What happens when you have an event team that is made up of swimmers, endurance athletes and coaches alongside a group of swimmers with goals that are determined to succeed whilst being supported by their friends and family?
Answer – An UltraSwim33.3 event.
This was the second UltraSwim33.3 event I had taken part in and it was just as good as the first. For those that don’t know, the UltraSwim33.3 event involves swimming the distance of the English Channel over 4 days, including the chance to do a marathon swim under the Marathon Swimming Federation rules. I wrote a full blog about last year but this year was asked to write a review for the Outdoor Swimmer Magazine so figured it would be easiest to use the review I had written and add a few of my high points I experienced through the different swims!
UltraSwim33.3 isn’t just a swim, once you have booked your spot at one of the events you gain access to the ‘Swimmers Bubble’ where you can access a training plan and advice for the event. I haven’t used the plan but feedback from those that did was all positive, except they wished they had done more training one day after another to prepare for the intensity of the event.
You will also gain access to the WhatsApp group for your event and the Training and Support Group so that you can chat with others attending the event and ask any advice in training. By entering an Ultra33.3 event you aren’t just entering a swimming event, you are entering a community.
From booking your 5* hotel room, organising airport transfers, planning lunch somewhere new each day and high-tech safety cover for every swim; the UltraSwim team have you covered. However, one thing they can’t control or predict in advance is the weather.
You could book a ‘pre-event swim camp’ but I just chose to arrive the evening before registration day and I could already tell that the wind was likely going to cause problems when swimming. After signing in, you pick up your DryBag which has your hat, some nutrition, a reusable bottle (UltraSwim are as ecofriendly as possible) and a microfibre towel in it.
Due to the wind our warm-up swim was cancelled but most swimmers (me included) went and swam in the roped off beach area at the hotel. The water was crystal clear, around 24 degrees and just an absolute delight to swim in! .
There were lots of smiling swimmers in the water and on the beach, along with a few t-shirts and pairs of trousers being blown away! They also put on a pre-swim stretching session to fill some more time.
The swim briefing for each day is the evening before. You find out what ‘Plan A’ is; the swims you will be doing the following day, the distances, the routes, what to look out for in terms of buoys and all the important stuff. Of course, the aim over the 4 days is to swim 33.3km so if you are unable to do a longer swim due to the weather one day then the next day you have to make up that distance. At the briefings you will also see pictures and a highlights video from the day of swimming you have just done so if you’re lucky then you end up seeing yourself on the big screen too.
In the mornings, after a hearty breakfast swimmers collect their trackers and load onto the boat taxis to get to the start line. Sometimes the journey is all by boat, others its by boat and bus, it all depends on the day, the weather and the location. Whatever the journey is the atmosphere is one of excitement and sometimes apprehension, but even then, everyone has a smile on their face and can’t wait to get in the water!
On the first day people are pretty spread out but you will likely end up in small groups of swimmers working together to get to the finish line, it is rare that you will ever be swimming totally alone. One of my highlights was on day 2 when I came across someone with a 22.2 swim hat on who had stopped only about 500m away from the finish. We had a small interaction and she said she didn’t think she could make it, so I told her I would stick with her and we swam over the finish line together before embracing in a huge hug.
We did a second swim that day too, it was around Mamula Island and was, at times probably the roughest sea I have swum in; you were thrown all over the place and it was on the verge of feeling dangerous – if it wasn’t for the incredible kayakers keeping everyone safe!
Day 3 was Marathon Swim day, I had my pink hat ready (it identifies who is doing the swim under MSF rules to ensure they follow the rules) but was a bit nervous, for the 10km, unlike the other swims, it was about getting a PB. Last year I did the 10km in 4 hours 58 minutes, when the cut off time was 5 hours. This year I wanted to try and swim it in 4 hours 50minutes, id worked and trained hard to get faster and this was when I was going to find out how my training had helped.
There was just one issue; when I jumped off the boat I felt something pop in my back and was in agony, I was starting the 10km in tears. What kept me going you may ask? Putting it simply, I knew I had pain killers at the second feed station so I was swimming to the pain meds! There was just a couple of kilometres left after the painkillers so I swam hard to the finish and to my utter shock I completed the swim in around 4 and a half hours! I kept double checking but that was definitely my time and just to surprise us, in the briefing that evening Mark informed us we had actually swum 11km!
For the majority of attendees, these events are a distance challenge, but of course there are a few that actually race and this year for the first time the event was dominated by women. Not only did we make up more than half of the attendees but each stage and, for the first time the overall event was won by a woman; Anna Sofia Kalandadze who finished more than 15 minutes before the next swimmer!
On the final day, when all the swimming was done there was a celebration in the hotel, people that had completed the 33.3km were presented with their droplets. 1st, 2nd, 3rd and special awards were presented but the biggest round of applause was for the safety crew. They had faced some tough, windy, raining and chilly conditions but supported every single swimmer, kept everyone safe and helped people achieve their dreams and goals.
There was also a tremendous cheer for all the staff and volunteers that had helped on the boats and finish lines at every swim. This included Camilla who had travelled and helped me through any access issues, and on top of that volunteered at finish lines!
If you are looking for a swimming challenge in 2026 I highly recommend the ultraSwim33.3 events, they are tough and expect some challenging swims and conditions during the events, but they are incredible, you will meet friends for life, swim with people from all over the world and enjoy some absolutely beautiful swims.