{"id":56735,"date":"2025-05-16T21:23:30","date_gmt":"2025-05-16T21:23:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/lesotho\/all-news\/endurance-athlete-begins-swim-in-shark-infested-waters"},"modified":"2025-05-16T21:54:39","modified_gmt":"2025-05-16T21:54:39","slug":"endurance-athlete-begins-swim-in-shark-infested-waters","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/lesotho\/all-news\/endurance-athlete-begins-swim-in-shark-infested-waters","title":{"rendered":"Endurance athlete begins swim in shark-infested waters"},"content":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – Lesotho. <\/strong><\/span>Lewis Pugh has followed an unspoken rule during his career as one of the world\u2019s most daring endurance swimmers: Don\u2019t talk about sharks. But he plans to break that this week on a swim around Martha\u2019s Vineyard, where \u201cJaws\u201d was filmed 50 years ago.<\/p>\n

The British-South African was the first person to complete a long-distance swim in every ocean of the world \u2014 and has taken on extreme conditions everywhere from Mount Everest to the Arctic.<\/p>\n

\u201cOn this swim, it\u2019s very different: We\u2019re just talking about sharks all the time,\u201d joked Pugh, who will, as usual, wear no wetsuit.<\/p>\n

For his swim around Martha\u2019s Vineyard in 47-degree (8-degree Celsius) water he will wear just trunks, a cap and goggles.<\/p>\n

Pugh, 55, is undertaking the challenge because he wants to change public perception around the now at-risk animals \u2014 which he said were maligned by the blockbuster film as \u201cvillains, as cold-blooded killers.\u201d He will urge for more protection for sharks.<\/p>\n

On Thursday, beginning at the Edgartown Harbor Lighthouse, he will swim for three or four hours in the brutally cold surf, mark his progress and spend the rest of his waking hours on the Vineyard educating the public about sharks. Then, he’ll get in the water and do it again \u2014 and again, for an estimated 12 days, or however long it takes him to complete the 62-mile (100-kilometer) swim.<\/p>\n

He begins the journey just after the New England Aquarium confirmed the first white shark sighting of the season, earlier this week off the coast of Nantucket.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s going to test me not only physically, but also mentally,\u201d he said, while scoping out wind conditions by the starting line. \u201cI mean every single day I\u2019m going to be speaking about sharks, sharks, sharks, sharks. Then, ultimately, I\u2019ve got to get in the water afterwards and do the swim. I suppose you can imagine what I\u2019ll be thinking about.\u201d<\/p>\n

Pugh said the swim will be among the most difficult he\u2019s undertaken, which says a lot for someone who has swum near glaciers and volcanoes, and among hippos, crocodiles and polar bears. No one has ever swum around the island of Martha’s Vineyard before.<\/p>\n

But Pugh, who often swims to raise awareness for environmental causes \u2014 and has been named the United Nations Patron of the Oceans for several years \u2014 said no swim is without risk and that drastic measures are needed to get his message across: Around 274,000 sharks are killed globally each day \u2014 a rate of 100 million every year, according to the American Association for the<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was a film about sharks attacking humans and for 50 years, we have been attacking sharks,\u201d he said of \u201cJaws.\u201d \u201cIt\u2019s completely unsustainable. It\u2019s madness. We need to respect them.\u201d<\/p>\n

He emphasizes that the swim is not something nonprofessionals should attempt. He\u2019s accompanied by safety personnel in a boat and kayak and uses a \u201cShark Shield\u201d device that deters sharks using an electric field without harming them.<\/p>\n

Pugh remembers feeling fear as a 16-year-old watching \u201cJaws\u201d for the first time. Over decades of study and research, awe and respect have replaced his fear, as he realized the role they play in maintaining Earth\u2019s increasingly fragile ecosystems.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m more terrified of a world without sharks, or without predators,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cJaws\u201d is credited for creating Hollywood\u2019s blockbuster culture when it was released in summer 1975, becoming the highest grossing film up until that time and earning three Academy Awards. It would impact how many viewed the ocean for decades to come.<\/p>\n

Both director Steven Spielberg and author Peter Benchley have expressed regret over the impact of the film on viewers\u2019 perception of sharks. Both have since contributed to conservation efforts for animals, which have seen populations depleted due to factors like overfishing and climate change.<\/p>\n

For More News And Analysis About Lesotho<\/span> Follow Africa-Press<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – Lesotho. Lewis Pugh has followed an unspoken rule during his career as one of the world\u2019s most daring endurance swimmers: Don\u2019t talk about sharks. But he plans to break that this week on a swim around Martha\u2019s Vineyard, where \u201cJaws\u201d was filmed 50 years ago. The British-South African was the first person to […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":84,"featured_media":56734,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2,17],"tags":[5203,4429,245,5689,2605],"class_list":["post-56735","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-all-news","category-sport","tag-environmental-protection","tag-extreme-sports","tag-lesotho","tag-ocean","tag-swimming"],"yoast_head":"\nEndurance athlete begins swim in shark-infested waters - Lesotho<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Lewis Pugh has followed an unspoken rule during his career as one of the world\u2019s most daring endurance swimmers: Don\u2019t t ...\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/lesotho\/all-news\/endurance-athlete-begins-swim-in-shark-infested-waters\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Endurance athlete begins swim in shark-infested waters\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Lewis Pugh has followed an unspoken rule during his career as one of the world\u2019s most daring endurance swimmers: Don\u2019t t ...\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/lesotho\/all-news\/endurance-athlete-begins-swim-in-shark-infested-waters\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Lesotho\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/AfricaPressTunisiaa\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-05-16T21:23:30+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-05-16T21:54:39+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/lesotho\/sites\/62\/2025\/05\/sm_1747416128.427613.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1024\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"538\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/lesotho\/all-news\/endurance-athlete-begins-swim-in-shark-infested-waters#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/lesotho\/all-news\/endurance-athlete-begins-swim-in-shark-infested-waters\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"cfeditoren\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/lesotho\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb\"},\"headline\":\"Endurance athlete begins swim in shark-infested waters\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-05-16T21:23:30+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-05-16T21:54:39+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/lesotho\/all-news\/endurance-athlete-begins-swim-in-shark-infested-waters\"},\"wordCount\":659,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/lesotho\/all-news\/endurance-athlete-begins-swim-in-shark-infested-waters#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/lesotho\/sites\/62\/2025\/05\/sm_1747416128.427613.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"Environmental protection\",\"Extreme Sports\",\"Lesotho\",\"Ocean\",\"Swimming\"],\"articleSection\":[\"all news\",\"sport\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/lesotho\/all-news\/endurance-athlete-begins-swim-in-shark-infested-waters#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/lesotho\/all-news\/endurance-athlete-begins-swim-in-shark-infested-waters\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/lesotho\/all-news\/endurance-athlete-begins-swim-in-shark-infested-waters\",\"name\":\"Endurance athlete begins swim in shark-infested waters - 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