Since 2011, the multi-talented marathon swimmer, musician, and politican Kathleen Wilson has organized the annual 12-mile Swim Around Charleston through the waterways and harbor of Charleston, South Carolina.
The swim has garnered plenty of positive vibes over the years.
58-year-old Ricardo Valdivia, an accomplished ocean swimmer and former collegiate swimmer at the University of Alabama [shown below], looked like he was about to win another title in his prolific open water swimming career. But 27-year-old Nick Arakelian of Michigan had other ideas.
Arakelian, also a former collegiate swimmer at Queens University of Charlotte, trailed behind Valdivia for 11 of the 12 miles around Charleston, but he dug deep in his first marathon race and picked up the pace over the last mile, overtaking Valdivia to win in 4 hours 21 minutes, 3 minutes ahead of Valdivia (shown below).
Sarah Swoch, a 38-year-old from St. Petersburg, Florida, won the women’s division, finishing 10th overall.
2023 Swim Around Charleston Results
- Nicholas Arakelian (27) 4:21:19
- Ricardo Valdivia (58) 4:24:19
- Jason Fox (46) 4:39:22
- John Moore (23) 4:39:46
- Stephen Rouch (43) 4:42:07
- Chris Allshourse (53) 4:45:32
- Michael Mulbarger (44) 4:46:13
- Steve Leitch (49) 4:48:45
- Chris Lietzow (37) 4:59:27
- Sarah Swoch (38) 4:59:47
- Suzanne Dearworth (51) 5:00:07
- Lorelie Schmidt (14) 5:04:00
- Bob Breital (55) 5:05:59
- Stephanie Saucy (60) 5:06:15
- Miranda Wingfield (28) 5:06:20
- David Hilton (13) 5:07:43
- Samantha Scharf (28) 5:08:44
- James Steinhiser (39) 5:11:44
- John Marian (59) 5:12:47
- Benjamin Gunn (34) 5:22:24
- James Jackson (49) 5:25:30
- Joseph Clay (34) 5:25:33
- Karlynn White (58) 5:33:30
- Tom Bell (54) 5:34:43
- Carsten Hoerschgens-Ham (18) CARSTEN HOERSCHGENS-HAM 05:34:45 26:59 M 18 ROCK HILL, SC
- Landon Sanford (29) 5:44:01
- Paul Valitutto (52) 5:51:13
- Ross Simmons (60) 5:53:41
- Jan Burton (60) 6:00:32
- Andrew Westbrook (58) 6:05:00
- Natalie Cowart (34) 6:09:46
- Kathy Bradshaw (50) 6:17:31
- Summer Wesson (46) 6:25:22
- Mary Stella (46) 6:29:04
- Erin O’Leary (43) 6:56:24
Historical Overall Winners
- 2011: Mallory Mead (25) 3:58.52
- 2012: Morgan Sawin 4:13:32
- 2013: Matt Maurer (36) 4:35:46
- 2014: Matt Maurer (37) 4:40:29
- 2015: Cheryl Reinke (51) 4:41:16
- 2016: Matt Mauer (39) 4:23:24
- 2017: Sandra Frimerman (34) 4:31:47
- 2018: canceled due to Hurricane Florence
- 2019: Bob Tarr (41) 4:14:23
- 2020: Alex Kostich (50) 4:13:29
- 2021: Michael Rice (37) 4:07:23
- 2022: Chris Allshouse (52) 4:33:09
- 2023: Nicholas Arakelian (27) 4:21:19
© 2023 Daily News of Open Water Swimming
“to educate, enthuse, and entertain all those who venture beyond the shoreline“