Pole named National Geographic Adventurer of the Year

68-year-old Aleksander Doba won the People's Choice Adventurer of the Year Award organized by National Geographic. The Polish kayaker obtained a record 521,000 votes in an online poll. Aleksander Doba completed the longest open-water kayaking expedition across the Atlantic in history. He had departed from Lisbon in October 2013 and arrived in Florida in April 2014, completing a 7,716-mile route. Doba traveled an average of 30 miles a day and slept no more than six hours a day. “If 67 years young can do it, you can do it, too,” he said after the journey. The Pole did not start kayaking until he was 34 years old. “It was the vote at National Geographic that showed how many known and unknown friends I have all over the world who are fascinated with a 67-years-young adventurer in a kayak on the great ocean. It makes me feel humbled and very honored,” said Doba on winning the award. The Polish kayaker is not going to rest on his laurels now. In 2016, he plans to cross the Atlantic Ocean solo by kayak again, this time starting from New York and finishing in Europe. The Adventurer of the Year prize is awarded for more than a decade to those with remarkable achievements in exploration, adventure sports, conservation, and humanitarianism.