19.01.2025.

Members of Ministry of Defence, Serbian Armed Forces swim for Holy Cross

To mark the Christian feast of the Epiphany, members of the Ministry of Defence and the Serbian Armed Forces have participated in the 27th traditional Epiphany Swimming for the Holy Cross held at Belgrade’s Ada Ciganlija Lake. The event was preceded by the Holy Liturgy held in St. George’s Church in Banovo Brdo and the Epiphany Procession.

Military Academy cadets participated in the procession, with Captain Andrija Milosavljević, platoon commander at the Cadet Brigade, at the head of the procession.

The event was attended by the Commandant of the Military Academy, Colonel Srđan Blagojević, PhD, and one of the three referees was Lieutenant Colonel Jevta Vulović from the Human Resources Department, Serbian Armed Forces General Staff. The swimmers received a blessing from Presbyter Branislav Jocić, the parson at St. George’s Church.

Members of the Armed Forces, the Gendarmerie and the SVIBOR organization, as well as citizens, participated in the competition. For the third consecutive year, Cadet Brigade Commander Col. Milan Končar swam for the holy cross alongside cadets of the Military Academy. They swam a 33-metre course, which symbolically represents Jesus’ age at the time he was crucified on Golgotha, a hill outside Jerusalem.

Along with the Ministry of Defence and the Serbian Armed Forces, the organizers of the traditional swimming event were the City Municipality of Čukarica, the clergy of St. George’s Church, the Sports Organization of Čukarica, PE "Ada Ciganlija", the Gendarmerie and SVIBOR.

Members of the Serbian Armed Forces also helped organize a similar swimming event on the Epiphany Plateau in Zemun, which was attended by Acting Assistant Minister of Defence for Human Resources Siniša Radović.

The first swimmer to reach the Holy Cross in a swimming competition held on Uvac Lake near Sjenica was Ljubomir Ašanin from the Second Army Brigade.

Every year, members of the Serbian Armed Forces traditionally participate in the organization of the Epiphany swimming for the Holy Cross in open waters, which marks the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord. In garrisons and garrison towns across Serbia, the Serbian Armed Forces have deployed a boat and water tankers, set up pontoon sections and tents and provided hot drinks for the swimmers.