Master strokes from Castleknock swimmer

CASTLEKNOCK swimmer Patrick Corkery has returned to Dublin after completing the gruelling 28.5 mile Manhattan Island Marathon Swim.

Patrick covered the punishing course around Manhattan Island in an impressive nine hours and 31 minutes.

As one of the

‘Triple Crown of Open Water Swims’ the Manhattan Island Marathon Swim is one of the world’s premier open water swimming events and participants complete a full counter-clockwise circumnavigation of New York.

The race starts downtown at Battery Park, with swimmers then heading up New York’s East River, across the Harlem River and back down the Hudson.

This year’s event saw three Irish swimmers included in an elite international field of 48 from 10 countries including participants from Australia, Canada, Germany, the UK and about 10 US states.

A member of the NAC Masters Swimming Club, Patrick is an open water swimming veteran, a former winner of the Dun Laoghaire Harbour swimming race and last year he completed the world famous 26.4 km Lake Zurich swim.

“This is my longest ever swim, surpassing the nine hours 15 minutes that it took me to swim Lake Zurich last year,

? he said.

“Swimming in three different rivers meant we tried to take advantage of the tides where we could. Swimming down the Hudson River may sound easy, but the wind blowing in from the coast creates a strong chop in the water that made the 13 mile finishing straight go on forever.

“There is only one bridge breaking the skyline over this stretch of river, the massive George Washington Bridge at nearly a mile long. While it was a lovely sunny day and the water was a balmy 21 degrees, I had to push myself to the limits mentally and physically to finish.

“I had sore shoulders for half of the swim, but sure, no one said it would be easy.

“Master swimming is open to anyone aged 19 years and over. I would encourage anyone thinking of returning to swimming or taking their pool swimming to the next level to get in touch with the NAC Masters Swimming Club which is currently looking for new members.

?

?¢ Details on the NAC Masters Swimming Club can be found online at www.nacmasters.com or email [email protected].