Karnataka - Belgaum   

Ready to swim across the English Channel

Mission English Channel: Rajesh Shinde and Raghavendra R. Anvekar of Belgaum along with their coach Umesh Kalghatagi, preparing for a great challenge ahead.

Belgaum: They are the swimming jewels of India and are all set to create an international record to bring glory to the country and Belgaum, their home town.

Raghavendra R. Anvekar and Rajesh Shinde, both 21 and disabled, who represented India at three international swimming competitions and won 23 international medals, are scheduled to take a historic dive into the Atlantic Ocean to swim across the 32-km English Channel from England to France on July 25.

They will be leaving India along with their coach Umesh Kalghatagi, Prasad Tendulkar, and manager S.R. Sridhar in the first week of July.

Mr. Anvekar will be swimming with only his two arms. Mr. Shinde is physically handicapped with his leg affected by polio. The two are members of Swimmers’ Club Belgaum and Aquarius Swim Club, Belgaum.

The Raghavendra-Rajesh team will be the third physically handicapped team from India to take up the challenge.

Earlier, the solo swimmers Taranath Shenoy, who is speech and hearing impaired, and Rajaram Ghag with one leg affected by polio, had accomplished the task in 1984 (14 hours and 45 minutes) and 1988 (12 hours and 40 minutes) respectively.

The Channel Swimming Association, which has approved their applications for the historic attempt, describes the challenge like this: “The English Channel is a unique and demanding swim, considered by many to be the ultimate long distance challenge. It is not just the distance that is the challenge, but the variable conditions that you are likely to encounter. These may vary for mirror like conditions to wind force six and wave heights in excess of two metres. The water is cold, there is a good chance of meeting jellyfish, seaweed and the occasional plank of wood. It is one of the busiest shipping lanes in the world with 600 tankers passing through and 200 ferries/seacats and other vessels going across daily.”

The Committee for Mission-English Channel president Suresh Hundre said that after conquering the challenges in the Indian waters, the two swimmers embarked upon the most difficult challenge of open water swimming for 32 km .

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