Only one other person has completed the ocean swim, and he will be accompanied
by a support yacht for sleeping and eating. He will log his starting and
stopping points each day to ensure he swims the full distance.
His journey will also aid homeless charity Centrepoint as he gives several
young homeless volunteers the skills and opportunities to work on the
project as both his short support team and yacht crew.
His body will also carry sensors to allow scientists from the University of
Southampton to do research into temperatures, currents and marine organisms.
And he will work with the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) and the Plastic
Oceans Foundation to use the trip to highlight the fragile state of the
seas.
He will launch his challenge later on Wednesday at the Serpentine in London’s
Hyde Park, which will be the venue for the Open Water Swim at the Olympics
this summer.
”You get out of life what you put in and the greatest achievements come from
the biggest challenges,” said Fogle, who first found fame as a
participant in the BBC series Castaway in which he lived on the island of
Taransay.
”If I can complete it, it will be the culmination of a childhood dream and
the completion of an Atlantic circle that began in the North Atlantic in
2000 where I spent the year on Taransay.
”Having rowed East to West, I will complete the circle by swimming West to
East back home to Cornwall.”
Fogle, who was a torch bearer on the first day of the Olympic torch relay
across the UK, added: ”I hope the swim will continue to inspire people to
push their boundaries, to aspire and to achieve.
”I hope that it captures the imagination, reminding us that adventures can
still be had.”
Seyi Obakin, the CEO of Centrepoint – which works with 1,200 young people each
year – said: ”Being part of Ben’s team and entrusted with new
responsibilities will be life-changing for the young people who join him.
”It will inspire them to face challenges of their own, including finding a
job and moving on to independent living.”
Louise Heaps, head of marine at WWF-UK, said: ”Our seas are under severe
pressure from overfishing as well as unsustainable and poorly planned
development.
“WWF is proud to support our ambassador Ben’s challenge to raise
awareness around the issues affecting our seas and to highlight the pressing
need to safeguard the future of these and other marine species and the
diverse ecosystems that support them.”
Further details of the swim will be at the website www.theatlanticswim.com
The exact start point and date will bne dependent on the weather and ocean
conditions.
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