Salzburg swimming star Luca Karl fights for EM titles and World Cup qualification!

Salzburg swimming star Luca Karl fights for EM titles and World Cup qualification!

Starigrad, Kroatien - On May 27, 2025, attention belongs to Salzburg swimming, because Luca Karl is the first swimmer from this region to take part in a open water European Championship. In Starigrad, Croatia, he competes over a distance of ten kilometers on Wednesday. A central goal of Karl is to qualify for the World Cup in Singapore. But the way there is rocky: In order to achieve this goal, it must reach the finish line within a percent of the average time of the best three swimmers at the European Championship. His trainers, in this case, play the state coach Ryaskov, observe him and make sure that he is optimally prepared, while they also keep an eye on Luka Mladenovic, who also also plays an important role in Salzburg swimming.

Luka Mladenovic has already taken part in the Frekasser European Championship after he was the first Salzburger to reach the limit for a world championship on the 50-meter railway in London. He is currently in second position among four Austrians who have made the necessary limit. The fastest two swimmers in this group are allowed to travel to Singapore at the end of July. Mladenovic itself also plans to reach the limit for the 200 meter breast at the end of June. At his last appearance in London, he only missed the limit by 17 hundredths, but was able to prove himself in a best time.

success and future perspectives

Luka Mladenovic, which starts for the Swimming Union Salzburg, has already had impressive success in his career. At the 2022 Junior World Cup in Lima, he won a total of three medals: he won gold over 100 meters of chest in a personal best and set up a new Salzburg state record with 1: 01.30. He also secured silver over 200 meters of chest and bronze over 50 meters of chest. Over the past two years, Madenovic has established itself as the fastest European in 2022 in his age group and continues to plan big destinations in the international swimming landscape, including the 2023 World Cup in Fukuoka, the 2024 World Cup in Qatar and the 2024 Olympics in Paris.

Swimming culture in Germany and Austria also affects the development of young talents such as Mladenovic and Karl. Swimming in Germany is an extremely popular leisure activity, and 29% of the population go swimming at least once a month. But swimming ability has suffered: Around 20% of primary school children in Germany cannot swim. This could lead to higher risks to bathing accidents in the future.

In a positive context, swimming is offset by a variety of facilities and organizations. The German Swimming Association has over 580,000 members, while the DLRG, with more than 30,000 volunteers, ensures that swimming courses and security remain a priority-an indispensable aspect, especially in view of the challenges that emerging swimmers like Luca Karl and Luka Mladenovic face.