Austin Lindsay Wins Swim The Sound Open Water Race

VIRGIN GORDA, British Virgin Islands, June 26. SUNDAY June 21 saw the inaugural Swim The Sound take place in the North Sound in Virgin Gorda, British Virgin Islands.

The warm Caribbean waters and fantastic weather with the thermometer hovering around 92 degrees ensured the wet suits were left behind.

Austin Lindsay crossed the finish line at Leverick Bay Resort in 66minutes and 4seconds to become the first person to win the Swim The Sound, 3 Mile race.

Mr Lindsay's impressive performance was followed by the first Lady swimmer, Louise Wearmouth who finished in a time of 77minutes and 19 seconds with Sheldon Scotchman taking 3rd place in 89m18s

The race saw 43 competitors start from Saba Rock Resort in Virgin Gorda's North Sound and swim a choice of 3.1 miles or 2 miles to the finish at Leverick Bay Resort. With the 2 Mile swimmers taking a direct line to Leverick Bay and the 3.1 mile swimmers heading out west towards the entrance to the North Sound and then turning back to Leverick Bay.

The winner of the 2 mile race, Gordon Overing covered the distance in 49 minutes 26 seconds, closely followed by Antony Spencer, 50m:16s and Nicolette Smith 52m41s.

Conditions were almost perfect with a slight wind blown chop and very little current to affect the swimmers, most of whom had travelled from Tortola. There were also 3 swimmers from St John.

The swimmers were supported on the water by a team of Kayakers and several safety boats as well as both rescue boats from Virgin Islands Search & Rescue (VISAR).

Speaking after the race, organiser, Mark Smith said, " It was an amazing day, to see this many people show up for the first time, especially after so little advertising was done, certainly exceeds my expectations for the first year. Everybody seemed to relish the challenge and some of the efforts made certainly showed that the months of training were worth it".

Mr Smith hopes to put on the event next year, "I'm sure that we can double or even triple the numbers next year, hopefully the word will travel that we can put on an excellent and safe swim, in a fantastic setting. It would be good to see over 100 people taking part, it's not only good for VISAR (all profits from the race go directly to VISAR) but it's good for businesses in the North Sound and Virgin Gorda".

With so much high quality accomodation available in the North Sound at this time of year, the relatively inexpensive flights it is hoped the 2010 event will attract International Visitors looking to combine a great swimming race with a Caribbean Vacation.

The British Virgin Islands are approximately 80 miles east of Peurto Rico. The Islands are a self governing British Overseas Territory with a major Tourism and Financial Services industry. There are over 50 islands in the group with a population of just over 23,000 spread out over the four main islands of Tortola, Virgin Gorda, Jost Van Dyke and Anegada.

The above article is a press release submitted to Swimming World Magazine. It has been posted in its entirety without editing. Swimming World offers all outlets the chance to reach our audience by contacting us at Newsmaster@swimmingworldmagazine.com. However, Swimming World reserves the right to choose what material is posted.

Swim The Sound

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