News Article
The Inaugural Blue Mile Creates a Big Splash for the Environment
Thousands of people attend the first Blue Mile event which took place in the waterside City of Plymouth over the weekend of the 3rd-4th July
BBC Presenter and Ocean Ambassador, Paul Rose took on the one mile open water challenge along with over 600 people who took to the water during the sunny weekend.
The combination of sport and environment proves to be a real success with the Blue Mile now set to become an annual race for the environment.
Over eight thousand people attended the inaugural Blue Mile - Race for the Environment, which started at the historical Mayflower steps, Plymouth’s most famous landmark. The event saw over 641 people take to the water to swim, paddle and walk for the environment during the weekend, including a host of celebrities. Official Swim Partner Aqua Sphere was delighted to support the event and it has made a successful addition to Aqua Sphere's strategic list of high quality event partnerships for 2010.
A whole host of celebrities took part in the Blue Mile, with T4’s Matt & Darren (formerly Max and Ob from Channel 4’s flagship soap Hollyoaks) taking on the kayak challenge , BBC Presenter and renowned ocean ambassador, Paul Rose (swim); Everest climber and Pole to Pole explorer, James Hooper (swim) and Ocean Rower, Sarah Outen the Stand up Paddle (SUP).
The open water Blue Mile swim event was won by James Edmonds (24) who completed the mile course in a fast 20m: 24s, James also won the Blue³ Triple Challenge as the fasted across all three disciplines (Swim, SUP, Kayak) . The Corporate Blue Mile Team event was won by Wolferstans Solicitors.
This was the first Blue Mile event to take place in the UK, with the format of mixing mass participation on the water with an experiential and educational village designed to actively engage people with our marine environment. The Organiser’s of the Blue Mile, Sport Environment are now looking to take the concept further to create a world-class format that uses the power of sport to create social and environmental change.
Conrad Humphrey’s, Managing Director of Sport Environment : “I was delighted at the public response to the first ever Blue Mile, an event designed to fuse sport with a public engagement programme focused on our blue environment. There were so many elements to the weekend that made me smile. This was not just an event for elite athletes; we had people from all walks of life who took on the challenge of completing a mile and raising valuable support for WWF-UK to continue their work for clean and healthy seas - and special thanks to Aqua Sphere for their support. ”
For final results of the Blue Mile, please click the link http://www.endurancelife.com/assets/results/2010_bluemile.htm . For Aqua Sphere product information click www.aquasphereswim.co.uk
