DOVER, United Kingdom — Looks like the endeavor for the first Filipino crossing on the English Channel will have to wait a little more.
This after Filipino endurance swimmer Ingemar “Pinoy Aquaman” Macarine had to return ashore because of bad weather, almost an hour into the waters Sunday (August 13, Philippine Standard Time).
The decision to pull out the environmental lawyer from the waters was taken by boat pilot Eric Hartley, who said the wind speed was too strong to continue the crossing.
Even Macarine was surprised and somewhat frustrated at the turn of events, saying he had endured far stronger currents in his 33 previous open water swims both in the Philippines and abroad.
“I couldn’t believe I was stopped. I’ve gone through worse than that during my previous crossings in the Philippines,” he said.
However, Macarine conceded that he had to abide by the boat pilot’s decision, pointing out that the swim is sanctioned by Channel Swimming Association (CSA).
Hartley, who has over 20 years of experience assisting hundreds of swimmers attempting to cross the channel, explained that wind speed was stronger than the three knots forecasted earlier.
“It’s always safety first. With this condition, it’s so easy to lose the swimmer with the swells and anything,” Hartley told reporters.
Macarine, who started his swim at around 2:45 a.m. (British Standard Time), had been wading into the 17-degree Celsius waters for 50 minutes when he was stopped and pulled out of the waters. By then he had already covered a distance of nearly four kilometers.
It was yet another setback to the 41-year old swimmer’s two-year old endeavor to set a record as the first Filipino to cross the 21-mile body of water that separates southern England from northern France.
Still, Macarine remains optimistic that he can attempt the crossing again within the next few days.
Keith Oiller, an official observer of Channel Swimming Association (CSA), agreed, saying the Filipino swimmer can try again tentatively next Friday.
“Swim window for Ingemar is probably on Friday…but again it depends on sea condition,” Oiller said.
Macarine said he hopes to make it next Friday, pointing out that the Sunday’s failed attempt has caused him and his team to extend their stay in the United Kingdom.
Currently on leave as a Commission on Elections officer in Bohol, Macarine also tried but went empty-handed during a similar channel crossing attempt last year due to bad weather.
Macarine’s open water swims are part of his advocacy for open water sports, clean seas, and climate change awareness.
