Open water swimming is a growing sport in British Columbia (BC) with swimmers tackling distances from 800m to over 90km in both organized events and as solo events.
Annabelle “Ann” (Mundigel) Meraw (b 23 Feb 1917, Powell River) is one of our province’s most prolific open water swimmers completing the first ever swim from Vancouver (English Bay) to Bowen Island (22 km) in seven hours 14 minutes (1938). She also set a new world endurance record of 25 hrs 1 min and a world speed record of 51.2 km in 16 hrs 14 mins in Okanagan Lake. Her longest swim, and one of the longest recorded swims by a British Columbian, was 88 km in 32 hrs 12 mins in that same lake. Because of WWII she had to abandon plans to swim the English Channel. She retired in 1982 and was inducted into the BC Sports Hall of Fame in 1985.
Our organized open water swim events capture swims by a number of BC’s masters however there is a group of swimmers who have been swimming longer events as soloists who’s efforts have gone unrecorded. MSABC is pleased to sanction and ratify swims for those who are swimming in bodies of water in British Columbia for distances over 10km. MSABC has a team of trained observers, many of them English Channel swimmers, who are happy to spend a day on the water documenting your swim. Our committee will then review the final documentation for ratification.
We are also documenting and maintaining records of marathon swims by British Columbian’s, and in our BC waters. Below is a list of the swims we are aware of. If you would like your swim officially observed or ratified or know of someone who should be added to the list below please contact us.
Note:
- unassisted = swimsuit, cap and goggles only
- assisted = wetsuit or other assistive device
UNASSISTED SWIMS
British Columbia Unassisted Lake & River Swims
| Year | Name | M/F | From | Location | Distance | Time |
| 1956 | Ann (Mundigel) Meraw | F | BC | Okanagan Lake | 67km | 25:01:00 |
| 1958 | Ann (Mundigel) Meraw | F | BC | Okanagan Lake | 88km | 32:12:00 |
| 1959 | Ann (Mundigel) Meraw | F | BC | Okanagan Lake | 51km | 16:14:00 |
| 1966 | Mike Powley | M | BC | Kalamalka Lake | 18km | |
| 2002 | Laura Harris | F | BC | Cowichan Lake | 34km | 9:30:00 |
| 2002 | Lee Ann Wilkinson-Sirup | F | BC | Cowichan Lake | 34km | 9:40:00 |
| 2013 | Alex Cape | F | BC | Cowichan Lake | 34km | |
| 2013 | Susan Simmons | F | BC | Cowichan Lake | 34km | |
| 2014 | Alex Cape | F | BC | Cowichan Lake | 70km | 32:00:00 |
| 2014 | Susan Simmons | F | BC | Cowichan Lake | 70km | 32:00:00 |
| 2015 | Alex Cape | F | BC | Cowichan Lake | 91km | 56:00:00 |
| 2015 | Susan Simmons | F | BC | Cowichan Lake | 44km | 20:00:00 |
| 2016 | Susan Simmons | F | BC | Cowichan Lake | 34km | 16:00:00 |
| 2018 | Spirit Orcas (Cheyenne Furlong-Goos, Dixon McGowan, Drew Sabourin, Maria Sharock, Ben Vanlierop, and Aly White) | M/F | BC | Cowichan Lake | 34km | 14:00:00 |
Juan de Fuca Strait 30 km unassisted
distance based on straight line crossing, swimmers may have swum more
| Year | Name | From | M/F | Direction | Time | |
| 1955 | Bert Thomas | Washington | M | US-Can | 11:22 | |
| 1956 | Cliff Lumsdon | Ontario | M | BC-WA | 11:35. | |
| 1956 | Amy HIland | California | F | WA-BC | 10:51. | |
| 1956 | Ben Laughren | BC | M | WA-BC | 10:17 | |
| 1956 | Marilyn Bell | ON | F | WA-BC | 10:38 | |
| 1989 | Vicki Keith butterfly | ON | F | WA-BC | 14:01 | |
| 2017 | Susan Simmons (swim log) | BC | F | WA-BC | 10:06 | |
NOTE: For other swims across Juan de Fuca Strait please visit our American counterpart, the North West Openwater Swim Association (NOWSA).
Strait Of Georgia 29km Unassisted
| Year | Name | M/F | From | Time |
| 1967 | Ernst Yacub | M | BC | 11:13:00 |
| 1967 | Mike Powley | M | BC | 9:23:00 |
| 1972 | Fran Caldwell | F | BC | |
| 1978 | John McDermott | M | BC | |
| 1998 | Shane Collins | M | BC | 9:55:00 |
| 2010 | Rod Craig | M | BC | 9:50:00 |
| 2010 | James Monk | M | BC | 9:35:00 |
| 2010 | Relay Team (Jim Close, Bill Burton, Mike Stamhuis Claire Both) | M/F | BC | 9:45 |
| 2012 | Okanagan Lake Monsters Relay Team (Mike Stamhuis, Leora Dahl, Paul Duffield, Tracey Sutton, Phred Martin, Denise Cesselli) | M/F | BC | |
| 2014 | Rachel Schoeler | F | BC | 13:38 |
| 2015 | Jessi Harewicz | F | BC | 11:20 |
Bowen Island 30 km unassisted
| Year | Name | From | M/F | Time | ||
| 1995 | Shane Collins | BC | M | unknown | ||
| 1997 | Debbie Collins | BC | F | unknown | ||
| 2008 | Brent Hobbs | BC | M | 9:21 | ||
| 2010 | Mike Humphreys | BC | M | 11:20 | ||
| 2017 | Emily Epp | BC | F | 10:45 |
Other Unassisted British Columbia Ocean Swims
continuous swims over 10 km.
| Year | Name | From | M/F | Location | Distance | Time |
| 2016 | Susan Simmons | BC | F | Ocean Falls-Bella Bella | staged 25km / 25km | |
| 2016 | Dale Robinson | BC | M | Ocean Falls-Bella Bella | staged 15km / 11km | |
| 2017 | Susan Simmons | BC | F | Lama Pass – Inside Passage | 10km / 10km | |
| 2018 | Susan Simmons | BC | F | Lama Pass to Fisher Channel | staged 6km / 6km | |
| 2019 | Susan Simmons | BC | F | Fisher, the Burke Namu & Koeye | 18km / 14km | |
| 2019 | Spirit Orcas (Cheyenne Furlong-Goos, Dixon McGowan, Drew Sabourin, Maria Sharock, Ben Vanlierop, and Aly White) | M/F | BC | Gunboat Pass to Bella Bella | 20KM | |
| 2019 | Susan Simmons | BC | F | Haro Strait | 16km |
BC English Channel Swimmers 34km unassisted
distance based on straight line crossing, swimmers may have swum more
| Year | Name | M/F | Time | ||
| 1951 | Winnie Leuszler Roach | F | 13:25 | ||
| 1995 | Shane Collins | M | 13:59:00 | ||
| 2008 | Brent Hobbs | M | 10:44 | ||
| 2010 | Rod Craig | M | 12:21 | ||
| 2013 | Okanagan Lake Monsters Relay Team (Mike Stamhuis, Leora Dahl, Tracey Sutton, Phred Martin, Denise Cesselli) | M/F | 13:41 | ||
| 2016 | Scott Chris & Rachel Schoeler | M/F | |||
| 2017 | Jessi Harewicz | F | |||
| 2017 | Emily Epp | F | 11:57 | ||
| 2017 | Jessi Harewicz | F | 17:34 | ||
| 2016 | Team Crazy Canucks: Elaine Davidson, Janet Robertson, Jamie Williams, John Ostrom, Chris Lough, Charlie Llewelvn | M/F | 13:47 |
BC Swimmers in Other International Waters unassisted
distance based on straight line crossing, swimmers may have swum more
| Year | Name | M/F | Locations | Distance | Time |
| 2018 | Jessi Harewicz | F | Mercer Island | 20 km | 8:21.42 |
| 2018 | Jessi Harewicz | F | Catalina Channel | 32 km | 15:30.03 |
| 2019 | Nicholas Duprey | M | Swim Around Key West | 20 km | 4:54:31 |
| 2019 | Kisu Masters: Elaine Davidson, Janet Robertson, Janice Johnston | F | Catalina Channel | 32 km | 13:40:23 |
ASSISTED SWIMS
Assisted British Columbia Ocean and Lake Swims
continuous swims over 10 km.
| Year | Name | From | M/F | Location | Distance | Time | Assistance |
| 1992 | Fin Donnelly | BC | M | Strait of Georgia | 29km | – | wetsuit |
| 1993 | Fin Donnelly | BC | M | Strait of Georgia | 29km | – | wetsuit |
| 1993 | Fin Donnelly | BC | M | Fraser River staged | – | – | wetsuit |
| 1994 | Fin Donnelly | BC | M | Strait of Georgia | 29km | – | wetsuit |
| 1994 | Fin Donnelly | BC | M | 9:45:00 | 30km | 10:15 | wetsuit |
| 1995 | Fin Donnelly | BC | M | Fraser River staged | – | – | wetsuit |
| 1995 | Fin Donnelly | BC | M | Strait of Georgia | 29km | – | wetsuit |
| 1996 | Fin Donnelly | BC | M | Strait of Georgia | 29km | – | wetsuit |
| 2011 | Georgia Girls (Susan Simmons, Rhonda Renning Talbot, Karen Tannas, Jennifer Leach-Trask) | BC | F | Strait of Georgia | 29km | 9:35:00 | wetsuit |
| 2011 | Relay Team (Jim Close, Ken Simpson, Deborah Robertson, Kayleigh Robertson, Will Rogers) | BC | M/F | Strait of Georgia | 29km | 9:45:00 | wetsuit |
| 2016 | Jill Yoneda | BC | F | Ocean Falls-Bella Bella | 25km | wetsuit, fins | |
| 2017 | Jill Yoneda | BC | F | Strait of Juan de Fuca WA-BC | 30km | 10:37 | wetsuit, fins |
Interested in open water swimming? Here’s a few links to help get you started:
- Vancouver Island – Thetis Lake Swim for MS
- Lower Mainland – Vancouver Open Water Swim Association
- Okanagan – Across the Lake Swim
Marathon swims are generally defined as non-stop swims in open bodies of water of at least 10 km (6.2 miles) in distance. This distance is accepted by the International Olympic Committee, FINA, many national swimming federations and the International Marathon Swimming Hall of Fame, although some define a marathon swimming distance as 15 miles, 25 km or 20 miles. It can also refer to ultra marathon swims of distances greater than 10 kilometers.