of the swim - and enjoyed a leisurely 20 mile sightseeing bike loop along the Hudson bike path and the East River Greenway (with lots of construction detours and dead ends), via the United Nations Headquarters. It was actually great for active recovery!
It was fascinating to bike along the East River -so much newness, energy and dynamism - and detours and dead ends :)
At the UN I lit the Peace Torch again to sincerely dedicate my adventure to the ideals of the United Nations. We tend to focus on their shortcomings, but I am convinced they play a very important role for mankind and for a peaceful future on this planet. (I was surprised and even disappointed to find that the beautiful nation flags are only up during UN office hours and not on weekends!)
"The United Nations is not just a building; the United Nations is humanity’s home. The lofty vision of the United Nations is that we all belong to a peace-loving oneness-world-family. This vision will eventually transform the face and fate of the world." -Sri Chinmoy
Since I could not go inside to take this photo myself - here with photo credit: Non–Violence or The Knotted Gun by Carl Fredrik Reutersward, UN New York. Licensed under CC BY-ND 2.0
So many memories of our team running with the torch to the United Nations. And of the first Sri Chinmoy Oneness Home Peace Run, which was launched in 1987 at the Dag Hammarskjöld Plaza with many UN ambassadors carrying the torch.
"In our outer life, Peace is compromise. In our inner life, Peace is something that constantly helps us Transcend our height And Expand our length And Deepen our depth. - Sri Chinmoy
East River Greenway with Ed Koch Queensboro Bridge in view
The water here was quite a bit choppier than the day before- with lots of jetskis and boats riding and churning up the waves.
Back at Little Island, Hudson River Park
Another shoutout also to the the Riverkeepers of New York - www.riverkeeper.org - who help protect the waters of the Hudson and the rivers of New York.
Immensely grateful for another unique experience!
And to quote UN Messenger of Peace Dr. Jane Goodall, RIP: "There can never be world peace until we learn to live in harmony with nature as well as with each other... We have to do everything in our power to make the world a better place...There will be Peace at the end ...We must stand strong against fear and hate ... Don't lose hope... Without hope, we sink into apathy... " "Each one of us matters, has a role to play, and makes a difference."
And finally one of my favourite quotes:
" Individual self-transcendence Collectively inspires Humanity at large."
- Sri Chinmoy
See also our video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w6AXKwfRTeQ
