Cork diver aims to raise €10,000 for Channel swim
John Kearney, who owns the Baltimore Diving Centre, has been in training for the gruelling 30 mile swim for the past year.
“I should be leaving around midnight from Dover.
“I have to get into the water before the flood tides start around 1am. It’s better to get into the water in the dark because after about nine hours swimming it becomes psychologically difficult. By then it will be light so that will help me along,” 37-year-old Mr Kearney said.
He hopes to complete the swim to Calais before 5pm tomorrow.
He got the idea for the fundraiser after meeting Alison Streeter, the famous English woman who swam the Channel an amazing 40 times.
Mr Kearney met her more than a year ago when he and some friends decided to take part in another gruelling swim.
At that time, it was from Alcatraz prison in San Francisco bay to the mainland.
“I’ve been preparing for this one by doing a lot of practice. I’ve swam from Baltimore around the Fastnet Rock and back again.
“I’ve also done a lot of swimming at Lough Hyne, Skibbereen,” Mr Kearney said.
About 25 Irish people have successfully completed the English Channel swim.
Five of them were from Cork, but Mr Kearney believes he is the first to tackle it from the West Cork area.
He’s also hoping to make €10,000 for five worthy causes — Marymount Hospice, CoAction West Cork, Baltimore RNLI lifeboat, Skibbereen Youth Cafe and Rath National School in Baltimore.
Two people will be travelling in a support boat alongside him throughout the journey. JJ Cotter from Baltimore and Robbie Green from Banbridge, Co Down, will supply Mr Kearney with food and drink and keep a general eye on his safety.
The website www.500mileswim.com will carry up-to-the-minute details of his progress.
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