Entries for the 44th LIDL Balaton Crossing, one of Hungary’s most popular recreational sporting events sold out in record time. The event attracted 10,000 participants, who could complete the 5.2-kilometre course either by swimming or, in the Yettel Balaton SUP Crossing category, by crossing the lake on SUP boards. After two postponements due to weather conditions, participants finally took on Lake Balaton on 1 August. As in previous years, mobile network traffic around the lake increased significantly: compared to Saturday, 25 July, seven times as many SMS messages were sent from the start area in Révfülöp and ten times as many from the finish area in Balatonboglár.
Overall, Yettel subscribers around the lake spent 29% more time on phone calls, sent almost four times as many SMS messages, and used 7% more mobile data. Compared to the previous Saturday, the highest increase in voice traffic was recorded in Balatonboglár, where participants spent 2.6 times longer on phone calls. The largest increase in mobile data traffic was also recorded there, rising by 30% on the Yettel network.
To meet growing demand, Yettel continues to develop its network around Lake Balaton and once again, provided enhanced mobile network capacity and Wi-Fi services for the duration of the event, ensuring that all participants could stay seamlessly connected with their loved ones.
As a key partner of the event and the naming sponsor of the Balaton SUP Crossing category, Yettel organised a range of activities on the day of the crossing. At the start area, mobile charging stations helped participants keep their phones powered, while the SUP-PORT service enabled those arriving with SUP boards to inflate their equipment quickly and easily. At the Yettel Reels Workshop, participants and their supporters could create unique, shareable videos before the start, enhanced with AI-generated visual effects. Supporters could also send encouraging text and video messages of encouragement to participants via the ‘Hajrá Hajó’ boat anchored in the middle of the lake.
Yettel continued to support participants after they reached the finish line. At its Mobile Points, nearly 800 swimmers and SUP participants used the service to notify their family members and supporters that they had successfully completed the crossing.
[1] Yettel analysed mobile network traffic data from the following locations: Balatonalmádi, Balatonboglár, Balatonfenyves, Balatonföldvár, Balatonfüred, Balatonfűzfő, Balatonlelle, Balatonszemes, Csopak, Fonyód, Keszthely, Révfülöp, Siófok, Tihany, Zamárdi, Zánka