Polish diver Bartłomiej Pitala, who led an international expedition into the Vrelo underwater cave in Matka Canyon, has been nominated for the title of Honorary Citizen of the City of Skopje. The nomination was submitted by Skopje Mayor Orce Gjorgjievski in recognition of Pitala’s contribution to the exploration and international promotion of Skopje’s natural heritage.
On October 17, Pitala, working alongside an international team of cave divers and with the support of the Vrelo Cave Diving Club, reached an explored depth of 338 meters, making the Vrelo underwater cave the deepest explored underwater cave in the world.
A cave-diving expedition is currently underway in the Vrelo underwater cave in Matka Canyon, with the objective of surpassing the previous record of 287 meters and exploring depths of 300 meters or more.
The Vrelo 2026 expedition took place from October 10 to October 17, 2026, involving 15 divers from Macedonia, Poland, and Italy. With this new achievement, the cave has been explored 51 meters deeper than the previous record of 287 meters, setting three world records and taking the top spot on the global list, surpassing the Font Estramar cave in France and the Elefante Bianco cave in Italy. The records were set in three categories: the deepest cave exploration by a human, the deepest cave dive, and the deepest open-water dive.
The rationale for the proposal for honorary citizenship states that Pitala’s feat holds historical significance for the exploration of the underwater realm of Vrelo, as well as for the international promotion of Skopje and its natural heritage.