The City of Plymouth today hosted the start of the inaugural Blue Mile – Race for the Environment as thousands people came down to the historical Barbican to witness the first ever Blue Mile.  The event, designed to engage people actively with our blue environment saw hundreds of people take to the water to swim, paddle and walk a mile and raise vital funds for WWF-UK.

Seven year old Charlie Hyland set the pace with a 1 mile swim in Plymouth’s Lido and fellow junior swimmer, Matthew Rose posted and astonishing time of 18m minutes to cover the 32 length course. Down on the main Blue Mile Course, the first swim wave got away at 0900, with the conditions ideal for Plymouth’s first mass-participation open water swim.

Plymouth, a City by the Sea really came alive today, with colour, passion and excitement as all ages took on the tough 1 mile challenge. The remarkable course which started from the Mayflower Steps, shined a warm glow on the City’s waterfront, perhaps proving the point that people are extremely positive about the City, despite its tired and crumbling infrastructure.

Conrad Humphreys “Today was I hope the beginning of a new opportunity to bring life back to the waterfront. Whilst it will take time for the economic regeneration of the area to be completed, perhaps the first steps to change the culture of this badly run down area of the City have been laid today. We hoped to create and event that would be a beacon to the country and show case not only our City but also the vital part  our marine and coastal environment plays to it economy, I  think everyone involved today to make this event happen should be really proud of its beginning.”

Tags: Charlie Hyland, Plymouth, The BLUE Mile, Waterfront