79th Banyoles’ Lake Crossing

The Lake Crossing is the most symbolic sporting event in Banyoles. It is popularly known as “the celebration of Catalan swimming” and combines competition and an important recreational and festive side. Every year, more than two thousand swimmers of all ages and levels gather to swim, stroke to stroke, the 2,115 metres distance separating the southern shore of the north. Some face this test as a personal challenge, others live it as a tradition, and for athletes, it represents the first competition of the season.

Banyoles Swimming Club commissions the original poster to a creator linked to the city. Over the years, many artists, designers, and illustrators have produced this item, including names such as Lluís Güell and Josep Ponsatí.

The proposal for the 79th edition poster focused on the most popular part of the Crossing. With the will to reflect its essence, a basic and universal element essential to any aquatic activity was chosen: a towel. Using this everyday element to support the graphic image allows all swimmers to feel identified, regardless of their motivations and physical condition. In parallel, other textile elements which share the same graphic image were designed. In this edition, the long-awaited medal given to all the participants completing the Crossing is a clothing label.

From the very first moment, the poster was a real eye-catcher, generating great expectation in the town and the press. This success is due in part to the communication campaign, which skipped the traditional poster hanging and focused on carrying out various actions based on different uses of the towel. Among these actions, the most important were the towel hanging on the balconies of the city centre and the arrival by those in charge of the press conference to present the Crossing swimming across the lake. The campaign also included the production of a series of video capsules for communication on social networks.

The impact of the campaign generated a great demand for towels. Beyond its use as a poster, the towel became an object of desire for many people. A limited series (made of jacquard) was manufactured and the Banyoles Swimming Club used it as a gift for protocol acts and to sell it on the day of the race.