After more than 36 hours in the water, Oly Rush staggered through a scrim of sargassum fringing the beach, hauled himself to his feet and raised his arms aloft to accept the applause of a large crowd gathered at West Bay Dock.
He had set off, almost alone, from the same spot in the half-light at 5am the previous morning.
Now the 37-year-old plasterer from Dorset, England, enters the history books as the first person to swim around Grand Cayman.
Rush was greeted by friends, family and awed onlookers, briefly chanting “Oly, Oly, Oly” as he completed the record-breaking swim.
An ambulance was waiting to check his vital signs after a superhuman performance, swimming an estimated 60 miles over the course of two days and one night.
Despite the gruelling effort, he had enough energy to accept hugs and high-fives from well wishers.
His swim was in aid of Plastic Free Cayman to raise money and awareness of its mission to rid the waters around the islands of plastic pollution.
Rush, who broke the record for swimming around the Isle of Wight last year, set off from West Bay in the early hours of Monday. He had passed Barkers peninsula around 9am, heading for Rum Point.
By 8pm, he had reached East End and was approaching the halfway point in his swim.
“As we headed into sunset and the night portion of the swim, Oly continues to be strong, steady and in good spirits,” Plastic Free Cayman wrote in an emailed update from the safety boat on Monday night.
Despite swimming in deep waters through the night there were no shark encounters. The safety kayaks were equipped with shark guards that create an electromagnetic field to repel predators.
As the sun came up Tuesday, he had been swimming without pause for more than 24 hours and was approaching Bodden Town. After a day of toil against the currents, he hit George Town around 3pm, within touching distance of history.
It was quicker progress from then on, and with crowds following his every move, he powered along Seven Mile Beach to the finish. Two youngsters joined him for the final few miles, playing their part in a piece of sporting history for the islands.
Claire Hughes, of Plastic Free Cayman, which helped organise the event, and put on safety boats for the swim, said she hoped Oly’s efforts would raise awareness and put the promise of a single use plastic ban back on the table.
She said everyone involved had played a big part in his success.
“He is like Aquaman. He is an elite athlete. The Caymankind we saw today, it raised his spirits and he rose to his feet and he stood at the end. I am so proud of him and I am proud of Cayman.”
She said the swim had also raised funds for Plastic Free Cayman which hopes to hire staff on island and eventually open an office.
Pointing to the plastic pollution in the shallows around where Rush finished his swim, she said the problem had not gone away.
“We want people to open their eyes to plastic pollution,” she said.
“All governments in every country need to do more.”
- Additional reporting by Seaford Russell
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