Jackie Cobell recently broke the world record for the longest English Channel crossing with a time of 28 hours and 44 minutes. She will be out Guest of Honor at the awards ceremony on the day of the swim. She will also be in attendance at the pre-swim Happy Hour at the South-End Rowing Club on Friday, September 17 at 6 pm.

"It was quite cold. It got very tiring at the end. But I kept driving myself because I really wanted to achieve it, not only for myself, but also for my friends and family as well."

"I did it to get fit, but I would like to do it for charity, namely Huntington Disease. I trained for five years. I wore my shoulders out. I would do it again, but perhaps I would also like to do something different. Like the Alcatraz Swim."

During her television interview Jackie instantly became a hero not only to Southenders but all open water swimmers around the world. Having said she wanted to "swim Alcatraz." Club members sent in within 48 hours enough money to pay for her and her husband Richard to fly over and be part of our Alcatraz swim. We hope you will enjoy meeting her at our event.

Jackie is no a hero just because of her length of her time in the water because her resolute will to succeed struck a chord in all open water swimmers everywhere. We all hope and dare to dream that should we be called upon to drive ourselves, to keep going, when caught out far from shore on a long swim that we will have the tenacity and purpose of will to wear out our shoulders too in the drive to succeed-just as she did. What she has shown us is that open water swimming is also about imposing your will, even for a brief period of time, on a more formidable obstacle than mere time and distance- yourself.

Here's a link to Jackie's charity benefiting Huntington's disease. Please help support her cause if you can. www.justgiving.com

BBC Interview on YouTube

Bill Wygant
Race Director, 2010 Alcatraz Invitational
The South End Rowing Club