25-year-old Anna Fugina was the first person in history to successfully complete a 20.1 km circumnavigation swim around Key West, Florida – the southernmost point of the continental U.S.A. Her swim of 12 hours 59 minutes on the 4th of July in 1977 was the catalyst of the Swim Around Key West race organized by Bill Welzien [shown above with Fugina].
The young Fugina had suffered injuries from a car accident and used swimming as therapy to assist in recovery. The next year in 1978, Fugina finished the 20.1 km Swim Around Key West in 8 hours, a significant improvement. As a retired nurse now 71 years old, she continues to participate in the event that she spearheaded. She competes, helps organize escort kayakers, answers questions from swimmers, and unselfishly perform many of the little underappreciated behind-the-scenes duties that volunteers do – 47 years after her first pioneering around-the-island swim.
She explains her track record in the event, “I have not missed an Annual Swim Around Key West. I have swum solo, 2-person or 3-person swims throughout the Annual Swim Around Key West history. My best solo swim time was 6 hours 25.30 minutes which was second place overall on July 11th 1987. If all goes well, I plan to register in the solo division in the 2024 swim when I will be 72 years old.“
The 48th annual Swim Around Key West, presented and organized by Anna Fugina, will be held on June 22nd 2024, starting and finishing from Higgs Beach.
Former 4-time winner Bill Welzien has completed a career total of 136 circumnavigation swims around Key West, including his 6 hour 50 minute circumnavigation in the 2023 event. Welzien will be 74 when he heads to the starting line of the April 2024 edition – attempting his 137th circumnavigation around Key West.
Any solo swimmer finishing in first place and breaking the time of 3 hours 31 minutes 28 seconds, the record set by Gabe Lindsey in 1999, will be awarded US$1,000 at the awards ceremony following the Swim.
The solo division is limited to 150 swimmers, the 2-person relay is limited to 10 teams, and the 3-person relays is limited to 10 teams.
For more information and registration, visit swimaroundkeywest.com.
2023 – 47th Annual Swim Around Key West, Solo Swimmer Results
- Nikko Price 4 hours 36.33 minutes
- Craig Frederiksen 4 hours 36.41 minutes
- Tim Hancock 4 hours 51.00 minutes
- Eric Sullivan 4 hours 53.55 minutes
- Ashley Honey 5 hours 8.51 minutes
- Juan Manuel Gonzalez 5 hours 12.23 minutes
- Justin Schnute 5 hours 14.27 minutes
- David T Speier 5 hours 27.27 minutes
- Jonathan Hernandez 5 hours 46.26 minutes
- Renato Cãesar Garcia 5 hours 53.55 minutes
- Jay Jackson 5 hours 54.26 minutes
- Steve Young 5 hours 55.17 minutes
- David Watterson 6 hours 0.44 minutes
- Gene W Fober 6 hours 2.21 minutes
- Rob Rennebaum 6 hours 9.41 minutes
- David Bellville 6 hours 10.43 minutes
- Jeanne DeBonis 6 hours 19.03 minutes
- Ivan Pancic 6 hours 36.34 minutes
- Katherine Arrizza 6 hours 49.41 minutes
- Bill Welzien 6 hours 50.31 minutes
- Bill Haselden 6 hours 50.35 minutes
- Darren Osborne 6 hours 59.07 minutes
- Pamela Anne Coleman 7 hours 31.00 minutes
- Paul Grassie 7 hours 56.40 minutes
- Debra Tirrito DNF
- Cooper Acord DNF
- Erika Beauchamp DNF
- Diego Rodrigues DNF
- Anna Fugina DNF
2023 – 47th Annual Swim Around Key West, 2-Person Relay Results
- Izabella Wreski and Julia Wreski 5 hours 12.41 minutes
2023 – 47th Annual Swim Around Key West, 3-Person Relay Results
- Nathan Rieck, Paul Rieck, Stephen Rieck 5 hours 32.10 minutes
- Heather Heagman, Todd Coates, Barb McEahern 5 hours 43.07 minutes
- Alejandro Brokke, Juan Pablo Fallas, Gabriela Villalobos 5 hours 51.22 minutes
- Carol Koiro, Floyd Blackwell, Teressa Tallon 6 hours 19.30 minutes
© 2024 Daily News of Open Water Swimming
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