Courtesy of WOWSA, Huntington Beach, California.

Ron Collins announced the 2015 class of swimmers who will compete in the Tampa Bay Marathon Swim.

“12 solo swimmers and three relay teams have entered the 18th Annual 24 Mile Tampa Bay Marathon Swim. Swimmers and their fans will be able to follow all of the action on race day via GPS tracker, Twitter and Facebook with updates, videos and pictures.”

“Every effort will be made to start the swim on Saturday, April 25th,” explains Collins. “If weather conditions are dangerous (high winds, thunderstorms, poor visibility) the start may be delayed or rescheduled to the next day, or an alternative race course may be substituted to adhere to safety guidelines.

Since this event was first staged in 1998, it has drawn competitors from across the United States, and from Great Britain, Guatemala, Italy, Mexico, Australia, Japan, Switzerland, Baliwick of Jersey, Argentina, Dominican Republic, Germany, India, Canada, and the Cayman Islands.”

Soloists Start List
Serbo Simeoni, 49, Safety Harbor, Florida
Katrin Walter, 37, Buttikon, Switzerland
Neil Leyland, 41, St. Charles, Missouri, USA
Maureen Montgomery, 54, Clearwater, Florida, USA
Katie Benoit, 36, Colorado Springs, Colorado, USA
Lesley Fanning, 47, Mt. Pleasant, South Carolina, USA
Andrew Truscott, 34, St. Helier, Baliwick of Jersey
Emma Schaefer, 26, West Bloomfield, Michigan, USA
Steve Gruenwald, 53, Faribault, Minnesota, USA
Katie Scott, 24, Haymarket, Virginia, USA
Andrew Heinrich, 43, Orlando, Florida, USA
Willy Blumentals, 42, Concord, Massachusetts, USA

Relay Start List
The Northwest 2-5-3 Way: Patrick Carlisle – 29, Katy Smith – 33, Chad Hagedorn – 43
Orangeburg Pirates: Franklin Fetzer – 57, Gilbert Miller – 62, Stacey Hughes – 46, Jeremy Sanders – 36, David Miller – 64
Capital Punishment: Bill Sullivan – 49, J. C. Boggs – 52, Mark Wainwright – 47, Karen Yankosky – 43

Tampa Bay Marathon Swim Records
7:41 – Chris Derks, 2002 (Overall & Men’s Record)
7:51 – Penny Palfrey, 2008 (Women’s Record)
16:17 – Arnie Bellini, 2014 (Swam the Longest)
9:52 – Ron Collins, 1998 (First Swimmer)
8:34 – Gail Rice, 1998 (First Woman)
7:53 – Team Hammerhead, 2006 (Fastest 3-person Relay)
7:39 – The Sharks, 2006 (Fastest 6-person Relay)
14:21 – Carl Selles, 2014 (Oldest Male Swimmer, age 67)
15:22 – Ann von Spiegelfeld, 2014 (Oldest Female Swimmer, age 52)

For more information, visit www.DistanceMatters.com or email Ron Collins at Email Homer.

Copyright © 2015 by World Open Water Swimming Association