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On Saturday, August 26, 2023, 51-year-old Iranian athlete Reza Baluchi was arrested while allegedly attempting to cross the Atlantic Ocean in a giant hamster wheel. According to Broward-Pam Beach New Times, Baluchi claims that he is an activist who uses spectacular athletic feats to promote world peace.
He reportedly built the giant hamster wheel sometime before 2014 for the purpose of using it as a water craft. Prior to his August 26 arrest, Baluchi supposedly attempted to cross vast bodies of water using the hamster wheel at least three times.
As per Miami News Times, when officials attempted to confront Reza Baluchi during his last attempt, he told them he would die by suicide if they tried to stop him. Federal prosecutors have now charged Baluchi with obstructing the boarding of a vessel by a federal authority. If convicted, the activist could face up to five years in prison.
All about Reza Baluchi's previous attempts in the Hamster wheel
Born in Rasht, Iran, in 1972, Reza Baluchi told news reporters that he was held in an Iranian prison for 18 months for allegedly speaking out on religious matters. In 1992, while on the Iranian National Cycling team, he defected to Germany.
He also has the distinction of cycling across 55 countries in an effort to promote world peace.
In 2002, Reza Baluchi was granted political asylum in the US. He continued to take part in several marathons, before he began preparing for his so called 'hamster wheel' expedition attempts in 2012.
After constructing the contraption, referred to by Baluchi as his "hydro pod", the activist attempted a trip from Pompano Beach, Florida, to the Bermuda Triangle in 2014. He reportedly planned to then circle back, returning to Miami. The Miami Herald reported that the was quickly stopped by the US Coast Guard, who said the attempt could be potentially fatal.
In 2016, Baluchi was stopped once more by the US Coast Guard in his second and third attempts.
In 2021, he reportedly planned to journey from Florida to the coast of New York, but when he was found washed ashore in Flagler County, he claimed that he cut the trip short after he discovered that his GPS device had been stolen.
In the recent 2023 trip, he was confronted by Coast Guards once more. In response, he allegedly threatened to kill himself if stopped:
"Officers informed Baluchi that he needed to disembark the vessel onto their small boat since they were terminating his voyage due to it being manifestly unsafe. Baluchi replied that he was armed with a 12-inch knife and would attempt to commit suicide should the USCG officers attempt to remove him from the vessel."
As of September 7, Baluchi's legal team has not released any official comment on the allegations. The case against the Iranian activist is currently ongoing.
