Manhattan Island - 23 June 2012
The Manhattan Island Marathon Swim was a 28-mile circuit of Manhattan. On the shore, Manhattan is skyscrapers, traffic and noise. From the water, it reveals itself as an island. Manhattan is my first race, my first overseas swim and where a solo challenge becomes a family adventure.
Facts & Background
Distance: 28.5 miles (46 kilometres)
Route: Circumnavigation of the island of Manhattan, New York, USA
Organiser: NYC Swim, now replaced by New York Open Water
Cost (as at 2012): $2,000 (about £1,300)
Description: A full loop of Manhattan Island via the Hudson, East, Harlem, and East Rivers.
The first recorded completion was in 1915 by Robert W. Dowling. Over the following century, the swim became an organised race.
Today the swim takes place as the “20 Bridges” organised by New York Open Water. It forms part of the US version of the Triple Crown of Open Water Swimming along with the English Channel and the Catalina Channel.
Photographs from the Day
The swim follows an anti-clockwise route, beginning in the East River, which connects New York Harbour to Long Island Sound. Strong currents propel swimmers beneath bridges and past Brooklyn and Queens. At the turbulent Hell Gate, swimmers enter the Harlem River and the route turns west across the top of Manhattan, through what was once a mix of streams and wetlands but is now a hardened channel. The final stretch is the broad Hudson River, which separates Manhattan from New Jersey. Swimmers are pulled south back towards the starting point, completing a unique journey around one of the world’s busiest cities.
Original Film of the Swim
