A body found in the Bosporus Strait on Tuesday is believed to be that of a Russian swimmer who went missing nearly five months ago during an international open-water race in İstanbul, Turkish prosecutors said.
The unidentified male body was discovered around 10:30 a.m. during a sea-cleaning operation off the Kuruçeşme neighborhood in Beşiktaş, according to local officials. The body was wearing swimming gear, prompting suspicions that it could be linked to the disappearance of Russian athlete Nikolai Svechnikov.
Svechnikov, 29, was among 2,820 participants from 81 countries competing in the August 24 event across the Bosporus Strait. Turkish authorities said he failed to reach the shore after the 6.5 kilometer (4 mile) annual race from İstanbul’s Asian shore to the European side.
Despite an extensive search by the coast guard, police and rescue teams in the days following the event, Svechnikov was not found.
The İstanbul Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office said in a statement on Wednesday that an initial examination indicated the body was missing the head, arms and legs and was dressed in swimwear.
Prosecutors said the remains were being evaluated as possibly belonging to Svechnikov, who was reported missing after the race and whose disappearance was registered at a police station in the Beykoz district.
The statement said homicide detectives, crime scene investigators and public order units had been notified as part of the investigation.
Turkish broadcaster NTV later reported that forensic examinations suggested the body belonged to the missing Russian swimmer, though authorities have not publicly confirmed the identification pending further analysis.
Meanwhile, Russia’s Consulate General in İstanbul said Tuesday it was informed about the body, which Turkish authorities believe may be Svechnikov, according to the Moscow Times.
On Wednesday Svechnikov’s mother said Turkish authorities told her they are “80 percent certain” the body is her son’s based on tattoos found on the body, the state-run RIA Novosti news agency reported.
Alperen Çakmak, a Turkish lawyer representing Svechnikov’s family, told RIA Novosti that he expects an ongoing police investigation into the swimmer’s disappearance to take on new urgency following the discovery of the body.
“We’ll do everything possible to identify those involved and guilty of negligence in organizing this event,” Çakmak said. “There’s a separate legal process regarding compensation, which we’ll continue to demand from the organizers.”
The investigation into the circumstances surrounding the swimmer’s disappearance and the identity of the body remains ongoing.