27 April 2005

Cape Town – 27 April 2005 – Carina Bruwer has, on South African Freedom Day, smashed the all-time record for swimming the 11km around Robben Island – a world heritage site and one of the greatest symbols of freedom and liberation.  With the 11km swim, Carina and her crew celebrated the 11th anniversary of South Africa’s Democracy

Record

Completing the swim in a time of 3h07, Carina took 35 minutes off the record of British male swimmer Lewis Gordon Pugh, which stood at 3h42.  Carina, a concert flautist by profession, said: “I am over the moon.  It feels great breaking this record as a South African on the day we celebrate our freedom!  In a way we have come full circle in South Africa, and it felt very significant for me to celebrate this through my sport, open water swimming, with one of the biggest World Heritage sites in the background”.

Support

Carina was accompanied by a support crew consisting of members of the Cape Long Distance Swimming Association (CLDSA), led by Mr. Peter Bales.  Bales said “Carina swam very well.  Conditions were flat and friendly, but she did get cold towards the end, as the water temperature was 14 degrees throughout the swim.”  Carina was also supported by American swimmer Erica Moffet who is in Cape Town to do some of the well known open water swims, as well as Antonine Scalabrino, son of Cape Town open water swimming legend Tony Scalabrino.

For more information call Peter Bales on 0839552558, or Carina on 0824861320

Notes to Editors 

  1. Carina lives in Mouille Point, Cape Town.  She is 25 years old, a professional concert flautist and manager of her own music agency.
  2. Carina is also the only swimmer to have rounded the southern-most as well as the northern-most points of Africa (at Cape Agulhas and Bizerte in Tunisia respectively); last year she became the first South African to round Cape Point, and also holds the record for this swim.  She is also the only swimmer to have rounded Danger Point near Gansbaai (the “White Shark Capital of the World”). More information can be found onwww.carinabruwer.com.  Information document available on request.
  3. Carina is training for an attempt to cross the English Channel in July / August this year, as well as for crossing the Straits of Gibraltar whilst on a musical performance tour of Spain.  She will also take part in the annual Toroneos Gulf crossing in Greece, and the Strait of Messina crossing.