Intrepid team take on relay swim across the English Channel for Thames Hospice (Edited by Author)
An intrepid team of seven open water swimmers are preparing to take on one of the world’s most demanding endurance challenges to raise money for Thames Hospice – a relay swim across the English Channel.
The swimmers, known as the Thames Sea Lions, will attempt to conquer the Channel next month and are aiming to raise £39,000 for Thames Hospice.
The Sea Lions are made up of swimmers from Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and West London.
They first came together through their shared passion for swimming in open water at Taplow Lake, but all but two of the team had to complete a beginner’s front crawl course, having never swum front crawl before.
The team was united not only by their belief in the power of cold-water swimming for mental well-being and resilience, but also by the desire to challenge themselves whilst raising a huge sum for the Bray-based hospice.
The relay team comprises Suzi McNulty and Jane Barnard from Taplow, Lillian Savage from Cookham, Heidi Needham from Bracknell, Cathy Miller from Chalfont St Peter, Jo Kelly from Slough and Darren Hourican from Ruislip.
Lillian said: “What started as a group of people meeting for swims at Taplow Lake has grown into a close-knit swimming family.
“The Channel is one of the toughest challenges any swimmer can undertake but knowing we’re doing it for Thames Hospice gives every training session a purpose.”
The swimmers all have different backgrounds and motivations for getting involved in open water swimming.
Suzi discovered her love for open water swimming in 2020, ‘grew into a passion for adventure, challenge and pushing beyond what seems impossible’.
Jane, meanwhile, has been in the water for as long as she can remember.
Growing up in southern Africa, swimming became part of her daily life. For her swimming is ‘peaceful, meditative, competitive and completely freeing all at the same time’.
The Thames Sea Lions have put in many hours of hard work and training to master the challenge, supporting, encouraging and motivating each other every step of the way.
They have spent countless early mornings and weekends training in lakes, rivers and the sea, balancing these demanding training schedules alongside work, family and other commitments.
Their intense training consists of structured exercises such as swimming in open water, endurance sessions and cold-water swimming.
This was thanks to the support of the teams at Taplow Lake, Westhorpe and Bray, who made extra allowances so the Sea Lions could train.
The team will continue training throughout the summer and will share updates and milestones with their supporters on social media.
Emma Andrews, senior events fundraiser at Thames Hospice, said: “We are quite simply in awe of the Thames Sea Lions for taking on this extraordinary challenge in support of Thames Hospice. The English Channel is one of the most demanding endurance swims in the world, and we deeply admire their determination, teamwork and commitment.”
