A fantastic £4,700 was raised by swimmers during our first ever Swimathon.
The event which was organised by the Observer and the Accrington Rotary Club saw 28 teams complete sponsored swims for a charity or community group of their choice.
Fundraisers that took the plunge swam a total of 2,457 lengths during the event at the new swimming pool at Accrington Academy in November.
Mark Schofield, of the Accrington Rotary Club, congratulated participants on their efforts.
He said: “Total monies raised are looking to be in the region of £4,700 which is a great effort for this the first ever Accrington Swimathon.
“Next year we hope to build on this figure and in two years we aspire both to be raising £10,000 and giving all the participants a fabulous afternoon out.”
Swimmers of all experience levels were invited to form teams of up to five people. Each team swam for a total of 50 minutes. One of the teams that swam for swimming club Pioneer 79 came within four lengths of breaking the National Swimathon record with 192 lengths in 50 minutes. The record is 196.
Teams were also given the option of donating some of their proceeds to the Observer’s Finley’s Friends Appeal or the Rotary Club.
Groups and businesses involved in the Swimathon included: Accrington Observer, Gaskell Motorbodies, Hyndburn Comets; Hyndburn and Ribble Valley Domestic Violence Team; Accrington Academy, St Mary’s Primary School, Oswaldtwistle, Heathland School, Accrington; Pioneer 79, Oswaldtwistle Slimming World, Baxenden Slimming World, and Accrington Specsavers.
