Courtesy of WOWSA, Huntington Beach, California.

Cristian Vergara and his support team are ready for his unprecedented 38-mile (61 km) circumnavigation swim of Easter Island on Tuesday, November 29th.

Crew member Capri Djatiasmoro reports, “The water temperature is 72°F (22°C) for the expected swim of 24 hours or less. The Internet WiFi communication is sparse on Easter Island due to the volcanic magnetic fields, but his tracker is here.”

After training with Aguas Abiertas Concón in Concón, Chile, Vergara is now on Easter Island, 3,512 km (2,182 miles) away from the nearest point in Chile.

Logistically and operationally, Vergara is well-prepared. “I have the support of the Chilean Armada and the Municipality of Easter Island. Boat support will be done by the founders of Orca Diving, two French brothers, one of whom formerly crewed for Jacques Cousteau. The boat support and crew will take 8-hour shifts until the swim ends. I will swim next to a kayak the entire swim.”

The Municipality of Easter Island has promoted this pioneering circumnavigation swim as part of the celebration of the 50 years that Chilean citizenship was granted to the people of Easter Island. “I have been planning this swim for many years and it’s finally going to happen,” said Vergara.

Vergara’s swim is among the nominees for the 2016 World Open Water Swimming Performance of the Year:

1. Toshio Tominaga (Japan) Tsugaru Channel Crossing
2. Craig Dietz (Jordan-Israel)
3. Sarah Thomas (USA) Lake Powell Crossing
4. Jennifer Figge (USA) Bermuda Triangle Swim
5. Pieter Christian Jongeneel Anderica (Spain) Double Manhattan Circumnavigation
6. Dan Canta (Romania) Triple Crown of Open Water Swimming
7. Sean Conway (Great Britain) Swim Leg of the World’s Longest Triathlon
8. Hudson Brothers (Great Britain) Into the Maelstrom
9. Cristian Vergara (Chile) Easter Island Circumnavigation
10. Jarrod Poort (Australia) Olympic 10K Marathon Swim
11. Javier Mérida Prieto (Spain) Triple Crown of Open Water Swimming
12. Patrick McKnight (USA) Triple Crown of Open Water Swimming
13. Spyridon Gianniotis (Greece) Olympic 10K Marathon Swim
14. Malvinas/Falklands Islands Challenge by Matías Ola (Argentina) and Jackie Cobell (Great Britain)
15. Stephanie Hopson (USA) English Channel Crossing
16. Carol Schumacher Hayden (USA) Catalina Channel Crossing
17. Vasilly Mosin (Russia) Winter Swimming

To vote for the WOWSA Awards, visit here. Online voting continues until December 31st 2016.

Follow Vergara here.

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