Story by K.H. Ong
JELLY fish attacks will certainly be much reduced when participants of the 4th Penang International Cross-Channel Swim 2018 have to wear a full-body swimsuit, hood and gloves during the event on Sept 2.
Race director Tan Kuan Ling said the full-body swimsuit rule was made mandatory for this event although participants were encouraged to do so in the past.
She said another mandatory item is a swimmer safety buoy.
So far, about 150 entries have been received from Malaysia, China, United States and Britain. The organisers will accept a maximum of 200 entries each for competitive and non-competitive categories.
The 6km swim will start from Bagan Ajam R&R and end in front of Ocean Green Restaurant in Jalan Sultan Ahmad Shah.
Penang Island City Council (MBPP) mayor Datuk Yew Tung Seang, who chaired a meeting today with the various parties involved in the organising of the swim, said the safety of the swimmers is of paramount importance.
“We will only accept participants who have taken part in open-sea swim in the past one year,” Yew told reporters at the City Stadium.
“Doctors and specialists will be there to help us. There will be kayaks on standby and we will engage with hospitals if there is any emergency.”
Yew said the date of the swim was chosen after consulting a marine expert who believes that jelly fish would not be in abundance during the competition day.
The swim, held in conjunction with the Asian Pacific Games Masters (APMG) 2018 (from Sept 7-15), will begin after an APMG-Penang Cross-Channel Torch Swim is flagged off. The torch swim will start at 7.55am, followed a few minutes later by the competitive participants and then non-competitive participants.
National swimmer Kevin Yeap Soon Choy, who won the SEA Games 2017 10km Open-Water Swimming gold medal, and Penang’s ex-national swimmer Angelia Ong Su Lin will accompany the torch all the way, with Yew joining them in the first 500m and the last 500m.
The torch will then continue with its relay run in Penang island until Sept 8 for the opening ceremony at the City Stadium.
Also present at the press conference were police representatives and Butterworth Lifesaving Society member Adrian Pau.
The closing date for entries is July 31. For details, visit https://event.howei.com/event/apmg-penang-cross-channel-torch-swim-2018.