Thames Marathon voted best UK swim event in 2017

Recognising the growth in popularity of outdoor swimming, Racecheck, a race review website for endurance events across a range of sports, has added a new category in its annual awards: Best UK Swimming Event. And the winner for 2017 was The Thames Marathon, a 14km jaunt down the Thames from Henley to Marlow organised by Henley Swim.

The winners are chosen based on ratings left by users on Racecheck’s website across a range of categories including the registration process, logistics, natural beauty and safety.

Racecheck announced the results on Twitter on 10 January. The Thames Marathon achieved a rating of 4.94 out of 5.

Henley Swim co-founder Jeremy Laming says: “We are delighted the Thames Marathon has been recognised in these awards, particularly as they are voted for by the participants. We always receive huge amounts of positive feedback after the Thames Marathon, so it is great to see the event confirmed as the best in the UK. We look forward to welcoming both returning swimmers and new faces on 5 August 2018. If you are looking for the swimming equivalent of the London Marathon, this is the event for you.”

The Thames Marathon is a downstream current-assisted swim, and swimmers must exit the river at each of the three locks on the route where they can rest and refuel, or immediately return to the water. It attracts all types of swimmers from competitive athletes to recreational swimmers. In 2017 participants took between 2 hours and 41 minutes and 6 hours and 22 minutes to complete the course.