NORWAY: SWIMMING - British swimmers take first three places in fjord swim

Intrepid swimmers took to cold Norwegian waters at the weekend for what was billed as the inaugural Fjord Swimming World Championships -- and it proved a sporting success for Britain. Sognefjord is Norway's longest at 204 kilometres (127.5 miles) -- but the longest race in the championship was just 3.7 kilometres, across the water from Borlaug to Nokkaneset. For reasons of safety the entry list was restricted to 30 competititors and each was accompanied by a 'buddy' in a kayak who navigated and kept an eye out for dangers such as strong currents and other boats. Weather conditions were perfect for Saturday's (August 12) race with blue sky and little wind. Interest in fjord swimming was boosted in 2004 when Lewis Gordon Pugh from Britain swam the entire 204 kilometres of Sognefjord; last week he swam along the River Thames in England and he has completed many other long distance swims. The experiences obviously paid off because Pugh won Saturday's 3.7 km race in 56 minutes 39 seconds. He was followed home by British swimmers Lucy Petrie (58 mins 40 secs) and Margy Sullivan (63 minutes). The championship formed part of this year's Sognefjord Swim Festival, with entrants from Britain, Finland, Germany, Norway and Russia. A quirky story.

ITN Source | August 15, 2006

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