By: Curtis Morton
It was a woman who crossed the finish line first. Her name is Valerie and she works for Scuba Safari located at Oualie Beach.
This as the 2015 13th annual Bente Weber memorial swim took place on Sunday 5th April. The annual event continues to offer both a race and a challenge to open water swim enthusiasts and adventurers alike.
In 2014 the event saw a record number of finishers (184) and in 2011 the current course record was set by Olivier Marceau in a time of 58:09.
Valerie was just short of the record, completing the course in just over an hour.
The swim distance is 2.5miles (4km) from Oualie Beach on Nevis across the ‘Narrows’ to finish at Cockleshell Beach on St Kitts.
Approximately 166 persons participated from countries such as the USA; UK; China; Aruba; Trinidad and Tobago; St.Maarten; St.Kitts-Nevis and many more.
Some 103 persons participated in the unassisted swim, while the others took part in the assisted category which allowed them to utilize snorkels and fins.
The swimmers climaxed the race at Reggae Beach where a prize giving ceremony was held and all of the participants received medals.
The overall results were not immediately available.