RAMANATHAPURAM: In a stellar achievement, a team of three women and four men swam across the Palk Strait on Monday. They started off from Talaimannar in Sri Lanka and reached Dhanushkodi in Tamil Nadu, which is located 30 km apart. Both teams completed the swim in 10 hours and 42 minutes.
According to sources, the Bengaluru swimmers achieved this feat while balancing their busy schedules and demanding profession, to become the first Indian relay team to swim across the Palk Strait. One of the swimmers, Suma, said she did the swim as a tribute to her late father, who had also swum across the Palk Strait in the early 70s.
"The swimming commenced at 5 am on Monday from Talaimannar and reached Dhanushkodi at 3.42 pm the same day. The swim was piloted by Angel Sailor Ocean Services and official observer Mr Rajesh Samathanam from Sports Development Authority of Tamil Nadu (SDAT) under the guidance of ultra-marathon swimmer Sucheta Deb Burman," sources added.
"The swimmers encountered jellyfish and marine life during the swim and were constantly challenged by the tide, cross winds and currents. However, they successfully completed the challenge by beating all the odds," sources said.
The women's team consisted of Suma BK Rao (53 ), Shivaranjini Krishnamurthy (41) and Manjari Chhawchharia (45), while the men's team consisted of Dr Prashanth Rajanna (45 yrs), Rajashekar T.V Reddy (52 yrs), Jayprakash Muniyal (55 yrs) and Ajath Anjappa (40 yrs).
While swimming over the Indian waters, the Indian Navy and Indian Coast Guard ensured their safety and the Sri Lankan Navy provided search and rescue (SAR) cover to the teams while swimming over Lankan waters.
Both the teams expressed their gratitude to the Open Water Swimmers Foundation (OWSF), Pamban Nesakkarangal Charitable Trust, Kadal Osai Community Radio, Mr Subodh Sule and the local authorities for their relentless support during the swim.