A relay team of six swimmers has broken the record for swimming Lough Erne in Northern Ireland.
New record for Lough Erne swim
A relay team of six swimmers has broken the record for swimming the entire length of Upper and Lower Lough Erne in Fermanagh, Northern Ireland.
They swam the 48-mile course in 19 hours and six minutes, breaking the existing record by over three hours.
Graham Little, Paul Colville, Chelsey Wilson, Adam Heayberd, Tony McNulty and Colin Hill set off from the Crom Estate at five am on Saturday and reached Belleek just after Midnight on Sunday.
They each swam for an hour at a time without wetsuits, with two Irish Long Distance Swimming Association observers making sure that all the changeovers were legal and all official rules were adhered to.
The swim was sponsored and facilitated by Waterways Ireland and Fermanagh District Council, and the team had the use of a cruiser provided by Lochside Garages of Enniskillen.
Graham Little, who organised the record attempt with the help of Keith Collen and Peter Scott from Fermanagh District Council, said that it was a real team effort:
"The planning and preparation were a key part of the fast time, and the good will of so many different people gave us the best chance to break the record.
"The National Trust made a cottage and function room available to us at Crom, which meant we were able to stay there overnight and start early the following morning. Taking the best route was massively important, as was being kept in line by our three guide kayakers, Susie, Michael and Gary. With all the support we received the swimming was easy!"
The previous record was set six years ago by a ladies team from England and Ireland.
