A group of teenage endurance swimmers are preparing to take on a 24-hour relay swim across Lyme Bay this summer to raise awareness of sewage pollution and promote greater access to swimming.
The challenge forms part of The Big Swim, a youth-led campaign bringing together swimmers aged 13 to 17. Their continuous 24-hour, 6-person relay – from Brixham to Chesil Beach – will follow one of the most demanding stretches of the Jurassic Coast.
Many of the team have already completed English Channel relay swims while still in their early teens, but organisers believe the continuous Lyme Bay relay is a swim that has never been done before, and could be one of the most ambitious challenges yet attempted by such a young group.
The team trains four to five times each week, swimming up to 15km weekly. Throughout autumn and winter they continued training in the sea at Lyme Regis and Beer, gradually acclimatising to cold water, rough conditions and the realities of endurance swimming. Alongside their swimming, they have completed lifeguard training, CPR instruction and open-water safety education.
Coach Hamish McCarthy says through winter training, cold-water swims, jellyfish, rough seas, early mornings and long distances, the swimmers have developed confidence, resilience and self-belief that extends far beyond sport: ‘They have learned how to support one another when conditions become difficult, how to overcome fear and self-doubt, and how to keep moving forward when the easier option would be to stop.’
The swim is intended to highlight the impact poor water quality can have on swimmers, coastal communities and marine life. Their winter training has occasionally been disrupted by pollution alerts.
Alongside raising awareness of water quality, The Big Swim is supporting Level The Water, a community initiative helping more children and young people gain confidence in the water through swimming lessons, lifeguard training and open-water opportunities.
The team hopes the challenge will encourage others to care for Dorset’s coastline while showing what young people can achieve through determination, teamwork and resilience.
thebigswim.org
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