UWGB honors Alex Smolecki with 26.59-mile walk to Lambeau Field
GREEN BAY, Wis. (WFRV) – At sunrise, supporters gathered at the Kress Events Center to take part in 'A Walk to Remember Alex Smolecki': a 26.59-mile tribute to the UW-Green Bay swimmer who tragically passed away in February.
The route stretched from campus to Lambeau Field and back. While some completed the full marathon distance, many joined for portions of the walk, united by a shared mission, honoring Alex's adventurous spirit and determination.
'Why we are doing this walk is because Alex had a spirit of zest for adventure and he never backed down from any challenge,' said his sister, Magda Maslach.
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Smolecki, a junior mechanical engineering student and member of the men's swim and dive team, was known for pushing boundaries, whether that meant diving into workouts, running a marathon solo after it was canceled due to wildfires, or spontaneously flying to Japan to hike Mount Fuji.
'When he passed away tragically, we decided this is not it,' Maslach said. 'We're going to keep his legacy going and we invite everybody, challenge yourself. Grief is such a heavy thing.'
The walk marked the launch of #AleksFunniestChallenge, a campaign organized by Smolecki's family encouraging people to take on one physically challenging activity each month in 2025.
The name comes from Alex's Instagram handle, which friends and family continue to use as a tribute page.
'Just move. Go move. Do the things you don't want to do 'cause that's what Alex did. He just hopped in there and went for it,' Maslach said.
Alex's brother, Sebastien Smolecki, led the walk on Sunday. He said starting at the Kress made the event even more personal; it's where he and Alex trained together for swim team workouts.
'We did a few laps around campus, then went to Lambeau and back,' Sebastien said. 'It ended up being about 26 miles in a marathon. Even though he's not here, he's still impacting all these people, which is awesome.'
Participants who started the walk at the Kress received commemorative t-shirts, but others joined from afar. Maslach, who lives in Colorado, hosts a weekly challenge at Red Rocks every Saturday.
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She plans to post monthly physical challenges on the memorial page for others to follow at their own pace.
'I just miss him,' Sebastien added. 'I wish he was here. But now we just carry his legacy on.'
For those who couldn't attend the walk, the family encouraged supporters to walk or run any distance throughout the week and post on social media using the hashtag #AleksFunniestChallenge.
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