NEWS

Henley Swim becomes first to achieve SH2OUT event accreditation

Open Water Swimming Ltd, the company behind the Henley Swim event series, has partnered with Royal Life Saving Society UK (RLSS UK) and British Triathlon to ensure the safety of their events under the new SH2OUT event accreditation programme.

Developed by RLSS UK and British Triathlon in response to the growth of open water swimming, SH2OUT aims to contribute to the sport’s growth by supporting the development of standards that ensure safe and compelling experiences for swimmers.

SH2OUT has developed three categories: SH2OUT Venue Accreditation, SH2OUT Event Accreditation and SH2OUT Club Accreditation to help venues, events and clubs achieve the highest possible safety standards. It supports venues, events and clubs providing open water swimming advice, guidance and support on operating policies and procedures from water quality testing and risk assessments to emergency action plans. SH2OUT technical advisors can also provide training and assistance in preparing open water swimming environments to ensure the highest standards of safety are met.

Open Water Swimming Ltd (OWS) is the first event organiser to go through SH2OUT’s event accreditation. OWS currently organises four very different open water swimming events in the Thames under the Henley Swim brand (The Henley Classic, the Henley Mile, Club to Pub and the Thames Marathon), as well as delivering the London City Swim – a charity swim that raises funds for motor neurone disease research. Between them, the events attract around 4,000 participants a year, from first time open water swimmers to professionals.

“Open Water Swimming Ltd, are extremely proud to partner RLSS UK and the SH2OUT programme. We work tirelessly to ensure our events are of the highest of standards, and are both exciting and safe for our participants,” said OWS co-founder, Jeremy Laming.

Helen Bowker, National Open Water Delivery Manager for SH2OUT, said: “We are really pleased that Open Water Swimming Ltd have recognised the importance of SH2OUT accreditation in developing and supporting their events, to deliver the best possible experience for all participants in their swims. To work with such a well-recognised open water swimming event provider is a great step in the right direction for open water swimming. We are keen to develop this partnership further in future years and support more events moving forward.”

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I created Outdoor Swimmer in 2011 (initially as H2Open Magazine) as an outlet for my passion for swimming outdoors. I've been a swimmer and outdoor swimmer for as long as I remember. Swimming has made a huge difference to my life and I want to share its joys and benefits with as many people as possible. I am also the author of Swim Wild & Free: A Practical Guide to Swimming Outdoors 365 a Year and I provide one-to-one support to swimmers through Swim Mentoring.