50-year-old swims beneath Antarctic ice sheet to raise awareness about climate change

50-year-old Lewis Pugh became the first person to swim beneath an ice sheet in Antarctica and did it to raise awareness about climate change.

By: Trends Desk

New Delhi | Updated: January 28, 2020 10:44 AM IST

3 min read

With the water temperature being just above zero degrees celsius, Lewis Pugh spent around eight minutes in the water to swim beneath the largest glacier on the planet in Antarctica.

A 50-year-old endurance swimmer from England became the first person to swim beneath an ice sheet in Antarctica on Monday to raise awareness about climate change.

Lewis Pugh from Plymouth swam in the Antarctic river beneath the largest glacier on the planet wearing nothing but swimming trunks, a cap and goggles. With the water temperature thought to be only just a few degrees above zero, Pugh completed the swim in about eight minutes.

“I swam here in East Antarctica to bring you this message: Having witnessed the rapid melting in this region, I have no doubt that we are now facing a climate emergency. At #COP26, world leaders need to step up or step aside. Time is running out,” he in a tweet.

Pugh, who claims to be the first person to complete a long-distance swim in every ocean of the world, told BBC that it was the most “frightening swim” of his life. The swimmer risked being pulled through a crack in the ice sheet due to the “unstable” nature of the glaciers.

Here’s how people reacted to the feat:

https://twitter.com/JohnMck1969/status/1220770553696530432

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