Swim with Olympians in St. Croix.
12th Annual St. Croix, Virgin Islands Coral Reef Swim
Features Four Olympic Swimmers;
Race to be held Sun., Oct. 21, 2007 to Benefit The Nature Conservancy
Swim with Olympians in St. Croix.
Christiansted, St. Croix, USVI (August 19, 2007)--- The Coral Reef Swim, one of America’s most successful swim competitions, will feature four well-known Olympic swimmers during its 12th annual race Sunday, October 21, 2007, in St. Croix in the U.S. Virgin Islands.
The Olympians are three-time gold medalist and world record holder Amanda Beard; Hall of Famer Rowdy Gaines, who won three Gold Medals in the 1984 Games in Los Angeles and will return to the Olympics in 2008 as a commentator, Margaret Hoelzer, a world champion and American record holder in the 200m backstroke, who is currently training for a medal in Beijing in 2008 and Sydney Olympics Gold Medalist in the 200m fly, Misty Hyman. The Olympians will be swimming in both the solo and relay events and will be involved in other race related events.
Distinguished swimmers also include Pan American Gold Medalist Alex Kostich.
Competitive swimmers, swim coaches and swim enthusiasts from throughout the world will join the Olympians on a course from Buck Island, a U.S. underwater coral reef park, to The Buccaneer, a luxury destination resort on St. Croix’s east end. The Buccaneer’s general manager, Elizabeth Armstrong, is the event’s creator and organizer.
Net proceeds from the Swim will be donated to The Nature Conservancy, which has been instrumental in establishing the East End Marine Park surrounding St. Croix. The Swim is sponsored by Hovensa, which allows for maximum proceeds to flow to the beneficiary.
The Coral Reef Swim navigates the waters of the sensitive East End Marine Park, home to coral reefs, endangered fish species and fisheries, and a high density of green and hawksbill sea turtles who return to shore to nest every summer. The first territorial park in the U.S. Virgin Islands, the East End Marine Park, protects the largest island barrier reef system in the Caribbean.
The race begins on world-famous Buck Island, which boasts a spectacular beach and living coral reef designated as an underwater park by the National Park Service, continues across a starfish-speckled, blue channel and then along St. Croix’s shoreline of colorful reefs and sandy bottom. The Swim concludes at the main beach of The Buccaneer, where a palm lined finish line and steel pan band greet swimmers along with families and friends.
The 2007 Coral Reef Swim entry fee is $84 per swimmer, which covers a pre-race gathering on October 20 at the Buccaneer, an awards lunch, tee shirt, swim cap, taxi to the boat and the boat ride to the race start on Buck Island. Swimmers can swim the five mile event solo (with or without fins) or participate as part of a three person relay.