One of CAN's loyal fan base and supporter, Andrew Elliman, is swimming the English Channel in 2020 to help raise vital funds to support the charity's latest projects. What makes this feat even more impressive is the fact that until a few months ago, Andrew couldn't swim!
This is the latest update from Andrew himself:
"Back in Sept 2018 I started swimming lessons for the first time in my life at the age of 48yrs old. Up until then I could not swim and had a total fear of water and being out of depth. By December I was starting to manage the basics, but was still finding the breathing technic the hardest. In January I transitioned from the 20m length, 1.5m depth pool to the full size 50m length, 3m depth competition pool. Today I currently swim 5 days a week for an hour every morning between 6am-7am (this includes two swimming lessons a week). I’m manging on average 300m without stopping front crawl and I’ve finally nailed the breathing 😊
My Challenge is to swim the English Channel in 2020 and have paid a deposit for the boat and been given the dates between the 8th – 15th Sept. The skipper will chose the actual date nearer the time depending on the weather forecast.
I have changed the rules slightly to the requirements of the English Channel Swimming Association and so I may not qualify for a certificate at the end of challenge, but the way I see it swimming the Channel for good causes will be more important.
I am in the process of putting a story together about my three chosen causes and the reasons why I’m doing this. First will be my involvement of being caught up the earthquake in 2015 on Everest and Community Action Nepal. The second will be how Keech Hospice Care really helped my family and I when my mother past last year and the love and caring they showed. Then thirdly it made sense if I was going to swim the English Channel, then I wanted to do something to highlight Ocean Plastic and so I have joined forces with 5 Things Clear. https://www.5thingsclear.com/
Now the attempt itself:
21-26 miles on average to cross the Channel - 42,000m roughly in total. 15-25hrs to swim in an average of 15 degrees, crossing the 2 busiest shipping lanes in the world. I will have to swim through masses of jelly fish and it has been known for schools eels to have to pass through in the darkness of the night. On top of this I will also have to put up with vomiting, stomach aches and nose bleeds. As well as the currents, tides, weather and waves.
As part of the rules in the British Swimming Association you are only allowed to wear swimming trunks and so I have decided to swim in a swimsuit, because along the way we are going to highlight Ocean Plastic. As I swim, I have a team from 5 Things Clear people on the boat and they will be trawling a net at the back of the boat to collect rubbish. But it doesn’t end there, as I also have Association France Ocean collecting plastic off the beaches in France to meet us me on the beach when I finally swim onto shore. I am also in talks with various companies to turn the rubbish we collect into reusable use
You can support Andrew's fundraising here: