Anjos D’Agua 3 Completes Travessia do Leme ao Pontal
Courtesy of Adherbal de Oliveira, Travessia do Leme ao Pontal, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
Adherbal de Oliveira, founder of the 36 km Travessia do Leme ao Pontal, reported about the success of the Anjos D`Água 3 Relay.
“The morning of August 9th was very special for the Anjos D’Agua 3 Relay by four Brazilian open water icons: 47-year-old Fabio Favaretto Mathias, 49-year-old Marta Mitsui Izo, 65-year-old Joel Szmelsztayn Kriger, and 63-year-old Renato Tamotsu Takeyama.
All members will challenge themselves later this year in the English Channel. They all came to Rio de Janeiro to challenge themselves at the Travessia do Leme ao Pontal as part of their Channel training. Kriger will challenge himself in a solo attempt across the English Channel in September. The others, Fabio, Marta and Renato, will attempt their Channel attempt in October in a relay.
Their relay started around midnight on a beautiful night in Rio de Janeiro. The sky was starry and the sea conditions were very
favorable with calm wind, southeast swells and crystal clear water with a water temperature of 23°C.
Everyone was very happy and determined to achieve their best performance. Fabio had a seasickness problem that got better when he started swimming. He kicked off the relay with a very strong pace of 77 strokes per minute.
Marta was the second in the water and always kept to a very constant pace with a technically solid stroke. Joel was the next in the water and was very fit and handled himself well in the currents and winds. Renato was the fourth swimmer who also showed great physical and mental fitness. Nothing shook the swimmer’s serenity.
The group continued swimming very hard kilometer by kilometer and addressed the ocean’s adversity with determination and strength.
At 10:30 am, the Anjos D´Água 3 Relay completed the longest and most beautiful crossing in Brazil when a large and lively group of swimmers welcomed them at Pontal Beach.”
Note: Despite nursing horrific shark attack wounds from a channel swim in Hawaii while recovering back home in Rio de Janeiro, Adherbal de Oliveira continues to administer and organize the 36 km Travessia do Leme ao Pontal with his typical passion and commitment.
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