Limerick Narwhals to host annual fundraising swim
It's a 3.8km river swim through the middle of the medieval centre of the city
LIMERICK Narwhals will hold its annual Island Swim around Kings Island in the city centre on Saturday, September 14, starting at 2pm.
It's a 3.8 km swim and welcomes over 300 swimmers from Ireland, Great Britain, Europe as well as the USA and Australia.
Each year they donate to a different charity and this year's charity is Adapt Domestic Abuse Services. They provide 24 hour refuge and support services for women survivors of domestic abuse and their children. Event director Mark Dempsey said “charity starts at home” which is why they've selected Adapt.
The 10th annual swim will start at the Hunt Museum, passing out the local boat club, past the Abbey river and the Absolute Hotel. Swimmers will then travel up the canal, pass out the local boat club and come back down the main river where they will swim underneath the river and pass Thomond Park and King John's Castle before the swim finishes at Curraghgour Boat Club.
One big award is given out every year called the John Dempsey Memorial. John was a swimming coach who passed away five years ago.
The event first took place in 2014 with 11 swimmers and two boats and this year 300 swimmers have registered for the event. Some notable people who have swam this event are Olympic swimmers, world champion swimmers, English Channel swimmers, Guinness Book of Record swimmers, International rugby players and Olympic rowers. The oldest swimmer is 79 years old and the youngest swimmer is 11 years old this year.
Paris Olympic swimmer Erin Riordan, European championship swimmers Denis O'Brien and Darragh Horgan and gold medalist at the European life Saving Championships, Leana Liddane, will all be swimming in the upcoming event.
It's expected that the fastest swimmer will complete the swim in less than 50 minutes and the slowest would take around two hours.
During the Covid-19 pandemic, all the swimmers who hadn't had a chance to swim came to Limerick and that's why the event took off so well. It's the longest consistent running swim in Ireland.
Only three people have completed all swims since 2014 and they are Tommy Moloney, John Ryan and Diarmuid O'Hanrahan.
A street party will be held in the Treaty Brewery after the swim from 5pm to 8pm. For more information on the swim, visit the Limerick Narwhals Facebook page.