The countdown is now underway for the start of British endurance swimmer Anna Wardley’s bid to become the first person to swim 215km from Menorca to mainland Spain via Mallorca and Ibiza.

Anna and her support team have set a provisional window to tackle the first leg of her Balearic Swim Challenge from 17-24 May. The 40-year old British swimmer, who lives in between Gosport in the UK and Colònia Sant Jordi in Mallorca, will swim the 20 nautical miles (37 km) separating Menorca and Mallorca in just a swimsuit, cap and goggles under strict Channel swimming rules ratified by independent observers.

Weather-permitting Anna will start the first stage of the Balearic Swim Challenge from Menorca on the evening of Thursday 19 May and will finish in Mallorca the afternoon of the following day.

Only 11 people have swam across the Menorca Channel since British swimmer Kendall Mellor successfully completed the crossing in October 1968. It is widely recognised as a challenging swim due to the distance, which is akin to the English Channel, exposure to northerly winds, strong currents and jellyfish.

Anna is taking on these gruelling swims to raise funds for three Mallorca-based charities: Joves Navegants, Marine Inspirations and the Marine Animal Rescue Project.

To prepare for the challenge Anna has been training throughout the winter to ensure that she is mentally and physical prepared for what lies ahead.

One of Anna’s partners for the challenge is the Palma Sport & Tennis Club in Santa Catalina. The newly-opened club, located in the heart of Palma, features a 25m outdoor pool, five floodlit tennis courts, state of the art gym equipment, a wide range of fitness classes, hot yoga studio, Pilates, climbing wall, spa and restaurant serving healthy food.

“It’s great to be training at the Palma Sport & Tennis Club. It’s a great place to prepare myself for this immense challenge with its state of the art facilities, super friendly staff, a fantastic open air pool and a lovely spa to relax in when my muscles are sore from the relentless training,” Anna said.

In the lead up to her swim from Menorca to Mallorca Anna will be building up her time in the sea including completing a number of night swims. She is always accompanied by support craft and at night she has port and starboard lights on her goggle straps so that her support team can keep a close eye on her at all times.

During the Palma Boat Show on Sunday 1 May, Anna plans to swim from Cabo Blanco to Palma Cathedral, a distance of approximately 12 nautical miles. You will be able to follow Anna’s progress via her YB tracker unit at www.annawardley.com

“My swim across the Bay of Palma is a great opportunity to raise awareness about my Balearic Swim Challenge and the three charities I’m raising funds for whilst everybody is in town for the Palma Boat Show. All the charities are marine-related and I hope that marine businesses will get behind what I’m doing to help me raise valuable funds for these great causes,” Anna said.

Anna’s fundraising has been kick-started by a generous donation of €1,000 from the Calvia branch of Rotary International. The group made the donation after the endurance swimmer and charity fundraiser to spoke about her Balearic Swim Challenge at its lunch meeting at the Santa Ponsa Golf Club in January.

To support Anna by making a donation to her three chosen charities visit www.annawardley.com

Anna is also seeking sponsors in order to be able to complete the second and third legs of the challenge from Mallorca to Ibiza and from Ibiza to Denia. To find out more about the sponsorship packages available email: info@annawardley.com

PS pics swimming in front of the Cathedral are credit: Sofia Winghamre