Mila 23 Museum and Ivan Patzaichin's Contribution
Mila 23 Canoe Museum
The Mila 23 Canoe Museum is a tourist attraction in the village of Mila 23 in the Danube Delta. This outdoor museum showcases the fishing tradition and history of the area through life-sized old wooden boats, preserved photographic images, and the success stories of over 20 world, Olympic, and European champions in kayaking and canoeing, all born in the village.
Mila 23 Canoe Museum
The “Floating Museum – Lotca: Tradition and Mythology in the Danube Delta Area” is a project by the Ivan Patzaichin – Mila 23 Association, which promotes the traditional Danube fishing boat as a fundamental identity element of the Delta, covering the area between the villages of Mila 23, Crișan, and Caraorman. The Ivan Patzaichin – Mila 23 Association supports the development of Delta communities by promoting local traditions and protecting cultural and natural biodiversity.
The Mila 23 Canoe Museum is a tourist highlight in the Danube Delta – designed to be accessible for children and tourists. An outdoor museum that aims to reconnect people with nature and the tradition of the lotca. The Mila 23 Canoe Museum showcases the privileged place of the lotca in the village’s history, through stories and oral histories collected from the village elders and world, Olympic, and European champions in kayaking and canoeing.
In the past, the lotca was the only means of transportation for locals and the only means of survival for fishing families from the “lake” villages. Today, the Mila 23 Canoe Museum highlights the economic and social significances of the lotca in the lives of the locals – by displaying old wooden boats with their construction technical documents and presenting ancient fishing tools.
In the Mila 23 Canoe Museum, the symbolic meanings of the lotca stem from the stories of champions and the opportunity given to children in the Danube Delta to excel in water sports like kayaking and canoeing, through the experience of rowing. Cultural meanings value the lotca as a symbol of the heritage of the Danube Delta, marking the local culture of these multiethnic communities and reviving Lipovan traditions.
Ivan Patzaichin's Contribution
Ivan Patzaichin is the most famous Romanian canoeist, a four-time Olympic gold medalist (1968, 1972, 1980, and 1984), a three-time silver medalist (1972, 1980, and 1984), and recognized as one of the greatest champions of the 20th century with the “Silver Wreath” distinction. Born in the village of Mila 23 on November 26, 1949, into a family of Lipovan fishermen, Ivan Patzaichin seemed destined to become a fisherman like his father and grandfather, with whom he spent his vacations. At 16, he was helping his father as a fisherman’s assistant, and at 17, he began his career at the Dinamo Bucharest Sports Club.
Within this club, Ivan Patzaichin practiced kayaking and canoeing for 18 years as an athlete and 25 years as a coach. Starting his coaching career in 1985, he won over 150 Olympic, world, and European medals. In 2010, together with architect Teodor Frolu, Ivan Patzaichin established the Ivan Patzaichin – Mila 23 Association, aimed at capitalizing on the local potential of the Delta and other hydrographic heritage areas of Romania.
Since 2011, the beginning of autumn in the Delta is marked by Romania FEST, the Tulcea International Paddle Boats Festival. The event is organized annually by the Ivan Patzaichin – Mila 23 Association, in partnership with the Tulcea City Hall and the Tulcea County Council, with the generous support of the association’s partners and sponsors. The festival promotes the natural, cultural, and tourist attractions of the area – highlighted through a parade of boats on the Danube, rowing competitions, workshops, film screenings, and the Rock’n’Row concerts.
Ivan Patzaichin promotes through the association’s projects the development of the Mila 23 area communities, ecotourism, the preservation of cultural identity and local traditions, environmental protection, sports, outdoor activities, and introducing children to rowing. In its mission to protect and develop the Danube Delta area, the Ivan Patzaichin – Mila 23 Association collaborates and works in partnership with autonomous public institutions, local public administrations, NGOs, and private companies.