SAINT PAUL, Minnesota(MindaNews / 25 July) — Filipino open water swimmer Ingemar “Pinoy” Aquaman and four others aborted Sunday (US time) their 10-kilometer swim across Lake Michigan due to rough waters.
The team kickstarted their swim but pulled out from the lake due to big swells brought by windy condition.
The Surigao-born triathlete and the other swimmers aimed to do a marathon swim for a distance of at least 10 kilometers.
An environmental lawyer, he swam with Filipino-American multi-sports enthusiasts Rey Letada, Nick Regorgo, Cynthia Garcia and Kylee Marie Guiriba.
“The swim had to be stopped because of the rough water condition,” said Merry Ann Cabajes-Carandang, one of the Filipinos witnessing the swim.
This was not the first time Macarine’s swim had to be stopped. In August 2017, Macarine’s second attempt to cross the English Channel (UK to France) was also aborted due to rough weather conditions.
Macarine and his companions managed to swim Lake Michigan for only five kilometers before aborting it.
Neophyte open water swimmers Regorgo, Garcia and Guiriba got out of the water in the early part of the swim for safety reasons.
“We had to shorten the swim from the planned 10-kilometer because of bad weather conditions,” Macarine said.
“Thank you, Lord, for the swim opportunity. Though the weather did not cooperate today, we really enjoyed the swim,” he added.
Macarine, who pioneered open water crossing in the Philippines, said the Lake Michigan swim serves as a restart of his open water swimming career after a long hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
His open water swim is anchored on his lifetime advocacies on clean ocean water, pollution-free marine environment and healthy lifestyle. (Roel N. Catoto / MindaNews)
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