British long distance swimmer Lewis Gordon Pugh in action during one of two swimming attepts in the cold water off the arctic archipelogo Svalbard, 19 August 2005. In background is seen the Monaco Glacier. Late Friday he reached the shore of Verlegenhuken at 80 latitudes north. The first swim was classified as the first long distance swimming in artic waters, the second as a new record.
AFP PHOTO Terje Eggum / SCANPIX NORWAY OUT Image: Terje Eggum / SCANPIX / AFP.
Lewis Pugh takes ‘icy plunge’ to highlight climate crisis [photos]
Lewis Pugh endured water temperatures between 0 and 3 Celsius and became the first person to undertake a multi-day swim in the polar regions.
British long distance swimmer Lewis Gordon Pugh in action during one of two swimming attepts in the cold water off the arctic archipelogo Svalbard, 19 August 2005. In background is seen the Monaco Glacier. Late Friday he reached the shore of Verlegenhuken at 80 latitudes north. The first swim was classified as the first long distance swimming in artic waters, the second as a new record.
AFP PHOTO Terje Eggum / SCANPIX NORWAY OUT Image: Terje Eggum / SCANPIX / AFP.
The endurance swimmer, Lewis Pugh from Plymouth, England has completed the most challenging swim of his career in Greenland to highlight the impacts of the climate crisis.
Lewis Pugh | Swimming for climate change
According to The Independent, Pugh has swum in the Arctic, Antarctic and up the English Channel to push for action to protect the environment, and undertook the 4.8-mile (7.8km) swim in the Ilulissat Icefjord in 14 sessions over 12 days.
It is reported that the UN patron of the oceans had to brave water temperatures between 0 and 3 Celsius (32F-37.4F) as he became the first person to undertake a multi-day swim in the polar regions.
“This was an extremely challenging swim,” he told the publication. “Not only because of the cold, and not just because I had to swim in freezing water day after day, without a chance to let my body recover, but because the conditions were also very treacherous.”
He decided to take the plunge now in order to highlight how human-driven global warming is melting the ice caps and glaciers, pushing up sea levels and threatening coastal communities, ahead of UN climate talks in November in Glasgow.
Global Warming | UN Climate Talks
He is also calling for 30% of the world’s oceans to be protected by 2030.
Pugh’s swim reportedly became much more difficult after a number of large, grounded icebergs stemming the flow of ice into the mouth of the fjord came apart during the swim, causing kilometres of ice to rush through and out to sea, blocking Ilulissat harbour for several days. He had to deal with sharp edges of brash ice as he swam.
“The reason why I did this swim is clear: we rely on ice for our survival. Ice keeps our planet cool enough for us to live. But we are losing it fast. No ice, no life.
“We have seen so many natural disasters this year – from wildfires in Greece to floods in Germany, extreme snowstorms in Texas, but I want also everyone to be aware of what is happening here in the Arctic.”
Deeply alarming | Arctic
He said he was “deeply alarmed” by what he had seen in the Arctic.
“Last month was the first time in recorded history that it rained at the highest point on the Greenland ice sheet. The melt is accelerating.
“I watched water gushing off the ice sheet at a location that, only a few years ago, was covered in hundreds of metres of ice. I also witnessed shocking quantities of ice being pushed through my swim route and far out to sea.”
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