Courtesy of WOWSA, Huntington Beach, California.
Creator Kate Webber and 435 Kickstarter backers gave US$36,379 to help develop the Kim Swims documentary.
Protagonist Kimberley Chambers is in San Diego, California speaking in front of over 10,000 people, performing a stand-up gig with comedian and actor Jordan Peele.
Peele is best known for starring in the Comedy Central sketch series Key & Peele – and tomorrow he will be on stage with the New Zealand marathon swimmer.
Chambers is co-hosting an event for Adobe, best known for Photoshop, its image editing software [see here]. “We will showcase the latest technology from our engineers and designers. Last year, I co-hosted with comedian Nick Offerman.”
This year, she was invited back to co-host with Peele where the duo will improv the whole thing for 90 minutes. “No script! For me, it’s just like jumping off a boat in the middle of the ocean. An adrenaline rush like no other Woo! This is a huge honor, and I am so proud to work for a company that celebrates and supports the strengths of its employees.”
Meanwhile, KIM SWIMS director Kate Webber begins a Seed & Spark crowdfunding campaign today that will run until December 2nd.
“The link to our campaign will be KIM SWIMS. Getting 30% of pledges early on (i.e., the first three days) is key to our campaign’s potential success. I am so excited to share Kim’s inspiring story and our sport with as wide an audience as we can bring in.”
Webber explains about the nominated World Open Water Swimming Offering of the Year.* “KIM SWIMS is the inspiring story of an accomplished marathon swimmer’s attempt to become the first woman to swim 30 miles through a stretch of cold, rough and shark-inhabited waters off of the San Francisco coast.
After an accident left Kim Chambers minutes from amputation, with a mere 1% chance of walking unassisted again, she started to swim in a pool as part of her rehabilitation. On a dare, she went swimming in the cold waters of the San Francisco Bay and never looked back. In a few short years she has become one of the most accomplished and admired open water swimmers in the world.
The film follows Kim as she chases her biggest dream yet: to become the first woman to complete a solo swim from the Farallon Islands to the Golden Gate Bridge – a 30-mile stretch of water know for frigid temperatures, swirling currents and the world’s largest Great White sharks. Many consider it to be the hardest marathon swim in the world, and rightfully so, as only 4 other men have completed the swim. Through the physically and emotionally challenging lead-up to the swim, the swim itself, and the candid interviews with her and others, we present a look into what propels Kim to conquer her fear, pursue her passion and achieve her greatest potential, and hopefully inspire others to do the same.
After years of struggle and sacrifice, Kim has inspired others to reconsider what is truly possible from within oneself – in everyday life and
in the open water. Personable, humble and profoundly eloquent, she is a role model in her rehabilitation and monumental swimming achievements. For her goal-setting mentality, for her laughter and motivational spirit, for her genuine willingness to share everything she has experienced along the way.”
For more information, visit #kimswimsfilm and #kimswims.
* The nominees for the World Open Water Offering of the Year are as follows:
1. Prison Island Swims (International)
2. KIM SWIMS (USA)
3. Samsung Bosphorus Cross-Continental Swim (Turkey)
4. Ocean City Swim Club Unified Team / Legion of Ocean Heroes Surf Lifesaving Festival (USA)
5. KAATSU Aqua (Japan)
6. Hawaiʻi Tiger Shark Tracking (USA)
7. OceanFit (Australia)
8. The Power of Swimming or Simma med Stjärnorna (Sweden)
9. Wildswim.com (United Kingdom)
10. Instabeat (International)
11. Terroir Project Collection (Denmark)
12. Agar Plasticity (Japan)
13. Swimming in the Sink: An Episode of the Heart by Lynne Cox (USA)
14. Global Alert Platform by the Ocean Recovery Alliance (Hong Kong)
15. Blue Mind Summits by Dr. Wallace J. Nichols (International)
To vote for the WOWSA Awards, visit here. Voting continues until December 31st 2016.
Copyright © 2016 by World Open Water Swimming Association