Endurance swimmer and ocean advocate, Lewis Pugh, will be swimming past the Isle of Wight this weekend.
It’s part of his mammoth challenge of swimming from Land’s End to Dover.
Horrified by changes in the oceans
Undertaking the 530km challenge in just a pair of Speedos, his hat and goggles, Lewis says having swum in the oceans for over 30 years, he’s horrified by the changes he’s seen.
He says,
“I began swimming in vulnerable ecosystems to draw attention to the impact of our actions on our oceans. I saw enormous chunks of ice slide off Arctic glaciers. I swam over bleached coral killed by rising sea temperatures, and over the bones of whales hunted to the edge of extinction.
“I saw plastic pollution in the most remote parts of the oceans, and garbage piling up so thick on city beaches that you could no longer see the sand.”
Call for ocean protection to be strengthened
He goes on to explain why he’s taken on the challenge,
“I’m undertaking my toughest swim yet, so that I can call on the British Government, and all the governments of the world, to strengthen our ocean protection. Because doing the right thing has to start at home.”
Follow his progress
All being well, Lewis is expected to be swimming past the Island (across from Bournemouth, past the Needles and round the south, up towards the east) over the weekend.
You can follow his progress on:
Best of luck with the rest of your challenge Lewis, even getting this far is an amazing achievement.
You can find out more about Lewis and his challenge over on his Website.
Our thanks to Janet for the heads-up
