Courtesy of WOWSA, Huntington Beach, California.

Klein Curaçao (English: Little Curaçao) is a small uninhabited island south-east of Curaçao in the Caribbean Sea. Part of the country of Curaçao, it has an old lighthouse that oversees the gorgeous diving spots, coral reef, and underwater caves that encircle the island.

Amid the colorful fish and sea turtles that engulf the island, André Nottelman (left above) and Erwin Ruijsink (right above) plan to swim from Klein Curaçao to Curaçao, a distance up to 16 km depending on where the currents will take them. Because of the deep waters and strong winds around Curaçao, the duo may be fighting some challenging conditions as they approach their destination.

Nottelman, a sergeant in the Netherlands Marine Core and an instructor at the Dutch Caribbean Coast Guard, completed a 76 km run “Round of Aruba” most recently.

Erwin Ruijsink is a Lieutenant Commander in the Royal Netherlands Navy working as the head of the Rescue Coordination Centre of the Dutch Caribbean Coast Guard on Curacao. He was a competitive swimmer at the national level in his youth. “Recently due to the ideal weather and sea conditions on the island, I am swimming more and more in the open water.”

Ruijsink explains the expected conditions. “The wind is still heavy. We expect that in July and August, the wind will diminish due to hurricane season more north. If the sea’s conditions are suitable, we’ll do the crossing. The hazards in our waters include small sharks, jellyfish, including Portugese man o war and currents up to 1 knot.

We want to get some local media attention in order to raise the awareness for the importance of swimming. Many island kids do not have swimming abilities, but they play close to water with all its dangers.”

Copyright © 2014 by World Open Water Swimming Association