Thanks to Jessica for this report from Anna’s training session as we weren’t able to be there. Ed
Yesterday saw some of the coldest sea temperatures of the year at a chilling 6 degrees, but for Anna Wardley it is all part of the training.
Anna took to the waters of Dean & Reddyhoff’s East Cowes Marina yesterday morning in nothing but a swimsuit to raise awareness ahead of her swim around the Isle of Wight in September, where she will be raising money for charity including the Ellen MacArthur Cancer Trust.
‘Five Island Swim Challenge’
The Isle of Wight will be the finale of her ‘Five Island Swim Challenge’; covering a total of 150 miles as she attempts to swim around five islands. After starting with a short seven miles around Dragonera in Mallorca last May and thirteen miles around Portsea, Portsmouth last June, Anna will swim a further 71 miles around the islands of Jersey and Tiree this year, before taking on the marathon challenge of swimming the 60 miles around the Isle of Wight.
After a ten minute dip in the notoriously cold February waters, Anna explained the challenges she faces when swimming around the Island: ”I’m under no illusion about how tough it will be swimming solo and non-stop around the Isle of Wight. It is a mammoth swim by any measure and requires months of intensive training, complex logistical planning and a good dose of luck on the weather front to even make an attempt.
“I’ll be swimming in strong tides, day and night, for anything up to 36 hours, so it will spur me to know that I am raising vital funds for great charities like the Ellen MacArthur Cancer Trust.”
Three times the length of the English Channel
Anna, 37, from Gosport, an experienced open-water swimmer, is expected to take 30-36 hours to complete the round the Island swim, which in terms of distance, is almost three times the length of the English Channel, to raise money for the Ellen MacArthur Cancer Trust, Sail Africa and the Samaritans.
Anna’s swim round the Isle of Wight Swim is sponsored by Navitus Bay, a renewable energy project joint venture between Eneco Wind UK Ltd and EDF Energy. Navitus Bay has kickstarted Anna’s fundraising efforts by generously contributing £2,415 to her three chosen charities.
Anna will be the forth to swim around the Island
Three people have swum around the Island before, two men and one woman, the last time it was successfully completed was 29 years ago in 1984.
However Anna hopes to lay claim to becoming the first person to row, sail and swim around the Isle of Wight after she participates in the Round the Island Row on the 31st May followed by the annual J.P. Morgan Asset Management Round the Island Race the following day, June 1st, where she will be sailing on board one of the Ellen MacArthur Cancer Trust’s entered boats.
MacArthur: “Truly inspirational”
For Trust patron Ellen MacArthur, a solo challenge against the odds such as Anna’s is something that inspires everyone involved. “What Anna has already achieved swimming around the first two islands is incredible, but to finish her ‘Five Island Challenge’ with swimming around the Isle of Wight, a feat that only three people have ever achieved, is truly inspirational.
We are so proud to be supported by courageous individuals such as Anna and our many other fundraisers out there, the everyday person pushing themselves to overcome hurdles and reach unreachable goals to help the Trust is fantastic.”
To find out more about the Five Island Swim Challenge – visit Anna’s website www.annawardley.com or follow her on Twitter @annawardley.
