Elite Swimmer Nathan Hughes kicks off the last minute preparations for the John West Great East Swim, Suffolk’s biggest swimming event.
Back in the summer the Great East Swim team asked me to do the last minute promotional photography for the Great East Swim at Alton Water in Suffolk. For the last few years I’ve also photographed the main event, but unfortunately this year I was booked elsewhere and couldn’t attend.
In preparation for the event a group of swimmers from the Suffolk Fire and Rescue Service teamed up with elite swimmer Nathan Hughes for the pre-event photo-shoot along with members of the East Anglian Air Ambulance team, who were this years nominated charity.
First launched back in 2009, this years event included swimming distances from 250mts to a 10k marathon swim. Members from the Suffolk Fire and Rescue team took part in every distance swam on the day with Station Commander Sally Hammond and Emma Punchard from the service joining in the photo-shoot. Two of the doctors from the Air Ambulance team swam in the event and were present at the photo-shoot. The Air Ambulance team also had one of their rapid response vehicles and a helicopter on display at the waterside for the public to see.
This years event saw John West sponsoring the swim for the first time as the title sponsor. John West also teamed up with Suffolk County Council and Suffolk NORSE to provide a 250 mtr event specifically for school children as part of the John West Great East Swim outreach programme.
Elite Swimmer Nathan Hughes has had an impressive season in 2019 and has been named Swim England’s Open Water Talent Athlete of the Year. Nathan from Hatfield in Hertfordshire gained his first European title by winning the Gold Medal in Racice for the 10km at the European Junior Open Water Swimming Championships earlier this year.
