Stephen White, Jamie Gillespie, Conrad Thorpe and Craig Howorth, who are all single leg amputees, will have between the 1st and the 7th of September to start and complete the swim, depending on weather, conditions and other swimmers.
The four amputees will be adhering to the Official Channel Swimming Association (CSA) rules which include no wetsuits in water temperatures which average at 18°C for September. They will not wear their prosthetic legs out of choice and will be swimming in a relay.
The team have been fundraising through family, friends and contacts and are currently at over £600 but are hoping to increase this significantly.
To prepare for the challenge, they have been training at local lakes and in the sea to get their bodies used to the colder temperatures and have also taken part in some open water swimming events such as the Chillswim Coniston in the Lake District.
In June the group completed a confirmation swim in Dover overseen by their CSA Observer Giovanna Richards to make sure that they were all fit enough to take on the challenge by completing a continuous swim in the sea lasting at least two hours.
Giovanna says: “Coaching and assisting the team has been an absolute pleasure. They are all strong swimmers and very determined to make this swim a success. Initially I was concerned about the cold water affecting their stumps, but the guys completed their 2 hour qualification swim in June in Dover Harbour with no issues at all and actually went back in after a short rest. I will be with them every stroke of the way during their crossing in September and will be very proud to join such brave and inspiring men in being the first all-amputee team to cross the English Channel for BLESMA.”
Ian Waller, Operations Director at BLESMA says: “Conrad, Craig, Jamie and Stephen have all been training so hard to prepare themselves for such a challenging event and we are so pleased that they are supporting BLESMA. The funds that they raise will go directly to helping BLESMA provide vital support to injured service personnel, and may even inspire some of them to take on such a physical and mental feat themselves. I wish them all the very best of luck for September.”