Lake record for Special Olympian
Two young Special Olympians have swum across Lake Taupō with one breaking the record for the fastest time for a west to east crossing of the lake.
Auckland-based swimmers Tate Pichon, 25, and Joshua Vegar, 22, took on the challenge of swimming 33km across Lake Taupō on Friday to raise funds for their clubmates to compete at the National Summer Games in Hamilton in December.
Pichon, who swims for the North Harbour Special Olympics club, broke the record for the crossing finishing in a time of 10 hours and 26 minutes.
Vegar finished his swim 23 minutes later, but even more impressive was the fact that neither swimmer had swum more than 20km before.
‘‘Next year you can do this and I’ll be on the boat,’’ Pichon told his support crew as he climbed out of the water on the eastern shore of Lake Taupō.
‘‘How do I feel? Good. Don’t ask me again,’’ he said.
Pichon’s father Ray said the idea for the fundraiser was born last year when the Freemasons New Zealand Special Olympics National Summer Games had to be postponed by a year due to the Covid pandemic.
‘‘So they have been building up to this for some time,’’ Ray Pichon said.
While the pair were tested both mentally and physically, both athletes still had energy left for some terrific post-swim banter, splashing their support crews, who in return retaliated with water pistols.
Ray Pichon said the two friends had done several longdistance swims before, but the Taupō crossing was a whole new challenge.
‘‘They have done quite a few 5km and 10km swims before and have done one 20km swim, but this was next level.’’
He said the duo had done more than 400km in the water to prepare for their crossing this year.
Pinchon and Vegar have become familiar faces in the Ocean Swim Series, the Takapuna Beach Series and O Swim events where they have already conquered Akaroa Harbour, Wellington Harbour, Under the Harbour Bridge and Bean Rock Lighthouse events.
The Special Olympics athletes have been training with ultraswimmers Claire Hobson and Susan Sherwen.
Sherwen recently made headlines when she swam across Foveaux Strait.
‘‘The support has been absolutely amazing,’’ says Ray Pichon.
More than 1200 athletes will compete in 10 sports across eight venues around Hamilton from December 8 as part of the National Summer Games.