Swim Across America Returns to CLASH Daytona at the Daytona International Speedway December 5 for Second Annual Charity Swim to Fight Cancer

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The roar of race cars will give way to the splash of swimmers on Saturday, December 5, when Swim Across America returns to Daytona International Speedway for the second annual Swim Across America – Daytona Open Water Swim – as part of the CLASH Endurance® Daytona Triathlon Festival Weekend, December 4-6, 2026, at Daytona International Speedway®. The second annual Swim Across America – Daytona Open Water Swim will take place Saturday, December 5, at 9:30 a.m., in the Speedway’s iconic Lake Lloyd, with a 1-mile charity swim and 100-meter Dolphin Dash raising funds to support pediatric cancer research and The NASCAR Foundation. Swimmers and athletes interested in participating can register at swimacrossamerica.org/daytona or check out the whole CLASH Endurance Daytona weekend events at clashendurance.com/pages/daytona.

The Swim Across America – Daytona charity swim is just one of the signature events of the three-day CLASH Daytona festival, which brings athletes, families and spectators to the “World Center of Racing” for a unique weekend of endurance sports and entertainment. The CLASH Endurance Daytona Weekend kicks off Friday, December 4, with the festive CLASH Endurance Jingle Jog 5K at ONE Daytona, where participants can run, walk or stroll through a course illuminated by more than 1 million holiday lights. Swim Across America’s mascot, DASH the Dolphin, may even make an appearance!

Throughout the weekend, athletes will also have the opportunity to compete in CLASH Endurance’s Sprint, Daytona Distance and Middle Distance triathlons and duathlons; aquabike events; the USA Paratriathlon National Qualifier; the Redline Relay competitive cycling event; and Test Track, a noncompetitive opportunity to ride on Daytona International Speedway’s famous track. The Swim Across America charity swim adds another way for athletes and families to take part in the weekend while supporting an important mission.

CLASH Daytona has become known for combining competition with a festival-style atmosphere at one of the world’s most recognizable sports venues. The 2026 festival runs December 4-6 and welcomes everyone from elite and competitive athletes to recreational participants, families and first-time endurance athletes.

Swim Across America joined the CLASH Daytona weekend for the first time in 2025, transforming Lake Lloyd — the 29-acre lake located inside the Speedway’s infield — into an open water charity swim venue. The inaugural event raised approximately $50,000 while bringing together swimmers, Olympians, volunteers and supporters to raise funds for pediatric cancer research.

“Last year’s Swim Across America – Daytona open water swim at the Daytona International Speedway, in partnership with CLASH, was so much fun,” shared Rob Butcher, CEO of Swim Across America. “We are excited to be back this year on December 5th with more swimmers and more funds raised for pediatric cancer research.”

Returning this year are Charlie Lydecker and his son, Andrew Lydecker, with Team FRP, who embraced both the Swim Across America experience and the pediatric cancer research mission during last year’s inaugural swim.

Charlie Lydecker, CEO and chairman of Foundation Risk Partners, was instrumental in helping bring Swim Across America – Daytona to the CLASH Endurance festival weekend. A longtime competitive swimmer and accomplished masters swimmer, Lydecker is a 14-time national lifeguard champion, has earned multiple U.S. Masters Swimming Top Ten honors and relay records and is a winner of the famed Escape from Alcatraz swim.

Andrew Lydecker is also an experienced swimmer and endurance athlete. A former high school swim team captain and three-sport athlete, he has competed at the U.S. Lifesaving Association National Lifeguard Championships, participated in Swim Across America and completed an Ironman in Texas.

“The team at FRP is proud to support Swim Across America and its mission to bring hope and fund critical research for those fighting cancer,” Charlie Lydecker said when Team FRP joined the inaugural Daytona swim. “We’re honored to help bring the event to Daytona International Speedway and excited for this year’s swim!”

The 1-mile Swim Across America – Daytona swim gives experienced open water swimmers a rare opportunity to swim inside Daytona International Speedway. 1-mile swimmers are also required to raise at least $400 and swimmers 18 and under are required to raise $200 by event day. For those who want to take part in the mission with a shorter distance, the Dolphin Dash is a 100-meter swim open to participants of all ages. Registration is $50, with no fundraising minimum for Dolphin Dash swimmers, although participants are encouraged to fundraise.

Top fundraising individuals and teams will have the opportunity to celebrate on the Daytona International Speedway podium, just like race winners, recognizing their efforts to help fund pediatric cancer research.

The partnership among CLASH Endurance, Swim Across America and The NASCAR Foundation brings together organizations united by a commitment to using sports and community to improve lives. The NASCAR Foundation works to improve the lives of children who need it most, particularly in NASCAR racing communities, through programs including the Speediatrics Children’s Fund and the Betty Jane France Humanitarian Award. Since 2006, the foundation has contributed millions of dollars to programs impacting children nationwide.

Nationally, Swim Across America has raised more than $150 million for cancer research since its founding in 1987 and has helped fund clinical trials that contributed to the FDA-approved cancer immunotherapy medications Keytruda, Opdivo, Yervoy and Tecentriq. In the past year, Swim Across America funded a breakthrough clinical trial at Memorial Sloan Kettering that showed that immunotherapy alone could successfully treat certain types of cancer. The organization also recently awarded two first-of-its-kind gene editing innovation grants to the Alliance for Cancer Gene Therapy and Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, advancing novel CRISPR gene and base editing techniques used in targeted therapies, immunotherapies and cellular therapies. Swim Across America supports more than 60 cancer research projects annually and supports work at many of the nation’s leading cancer institutions.

For more information or to register for the Swim Across America – Daytona 1-mile swim, Dolphin Dash or SAA My Way, volunteer or donate, visit swimacrossamerica.org/daytona. To learn more about the full CLASH Endurance Daytona Triathlon Festival Weekend, December 4-6, including the Jingle Jog 5K and other events, visit clashendurance.com/pages/daytona.

CLASH Endurance® is an innovative endurance event company led by athletes with a passion for providing exceptional race experiences at iconic venues. CLASH embraces inclusion and welcomes athletes of all ages and abilities, from elite professionals to first-time participants. The popular CLASH Endurance Daytona event is held at Daytona International Speedway, home of “The Great American Race” — the Daytona 500. For more information, visit clashendurance.com.

2nd Annual Swim Across America – Michigan Pool Swim Returns to University of Michigan October 11 to Make Waves to Fight CancerProceeds Support Cancer Research at University of Michigan Rogel Cancer Center

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Swim Across America, the national nonprofit organization that makes waves to fight cancer through charity swims across the U.S., will host its second annual Swim Across America – Michigan Pool Swim on Sunday, October 11, at the University of Michigan Donald B. Canham Natatorium, 500 E. Hoover Ave. in Ann Arbor. The event will feature fun pool relays and an official University of Michigan swim workout, with participants invited to take part in one or both activities. Proceeds from the pool swim, along with funds raised in July through the Swim Across America – Motor City Mile open water swim, support clinical trials and groundbreaking cancer research at the University of Michigan Rogel Cancer Center. To register as a swimmer or volunteer, or to donate, visit swimacrossamerica.org/michigan.

Spearheading this year’s pool swim is someone who knows both Ann Arbor and Swim Across America well: Lucas Caswell is an Ann Arbor native, accomplished swimmer who currently swims with Washington University Swimming & Diving, a Swim Across America College Ambassador, and the 2025 individual winner of the Swim Across America Collegiate Cup. Lucas earned the national honor as Swim Across America’s top collegiate fundraiser and was recognized this spring at the College Swimming & Diving Coaches Association of America Annual Conference. He became involved with Swim Across America shortly after arriving at WashU two years ago, participating in the Swim Across America open water swim by his school. Since that time, he has gotten more involved with the organization and stepped up to lead the pool swim in his hometown.

“What initially began as a team activity with my swim team at WashU, became something much more meaningful when I was invited to meet the cancer researchers whose work Swim Across America funds,” noted Lucas Caswell. “That event was a game-changer for me. It ignited a passion for raising funds for cancer research.”

While Lucas has been lucky and hasn’t lost a loved one to cancer, he notes that his inspiration to fundraise to make a difference comes from a different reason. 

“I work with Swim Across America because they inspire me. The passion, the stories of hope and grief, the unerring commitment to the battle – and because of the model and its impact to the community.”

Meeting Swim Across America-funded researchers and learning firsthand how donations help scientists pursue promising new ideas inspired Caswell to take on a larger leadership role. Now he is bringing that energy home to Ann Arbor.

“The leadership opportunities that Swim Across America has created are meaningful and will continue long after I hang up my goggles,” Lucas noted. “You don’t need to have felt the loss of cancer to know we can do better together. Together we can make waves to fight cancer.”

Caswell is one of many swimmers participating for deeply personal reasons.

For Swim Across America volunteer Emily Brunemann Klueh, an NCAA champion at the University of Michigan who spent 10 years competing on the U.S. National Team, supporting the pool swim brings together her swimming roots and a deeply personal cause. In November 2024, at age 37, Klueh was diagnosed with stage 4 metastatic breast cancer. Her son was 2½, and her 5-year-old daughter had just started kindergarten. The cancer had already spread to her lymph nodes and the lining of her lungs when it was discovered.

“I was devastated,” Emily Klueh noted. “I did not know what my life was going to look like as my world came crashing down.”

Years of world-class open-water and endurance swimming had taught Emily to navigate physical challenges and pressure. “I know I can do hard things, but this was different,” she said. “Not only was this physically challenging but mentally this was a whole new ball game.”

A licensed mental health and sport performance clinician, Emily Klueh now serves as manager of psychological services for USA Swimming’s National and Junior National Team athletes. She encourages athletes to recognize that it is OK to not be OK all the time and to focus on what they can control — lessons she draws on in her own life.

Her experience has also made her an advocate for early detection and taking ownership of one’s health. When initial blood tests and appointments did not explain what was wrong, Klueh continued to advocate for herself and pushed for a mammogram. A mammogram and ultrasound revealed eight masses and multiple suspicious lymph nodes. Further testing confirmed invasive ductal carcinoma and that the cancer had spread to the lining of her lungs.

Since her diagnosis, Emily has undergone five surgeries and has responded well to her current treatment, which she hopes to remain on for as long as possible. Her family, friends and the athletes she supports have been sources of strength. She shares her story publicly to encourage others to speak up about their health concerns.

“Swim Across America creates platforms for advocacy, awareness and proactive conversations,” Emily said. “These topics are hard, sad, and scary, but we cannot put our heads in the sand to them.”

“The funds from Swim Across America are lifesaving,” Emily emphasized. “The opportunities to invest in new technologies and research are what keep patients like me alive and instill the desire to continue fighting.”

Diana Voges, captain of Team Sisters of the Swells, is both a breast cancer survivor and a participant in medical research trials at the University of Michigan. Her experience has given her a firsthand appreciation for the patients who participate in clinical research and make future treatments possible.

“I am a passionate believer in the value of medical research,” Diana Voges said. “I’ve been a participant in both cardiac and breast cancer medical research trials at UofM. I am overwhelmingly thankful for the brave souls who participated in trials before me, paving the way for the treatment I have received. There is so much still to learn. The work is not done.”

For Diana, Swim Across America provides a natural way to combine that commitment to research with a sport she loves.

“I joined Swim Across America because it combines my love for swimming along with the worthwhile goal of cancer research,” she said.

Also participating is Team Rogel, captained by Erin Christensen, who works as a member of the Rogel Cancer Center staff and brings together supporters of the University of Michigan Rogel Cancer Center. Erin has been instrumental in helping organize both the open water swim in Detroit and now the UofM pool swim. 

Since the inaugural Swim Across America – Motor City Mile open water swim in 2019, six Rogel Cancer Center researchers have received Swim Across America grants through a competitive grant process.

Those grants have supported Kyoung Eun Lee, Ph.D., in pancreatic cancer research; Phillip Palmbos, M.D., Ph.D., in bladder cancer research; Angel Qin, M.D., in research examining treatment response in metastatic non-small cell lung cancer; Calista Harbaugh, M.D., in colorectal cancer surgery research; and Jiahe Li, Ph.D., in developing technology targeting bacterial toxins in the gut associated with colorectal cancer.

The 2025 grant recipient, Matthew Iyer, M.D., Ph.D., is studying blood samples from pancreatic cancer patients and healthy family members to identify tiny pieces of tumor-related RNA in the blood, research that could ultimately help scientists better understand and detect the disease.

That direct connection between swimmers and researchers is at the heart of Swim Across America’s model: Money raised locally helps fund promising local research that might otherwise struggle to secure early-stage funding.

The October 11 event begins with swimmer check-in from 9:30 to 10 a.m., followed by a welcome at 10:15 a.m. and swimming, music and relays from 10:30 a.m. to noon. A wrap-up and social will follow.

Swimmers are encouraged to raise at least $100. Participants who raise $1,000 or more earn WaveMaker status and special recognition. Swimmers and volunteers of all ages and abilities are welcome.

Nationally, Swim Across America has raised more than $150 million for cancer research since its founding in 1987 and has helped fund clinical trials that contributed to FDA-approved cancer immunotherapy medications Keytruda, Opdivo, Yervoy and Tecentriq. In the past year, Swim Across America funded a breakthrough clinical trial at Memorial Sloan Kettering that showed immunotherapy alone could successfully treat certain types of cancer. The organization also recently awarded first-of-their-kind gene editing innovation grants to the Alliance for Cancer Gene Therapy and Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, advancing novel CRISPR gene and base editing techniques used in targeted therapies, immunotherapies and cellular therapies. Swim Across America supports more than 60 cancer research projects annually at many of the nation’s leading cancer institutions.

For more information or to register to swim, volunteer or donate to the Swim Across America – Michigan Pool Swim, visit swimacrossamerica.org/michigan. 

Hundreds to Make Waves to Fight Cancer at Fifth Annual Swim Across America – Carolina Team Relay on September 26 Swim Honors Olympic Swimmer and Cancer Fighter Sue Walsh at Koury Natatorium; Swim Benefits UNC Lineberger Cancer Center

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Swim Across America, the national nonprofit organization that makes waves to fight cancer through charity swims across the U.S., will host its 5th annual Swim Across America – Carolina Pool Team Relay Swim on Saturday, September 26, 2026, at the UNC Koury Natatorium in Chapel Hill. Participants take part in fun team relays to raise funds in support of the swim’s local beneficiary UNC Lineberger Cancer Center. Those who cannot make the event in person can participate virtually through SAA My Way. Register to swim, volunteer or donate at swimacrossamerica.org/carolina.

The Swim Across America – Carolina pool swim will also honor Sue Walsh – one of the University of North Carolina’s most decorated athletes and one of the swimming community’s most determined cancer fighters.  

Sue Walsh is captain of the Swim Across America Team Tar Heel, and is already the event’s No. 1 individual fundraiser, with more than $56,287 raised for this year’s swim.

For Sue Walsh, swimming and cancer research have become inseparable.

A long-time Swim Across America supporter, Sue was introduced to the organization by her 1980 Olympic teammate Craig Beardsley. What began as a way for Sue to use the sport she loved to give back, became deeply personal after cancer repeatedly touched her family and then her own life. In 2010, Sue lost her mother, Joan, to melanoma. In 2019, Sue was diagnosed herself with colon cancer. She underwent surgery and was initially declared cancer-free, but in 2022 scans revealed new lesions and she was diagnosed with metastatic colon cancer and has been fighting ever since.

Rather than stepping away from the pool, Sue became even more committed to using swimming to help fund better treatments for herself and others.

“Throughout the years, swimming has given me so much joy,” Sue Walsh noted. She has described Swim Across America as a natural way to direct that lifelong passion toward finding better treatments for cancer.

Sue Walsh’s swimming résumé is extraordinary. She was a member of the 1980 U.S. Olympic team, won two medals at the 1982 World Aquatics Championships, and during her collegiate career at UNC became a 10-time national champion and three-time Most Outstanding Swimmer at the ACC Championships. She was inducted into the North Carolina Sports Hall of Fame in 2003 and continued competing in masters swimming, setting six age-group world records at the 2007 U.S. Masters Swimming Championships.

Her connection to Chapel Hill also helped give birth to the Swim Across America – Carolina event itself. After her cancer returned, Sue began talking with Swim Across America CEO Rob Butcher and UNC Head Swimming and Diving Coach Mark Gangloff about bringing a pool swim to Koury Natatorium.

The first Swim Across America – Carolina event was held in 2022. The community’s impact has continued to grow, raising more than $570,000 to fight cancer. 

The September 26 Swim Across America – Carolina Team Relay Pool Swim is designed so that competitive swimmers, recreational swimmers, alumni, families and community members can all participate together. For more information, to join a team, participate virtually or donate to Swim Across America – Carolina, visit swimacrossamerica.org/carolina.

More Than 450 Swimmers, Volunteers, and Supporters Expected at Lake Ray Hubbard; Cancer Survivors Robyn Starnes and Mark Monson Turn Their Own Cancer Journeys Into Hope for Others

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Swim Across America, the national nonprofit organization that makes waves to fight cancer through charity swims across the U.S., will host its 16th annual Swim Across America – Dallas Open Water Swim on Saturday, September 19, 2026, at Lake Ray Hubbard in Rockwall, Texas. Participants can choose from a half-mile, 1-mile or 2-mile open water swim, with proceeds supporting early detection and innovative clinical trials at the Texas Cancer Interception Institute at Baylor Scott & White Charles A. Sammons Cancer Center. Those who cannot swim in person can participate virtually through SAA My Way. Register to swim or volunteer (on land or water) at swimacrossamerica.org/dallas.

Established in 2011, Swim Across America – Dallas has raised more than $3 million to support cancer research and care at Baylor Scott & White Cancer Center. Each year, the event brings together more than 450 swimmers, volunteers, spectators and supporters, along with past and current Olympians, all united by the goal of improving the future for those diagnosed with cancer.

Diving in this year are two cancer survivors who understand firsthand why research matters: Robyn Starnes, captain of Team Fabulous, and Mark Monson, co-captain of Team Mustang.

Robyn Starnes was just 36 years old when she was diagnosed with thyroid cancer in 2014. Surgery and treatment left her unable to speak for a month and changed how she viewed her health and her future. Swimming — a sport she had not pursued seriously in decades — eventually became part of her recovery.

In 2021, a conversation with another former competitive swimmer introduced Robyn to Swim Across America. She signed up almost immediately, and her first Dallas open water swim in 2022 fell on the eight-year anniversary of her thyroidectomy. What began as a single swim quickly became something much larger. Robyn became a dedicated fundraiser, event committee member and Dallas community ambassador and formed Team Fabulous, bringing friends and supporters into the mission with her.

“The three scariest words I ever heard were: ‘You have cancer.’ But now I get to be part of something hopeful,” Robyn shared. “Being part of Swim Across America and actually doing something to help so many with cancer is cathartic. It’s a great community and I love being a part of something so important.”

Mark Monson’s connection to Swim Across America also began before cancer became personal. He first participated in the Dallas swim in 2016 because he loved swimming and wanted to support friends and family members who had faced cancer.

Then, in January 2022, Monson was diagnosed with stage IV colon cancer.

The longtime Swim Across America participant suddenly became one for whom  would benefit from the money raised. Today, Mark is celebrating a milestone that once seemed far from certain: He currently has no evidence of disease.

Throughout the past decade, Mark has raised approximately $15,000 for Swim Across America – Dallas and continues to return to Lake Ray Hubbard each year.

“I am motivated to continue raising money because I know precisely where the money goes, and I can see progress being made,” Mark said. 

That progress is increasingly focused on stopping cancer earlier. Funds raised by the Swim Across America – Dallas swim support the Texas Cancer Interception Institute, which brings together research, advanced technologies and clinical care with the goal of detecting and intercepting cancer at its earliest and most treatable stages.

For survivors such as Robyn Starnes and Mark Monson, that creates a powerful connection between every lap swum and every dollar raised.

Nationally, Swim Across America has raised more than $150 million for cancer research since its founding in 1987 and has helped fund clinical trials that contributed to the FDA-approved cancer immunotherapy medications Keytruda, Opdivo, Yervoy and Tecentriq. In the past year, Swim Across America funded a breakthrough clinical trial at Memorial Sloan Kettering that showed that immunotherapy alone could successfully treat certain types of cancer. The organization also recently awarded two first-of-its-kind gene editing innovation grants to the Alliance for Cancer Gene Therapy and Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, advancing novel CRISPR gene and base editing techniques used in targeted therapies, immunotherapies and cellular therapies. Swim Across America supports more than 60 cancer research projects annually, has eight named Swim Across America labs, and supports work at many of the nation’s leading cancer institutions.

For more information, to register to swim, volunteer, participate virtually or donate to Swim Across America – Dallas, visit swimacrossamerica.org/dallas.

Swim Across America Names 10th Cancer Research Lab at Atrium Health Levine Cancer Institute Charlotte-Based Nonprofit Has Contributed More Than $1.4 Million to Cancer Research and Programs at Levine Cancer Institute and Levine Children’s Hospital Since 2017

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Swim Across America, the national nonprofit that raises funds for cancer research through charity swims across the United States, celebrated the official naming of the Swim Across America Hematology and Oncology Translational Research Laboratory at Atrium Health Levine Cancer Institute in Charlotte on Sept. 1.

The designation marks the 10th named Swim Across America cancer research laboratory in the country and recognizes the impact that swimmers, volunteers and donors have made in advancing innovative cancer research and treatment.

“The Swim Across America Research Lab at Levine Cancer Institute recognizes our past and future commitments to grant funding that is driving innovation in how cancer is detected and treated,” commented Rob Butcher, CEO of Swim Across America. “Swim Across America’s mission is to fund cancer research. We have named labs at some of the nation’s top cancer centers and are appreciative to have this recognition with Levine Cancer Institute.”

Other Swim Across America named labs are at: 

  • Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (New York, New York)
  • Johns Hopkins Medicine Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center (Baltimore, Maryland)
  • Rush University Cancer Center (Chicago)
  • Weill Cornell Medicine Meyer Cancer Center (New York, New York)
  • Fred Hutch Cancer Center/Seattle Cancer Care Alliance (Seattle, Washington)
  • Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta (Atlanta, Georgia)
  • UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospitals (Oakland & San Francisco, California)
  • Baylor Scott & White Charles A. Sammons Cancer Center(Dallas, Texas)
  • Nantucket Cottage Hospital (Nantucket, Massachusetts)

To mark such a momentous occasion, Swim Across America and Atrium Health leaders, physicians and researchers gathered at Levine Cancer Institute for the lab dedication. The lab designation included the unveiling and placement of the laboratory plaque, followed by a behind-the-scenes tour of the cancer research laboratory and discussion of the research being supported by philanthropic funding.

Attendees included: Rob Butcher, CEO of Swim Across America; Patty Waldron, Swim Across America – Charlotte event director; Ruben Mesa, M.D., FACP, president of Advocate Health Cancer National Service Line and executive director of Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist Comprehensive Cancer Center; and Mark Griffith, vice president of Atrium Health Foundation NC & GA.

“Gifts from partners like Swim Across America allow us to uphold the ‘loved one standard,’ which is our commitment to providing every patient with the same care we would want for our own families,” noted Dr. Ruben Mesa, president of Atrium Health Levine Cancer.

“Community partners are essential to enhancing cancer care across Atrium Health,” said Mark Griffith, president of Atrium Health Foundation and Advocate Health’s vice president of philanthropy for North Carolina and Georgia. “We are grateful to Swim Across America for helping to expand access to cancer programs and cutting-edge research.”

The lab naming is especially significant for Swim Across America, which is headquartered in Charlotte. Across the country, Swim Across America works to provide critical early-stage funding that can help researchers pursue promising ideas, generate data and move innovative treatments toward clinical trials and ultimately to patients.

Nationally, Swim Across America has raised more than $150 million for cancer research since its founding in 1987 and has helped fund clinical trials that contributed to the FDA-approved cancer immunotherapy medications Keytruda, Opdivo, Yervoy and Tecentriq. In the past year, Swim Across America funded a breakthrough clinical trial at Memorial Sloan Kettering that showed immunotherapy alone could successfully treat certain types of cancer. The organization also recently awarded two first-of-their-kind gene-editing innovation grants to the Alliance for Cancer Gene Therapy and Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, advancing novel CRISPR gene- and base-editing techniques used in targeted therapies, immunotherapies and cellular therapies.

The celebration also comes just weeks before the 10th annual Swim Across America – Charlotte Open Water Swim, which will be held Sunday, Oct. 4, at YMCA Camp Thunderbird on Lake Wylie in South Carolina. Hundreds of swimmers, volunteers, spectators and supporters are expected to come together to “Make Waves to Fight Cancer,” with proceeds supporting Levine Cancer Institute and Levine Children’s Hospital.

The Oct. 4 event begins at 10 a.m. and offers half-mile, 1-mile and 2-mile open water swim distances. Participants may also volunteer, donate or support the event through SAA My Way, Swim Across America’s virtual participation option. For more information, to register to swim or volunteer, or to donate to Swim Across America – Charlotte, visit swimacrossamerica.org/charlotte.

About Swim Across America

Swim Across America, Inc. (SAA) is dedicated to raising money and awareness for cancer research, prevention and treatment through swimming-related events. With open water and pool swims in 27 communities across the United States — from Nantucket to under the Golden Gate Bridge — Swim Across America, along with the help of thousands of swimmers and volunteers nationwide and past and current Olympians, is helping find better treatments and a cure for cancer through athleticism, community outreach and direct service. To learn more, visit swimacrossamerica.org.

Hundreds Dive In at 17th Annual Swim Across America – Seattle Open Water Swim on September 12 to Make Waves to Fight Cancer

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More Than 500 Swimmers and 300 Volunteers Expected at Lake Sammamish; Seattle Swim Has Raised More Than $7 Million for Early-Stage Cancer Research and Clinical Trials at Fred Hutch Cancer Center

Swim Across America, the national nonprofit organization that makes waves to fight cancer through charity swims across the U.S., will host the 18th annual Swim Across America – Seattle Open Water Swim on Saturday, September 12, 2026, at Lake Sammamish State Park’s Sunset Beach, 2010 NW Sammamish Road, in Issaquah, Washington. Swimmers can choose a half-mile, 1-mile or 2-mile open water swim, and volunteers on land and in the water are also needed. Those unable to participate in person can still make waves to fight cancer through SAA My Way, Swim Across America’s virtual option. Proceeds support early-stage cancer research and clinical trials at Fred Hutch Cancer Center. To register to swim, volunteer or donate, visit swimacrossamerica.org/seattle.

Established in 2009, Swim Across America – Seattle has raised more than $6 million for Fred Hutch Cancer Center. Each year, the event brings together more than 700 swimmers and volunteers, along with spectators, supporters and Olympians, for a morning dedicated to helping researchers pursue promising new approaches to cancer treatment.

“For years, this community has shown up for patients, families and researchers with an extraordinary amount of heart,” said Scott Whelan, co-event director of Swim Across America – Seattle. “The money raised at Lake Sammamish provides the kind of early funding that can help researchers take an innovative idea, gather the evidence and move it closer to a clinical trial or a new treatment. Every swimmer, volunteer and donor is part of that process.”

For Janie Lemley, captain of Team InMemory, this year’s swim comes after cancer research and treatment became more personal than ever. Janie Lemley formed Team InMemory in 2021 after growing tired of losing family members and friends to cancer. Then, in September 2024, her husband of 42 years, Dave Lemley, struggled to finish his Swim Across America swim. At the time, neither knew why. Two months later, Dave was diagnosed with plasma cell leukemia, a rare and aggressive form of blood cancer.

By April 2025, Dave was at Fred Hutch having his stem cells collected through apheresis. He subsequently received a double stem cell transplant, with transplants in May and June at the Veterans Affairs hospital’s Bone Marrow Transplant Unit.

“Especially after this cancer journey with Dave, I am more determined than ever to raise money for cancer research,” Janie Lemley said. “Many of the clinical trials for stem cell transplants happened here in Seattle at Fred Hutch. If you are able, please donate in order to give hope and healing to future cancer survivors.”

Janie Lemley originally named Team InMemory to honor those her family and teammates had lost, including her father-in-law Dr. Paul Lemley, her cousin Rosalie Proko and her grandfather Raymond P. Buck. This year, the list grew again when she lost her cousin Anne “Sissin” Winton to colon cancer in April.

The Lemleys’ story reflects the reason Swim Across America – Seattle has spent nearly two decades investing in early-stage research: discoveries made in the laboratory can ultimately become the treatments available to patients and families facing cancer.

“It is one thing to talk about the potential of research; it is another to have members of our own Swim Across America family experience firsthand the treatments and procedures that years of research helped make possible,” said Beth Hykes, co-event director of Swim Across America – Seattle and co-team captain of Dogs for the Cause: mission pawsable. “Janie and Dave remind us exactly why we keep coming back to Lake Sammamish and why supporting researchers at the earliest stages of discovery matters.”

Another participant who has been part of the Seattle swim from the beginning is David Day, captain of Team Martha Ries, who brought Swim Across America to Seattle as the founder emeritus and first Seattle event director for the swim. Day and his wife, Martha Ries, helped organize, swim and raise funds for Fred Hutch beginning with the inaugural Seattle event in 2009. In 2015, Martha was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. She endured two rounds of chemotherapy, surgeries and a clinical trial before passing away on May 29, 2016, just 10 months after her diagnosis.

David Day has continued the work they began together.

Throughout the years, cancer has touched his family and friends repeatedly. Martha’s sister Margaret had a cancerous brain tumor successfully removed in 2023 and is now in remission. Day’s sister-in-law Dana passed away in March 2025 after a four-year battle with colorectal cancer, while another sister-in-law, Mia, is currently battling breast cancer. His friend and fellow triathlete Bill Kinsella died from pancreatic cancer in 2017.

“We started Swim Across America – Seattle in 2009 when our kids were just 6 years old,” David Day noted. “Much has happened since then, and we have made a difference in the fight against cancer. Our private funding is the initial angel-funding investment that helps researchers further discoveries that can become breakthrough treatment therapies. Today, private funding is particularly important for researchers to continue making discoveries.”

The research supported by Swim Across America – Seattle has included projects exploring new therapies for colorectal cancer, pancreatic cancer and lung cancer, as well as CAR T-cell immunotherapies and treatments for lymphoma and leukemia.

Current top fundraiser Linda Warren, captain of Team No Limits, has also participated since the inaugural Seattle swim and continues to return in honor and memory of the growing number of friends, relatives and colleagues in her life who have faced cancer.

“This is Year 18 for the Swim Across America Seattle fundraising swim, and I’ll be back in the water with Team No Limits,” Linda Warren said. “There are too many impacted by cancer now to name — friends, family, colleagues — each one a reason I keep coming back to this swim.”

For Linda, progress against cancer comes from years of persistent scientific work — and from ensuring promising researchers have the resources to continue that work.

“When I’m in the water this September, it’s about those I love,” Linda said. “It’s about making sure that the next family member or friend who hears the word ‘cancer’ has better odds than the last one did.”

Beth Hykes has her own reason for returning year after year. She first swam with Swim Across America in 2010 and joined the volunteer Seattle organizing team in 2015. This year, she and Paul Ulrickson are co-captains of Dogs for the Cause: Mission Pawsable, a team inspired by the belief that early funding can give researchers the opportunity to pursue ideas with the potential to change cancer care.

Beth swims in honor of several family members and friends touched by cancer and in memory of others she has lost, including her cousin Missy. She is also joined in her Swim Across America efforts by her golden retriever, Casey.

“I want to be part of the change that helps give more families hope,” Beth said. “You don’t have to be a swimmer to make an impact. You can volunteer, swim in person or virtually, join a team or make a donation. There are so many ways to be part of this mission.”

Paul Ulrikson’s reason for participating is similarly rooted in the people cancer has taken and those still fighting it.

“Since our last swim, goodbyes have been said to family and good friends because of cancer, while others have been diagnosed or had a recurrence,” Paul shared. “I choose to stay hopeful. Two partners foster that hope: Swim Across America and Fred Hutch Cancer Center. Through donations, we can and are making a difference.”

Other swimmers are carrying entire families with them into Lake Sammamish.

Suzanne Koontz will swim the 2-mile course with family members Atticus and Emily in honor of her brothers Fred and Jerry, both cancer survivors; Fred’s wife, Elena, a cancer and stroke survivor; and her brother Jeff Nelson, who is undergoing treatment for skin cancer. She also swims in memory of loved ones who did not survive cancer, including Jim Koontz.

“Many of us have family and friends who have been touched by cancer,” Suzanne said. “Let’s continue this work toward fighting this battle.”

Swim Across America – Seattle participants have also seen the promise of cancer research through survivors including Debbie Buck, who is in remission from breast cancer, and Jeff Sloan, a stage 4 melanoma survivor whose treatment was made possible by advances in cancer research.

For the hundreds gathering at Sunset Beach on September 12, those stories — of survival, loss, research and hope — are what transform an open water swim into something much larger.

“Everyone at the beach has a name, a face or a story that brought them here,” Beth Hykes noted. “Together, those individual stories become a community determined to make the future different for the next person who hears the words, ‘You have cancer.’ That is what it means to make waves to fight cancer.”

Nationally, Swim Across America has raised more than $150 million for cancer research since its founding in 1987 and has helped fund clinical trials that contributed to the FDA-approved cancer immunotherapy medications Keytruda, Opdivo, Yervoy and Tecentriq. In the past year, Swim Across America funded a breakthrough clinical trial at Memorial Sloan Kettering that showed that immunotherapy alone could successfully treat certain types of cancer. The organization also recently awarded two first-of-its-kind gene editing innovation grants to the Alliance for Cancer Gene Therapy and Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, advancing novel CRISPR gene and base editing techniques used in targeted therapies, immunotherapies and cellular therapies. Swim Across America supports more than 60 cancer research projects annually, has eight named Swim Across America labs, and supports work at many of the nation’s leading cancer institutions.

For more information, to join as a swimmer, volunteer, or to participate virtually or donate to Swim Across America – Seattle, visit swimacrossamerica.org/seattle.

Hundreds Dive in on Saturday, August 29, the 11th Annual Swim Across America – St. Louis Open Water Swim to Make Waves to Fight Cancer

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Nearly 600 Participants Expected at Alpine Lake to Raise Funds for Siteman Cancer Center; Team IBK Rallies Around Teammate Jean Roberson During Her Own Pancreatic Cancer Journey

Swim Across America, the national nonprofit organization that makes waves to fight cancer through charity swims across the U.S., will host the 11th annual Swim Across America – St. Louis Open Water Swim on Saturday, August 29, 2026, at Alpine Lake at Innsbrook Resort in Innsbrook, Missouri. Participants can choose from a half-mile, 1-mile or 2-mile open water swim, with proceeds supporting cutting-edge cancer research at Siteman Cancer Center at Barnes-Jewish Hospital and WashU Medicine. Those who cannot swim in person can still volunteer, donate or participate virtually through SAA My Way. Learn more at swimacrossamerica.org/stlouis.

Since its launch in 2016, Swim Across America – St. Louis has raised more than $2.3 million for Siteman Cancer Center. During the past decade, the event has grown into one of the largest gatherings for the regional swim community, welcoming nearly 600 participants each year, along with hundreds of volunteers, spectators and supporters and appearances by Olympic gold medalists and other special guests. The swim has reached capacity for the past four years.

This year, one of the reasons swimmers are diving in, is to support one of their own. Jean Roberson, a longtime Swim Across America participant who spent years raising money for others facing cancer, has unexpectedly found herself on the other side of that equation.

Roberson has participated in Swim Across America – St. Louis since 2019, with her husband volunteering alongside her. Last year, the couple expanded their commitment by hosting a fundraiser at their Alpine Lake home as part of the 2025 Swim Across America weekend. They also created Team Jessica in memory of Roberson’s niece, who passed away from cancer in her mid-20s.

Then, approximately six months ago, Roberson received her own devastating diagnosis: pancreatic cancer.

After undergoing chemotherapy, Roberson had major surgery in July and is continuing her follow-up treatment, including care through Siteman Cancer Center. This year, instead of simply swimming in memory and honor of others touched by cancer, members of the Swim Across America community are now swimming for her.

Roberson is a member of Team IBK, a group of more than 45 swimmers representing the Innsbrook community and beyond. The team is captained by Bill Wilson, a cancer survivor himself and one of the event directors for Swim Across America – St. Louis.

“Jean has supported Swim Across America for years as a swimmer, fundraiser and friend, always focused on helping other patients and families,” Wilson said. “Now our community has the opportunity to rally around Jean. Her story is an incredibly powerful reminder of why we do this and why funding cancer research is so important.”

Team IBK has become a fundraising powerhouse within the St. Louis swim. Last year, the team raised more than $70,000 and has continued an unbroken streak as the top fundraising team at Swim Across America – St. Louis, while also ranking among the organization’s top teams nationally.

“Team IBK will once again represent the community of Innsbrook and beyond on Saturday, August 29, as we participate in the 11th annual Swim Across America – St. Louis Open Water Swim at Alpine Lake,” Wilson said. “We will support the fight to find a cure by participating, volunteering and raising funds to support cutting-edge research at Siteman Cancer Center. May it lead to a cancer-free world.”

Wilson will once again swim a mile at this year’s event while captaining Team IBK. For him, each trip across Alpine Lake represents friends and loved ones who have faced cancer as well as his own experience as a cancer survivor.

“I swim in honor of those who have fought, or are fighting, this insidious disease and in memory of the dear friends I have lost to it,” Wilson said.

The connection between Swim Across America – St. Louis and Siteman Cancer Center is especially meaningful to participants such as Roberson and Wilson because money raised in the community stays in the community, supporting innovative cancer research that can ultimately lead to new treatments, clinical trials and better outcomes for patients.

“Every swimmer, volunteer and donor at Alpine Lake is part of something much larger than a one-day swim,” Wilson said. “We have seen firsthand how cancer research changes lives. When nearly 600 people come together in one place with the same goal, it sends an incredibly powerful message to patients and families that they are not fighting cancer alone.”

Nationally, Swim Across America has raised more than $150 million for cancer research since its founding in 1987 and has helped fund clinical trials that contributed to the FDA-approved cancer immunotherapy medications Keytruda, Opdivo, Yervoy and Tecentriq. In the past year, Swim Across America funded a breakthrough clinical trial at Memorial Sloan Kettering that showed that immunotherapy alone could successfully treat certain types of cancer. The organization also recently awarded two first-of-its-kind gene editing innovation grants to the Alliance for Cancer Gene Therapy and Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, advancing novel CRISPR gene and base editing techniques used in targeted therapies, immunotherapies and cellular therapies. Swim Across America supports more than 60 cancer research projects annually, has eight named Swim Across America labs, and supports work at many of the nation’s leading cancer institutions.

For more information, to join as a swimmer, volunteer, or to participate virtually or donate to Swim Across America – St. Louis, visit swimacrossamerica.org/stlouis.

More than 900 Swimmers to Fight Cancer at 17th Annual Swim Across America – Rhode Island Open Water Swim

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Nation’s Largest Swim Across America Event Will Honor Recently Retired Providence College Coach and Event Co-Founder John O’Neill; Proceeds Support Cancer Research at Women & Infants Hospital of Rhode Island

Swim Across America, the national nonprofit that makes waves to fight cancer through charity swims across the U.S., will host the 17th annual Swim Across America – Rhode Island Open Water Swim on Saturday, Sept. 12, at Roger Wheeler State Beach, 100 Sand Hill Cove Road, in Narragansett. The event offers a quarter-mile, half-mile or 1-mile open water swim, plus the Kids Splash & Dash. Swimmer registration has reached capacity and closed early, with more than 900 swimmers registered. Volunteers are still needed, and donations and virtual participation through SAA My Way remain open. Proceeds support cancer research at Women & Infants Hospital of Rhode Island. To volunteer, donate or participate virtually, visit swimacrossamerica.org/rhodeisland.

This year’s swim carries added meaning. It will honor event co-founder John O’Neill, who retired this year after 36 seasons leading Providence College Swimming & Diving.

Established in 2010, the Rhode Island swim has raised more than $3 million for cancer research at Women & Infants’ Program in Women’s Oncology. It draws more than 1,000 swimmers and volunteers combined each year, including more swimmers than any other Swim Across America event, and is one of the largest charity open water swims in the country. It also attracts more than 20 collegiate swimming, diving and water polo teams — more than any other Swim Across America event — along with over a dozen age-group and high school teams. Masters swimmers, community members, cancer survivors, researchers, clinicians and caregivers are also part of the day.

Honoring Coach John O’Neill

O’Neill co-founded the Rhode Island swim with Swim Across America in 2010 and has served on its event committee ever since. Through his relationships with coaches and programs throughout New England, he recruited the college teams that now fill the beach each September. He also made the cause part of the culture of Providence College Swimming & Diving, which has raised over $550,000 of the more than $3 million the event has generated for cancer research.

“Coach O’Neill has been the heart of Swim Across America – Rhode Island since its inception,” said Douglas Sayles, event director of Swim Across America – Rhode Island. “He introduced generations of Providence College swimmers to this cause and brought New England coaches and swimming programs together around a shared purpose. Most of all, he has shown young athletes how they can use the sport they love to make a meaningful difference for families facing cancer. We’re grateful to John and glad this year’s swim can help celebrate his career.”

The Sept. 12 swim opens a full day honoring O’Neill. Swimmers, Providence College alumni, colleagues and friends will gather at Roger Wheeler State Beach in the morning, and a retirement reception hosted on campus by Providence College will follow that evening. Reception tickets are $40 and available at bit.ly/oneill-reception.

O’Neill’s reasons for helping start the swim were personal.

“Too many family members and friends have been lost to cancer and we wanted to do something that could help,” said O’Neill of his involvement with Swim Across America.

His commitment deepened as he supported Providence College swimmers who faced cancer themselves, including former student-athletes Colleen Lowell ’97 and Kara McCurdy ’22. McCurdy continued swimming at Providence after her treatment and later joined O’Neill and the Friars at the Rhode Island swim.

For O’Neill, bringing college swimmers together at Roger Wheeler State Beach has always been about more than one morning of swimming.

“Our Rhode Island Swim is unique with so many college participants involved,” O’Neill told Swimming World. “We hope that once the students graduate and relocate, they stay involved with Swim Across America no matter where their future takes them!”

O’Neill came to the sport as a Rhode Island swimmer himself. He swam for the Abbott Run Valley Club, the Cumberland-Lincoln Boys’ Club and Cumberland High School, where he earned All-State honors, and at Springfield College. He founded the Providence College swimming and diving program in 1984 and coached the Friars for 17 seasons, then spent five years as head coach at the United States Military Academy at West Point. He returned to Providence in 2007 and led the Friars for another 19 seasons. During his 36 seasons at Providence, nine of his student-athletes combined to win 20 individual event titles at the BIG EAST Championships.

Away from the college ranks, he coached age-group swimmers at Little Rhody Aquatic Club and Providence Aquatic Club, and directed swim camps in Rhode Island. O’Neill received the CSCAA Swim Across America Service Award in 2016. He was inducted into the Rhode Island Aquatic Hall of Fame in 1994 and received its Ellis Mayers Humanitarian Award in May 2026. Providence College has established the Cindy and John O’Neill Swimming and Diving Endowed Fund in honor of his career and his impact on generations of student-athletes.

About Swim Across America

Nationally, Swim Across America has raised more than $150 million for cancer research since its founding in 1987 and has helped fund clinical trials that contributed to the FDA-approved cancer immunotherapy medications Keytruda, Opdivo, Yervoy and Tecentriq. In the past year, Swim Across America funded a breakthrough clinical trial at Memorial Sloan Kettering that showed immunotherapy alone could successfully treat certain types of cancer. The organization also recently awarded two first-of-its-kind gene editing innovation grants to the Alliance for Cancer Gene Therapy and Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, advancing novel CRISPR gene and base editing techniques used in targeted therapies, immunotherapies and cellular therapies. Swim Across America supports more than 60 cancer research projects annually, has eight named Swim Across America labs, and supports work at many of the nation’s leading cancer institutions.

Swim Across America, Inc. (SAA) is dedicated to raising money and awareness for cancer research, prevention and treatment through swimming-related events. With open water and pool swims in 27 communities across the United States – from Nantucket to under the Golden Gate Bridge – Swim Across America, along with the help of thousands of swimmers and volunteers nationwide, and past and current Olympians, is helping find better treatments and a cure for cancer through athleticism, community outreach and direct service. To learn more, visit swimacrossamerica.org.

19-Year-Old American Maya Merhige Successfully Swims the Strait of Gibraltar From Spain to Morocco, Completing Her Sixth Oceans Seven Crossing

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Berkeley marathon swimmer aims to be youngest swimmer in the world to complete Oceans Seven while raising funds for cancer research through Swim Across America

Marathon teen swimming sensation Maya Merhige of Berkeley, California, a rising sophomore at Georgetown University, successfully swam the Strait of Gibraltar from Spain to Morocco on Tuesday, August 11, completing the sixth of the seven legendary channel crossings that make up the Oceans Seven. Maya completed the challenging swim in 3 hours, 49 minutes and 49 seconds, swimming from the coast of Tarifa, Spain to Eddalya, Morocco.

The Strait of Gibraltar separates Europe from Africa and connects the Atlantic Ocean with the Mediterranean Sea. At its narrowest, the crossing is approximately 14.4 kilometers, or about 9 miles, although tides and challenging currents typically require swimmers to cover a considerably longer route. The Strait of Gibraltar is a unique location where the Atlantic Ocean meets the Mediterranean Sea and is known as a significant area for dolphins, fin and pilot whales, orcas, and other sea life, as well as being a busy shipping channel. With strong currents, unpredictable winds, and strict permissions, the Strait of Gibraltar is also known as one of the most important swims of the seven continents. The swim is run by The Strait of Gibraltar Swimming Association, or ACNEG, which oversees and certifies crossings in cooperation with maritime authorities offering just two-or-three crossings a year.

With the Strait of Gibraltar marking Maya’s sixth successful Oceans Seven crossing in just five years, the goal of being the youngest person in the world to complete the Oceans Seven challenge is within reach. Only 52 swimmers in the world have completed the Oceans Seven.

The Oceans Seven is considered the aquatic equivalent of mountaineering’s Seven Summits and requires swimmers to complete seven of the world’s best-known ocean channel crossings. Of those swims, Maya at age 14 completed the Catalina Channel in 2021, breaking the record for the youngest woman to swim the 32.3 km (20-miles) Catalina Channel; in 2023 at 15, she swam the 42 km (26 miles) Kaiwi or Molokai Channel, also the youngest to ever complete that crossing; in 2024, at 16 she successfully swam the 33 km (20.5 miles) English Channel; in 2025, at 17, the 22.5 km (14 miles) New Zealand’s Cook Strait was completed – where Maya suffered hundreds of jellyfish stings; this past July, at 18, she swam the 34.5 km (21.4 miles) grueling North Channel from Ireland to Scotland; and now, August 11, 2026, weeks after turning 19, she successfully swam the 14.4 km (9 miles) Strait of Gibraltar. Her final challenge is the 19.5 km (12.1 miles) Tsugaru Strait in Japan which she plans to attempt in 2027. 

Maya has also swum the Tahoe Triple Crown, the Manhattan 20 Bridges swim, the Angel Island swim and the Three Rocks swim in San Francisco Bay. Just a week after her 13th birthday, she became the youngest woman to swim the width of Lake Tahoe. 

Maya also aims to break another record with her Oceans Seven swims – becoming the youngest person in the world to complete all seven swims.

As significant as this milestone is for Maya Merhige personally, her swims have always been about something bigger.

Maya swims to make waves to fight cancer through Swim Across America, the nonprofit she first joined at age 9 in San Francisco to honor a family friend and three-time cancer survivor, and in memory of a family friend who sadly passed away from brain cancer at age 12. Throughout the past decade, she has raised more than $190,000 for cancer research and has carried the names of friends and family members affected by cancer on her swim cap during her marathon swims. This summer alone, Maya has raised more than $20,000 toward her $45,000 goal, with fundraising continuing throughout her Oceans Seven journey.

“Every time I get in the water, I am carrying others with me who have had a far more challenging journey than I’m undertaking,” Maya noted. “I am swimming for those whose names are on my cap, for families who need hope and for the research that can lead to better treatments.”

With the Strait of Gibraltar swim, Maya was also swimming for Sydney Towle, the 26-year-old social media content creator who sadly passed away on August 5th after a nearly three-year battle with metastatic cholangiocarcinoma, a rare and aggressive bile duct cancer. Sydney Towle was diagnosed at age 23 and became known to her more than 1.2 million TikTok followers for candidly sharing her experiences with cancer, treatment and life as a young adult facing the disease.

Before the Strait of Gibraltar swim, Merhige shared Sydney’s story on her own @chasing_channels account and thanked Sydney’s brother, Austin Towle, for allowing her to honor his sister with her swim. Sydney’s brother and mother announced her passing last week after she had spent the past several years publicly raising awareness of the realities of cancer in young adults.

For Maya Merhige, Sydney’s story reinforced the reason she continues taking on extraordinary challenges in the water: to raise funds and awareness for the cancer research that can lead to new therapies and more options for patients.

Unlike many of Maya’s previous solo channel swims, the Strait of Gibraltar is frequently organized with swimmers of comparable speed crossing together. Merhige was paired with two other swimmers: Carles of Spain and Dan of the United Kingdom, who met before the swim and were bound to help keep each other motivated throughout the crossing with a simple goal: start together, finish together — and have fun along the way. The day was perfect for the swim with sunny skies and crystal clear blue water.

The Strait of Gibraltar swim also became a family affair with Maya’s mother Liz Tung on the boat as part of Maya’s crew – for the first time since Maya’s grueling Molokai Channel crossing three years ago, which Liz stated was so hard and long that it had kept her on land for Maya’s other Oceans Seven swims. Her father Chris Merhige, who has been a constant on Maya’s crew boat, once again provided what the family describes as the “calm force” behind the operation. And for the first time during one of Maya’s major crossings, her younger sister Lucy was aboard the escort boat to experience the adventure firsthand. Also rounding out the crew was Kelly Gentry, Maya’s coach and safety coordinator.

Last month’s North Channel swim, which is known as the toughest of the Ocean Seven swims, had Maya swimming 34.5 kilometers, or 21.4 miles, from Ireland to Scotland in 12 hours, 19 minutes and 37 seconds. The swim came exactly one year after Maya underwent major surgery following a series of health challenges stemming from the discovery of a benign pancreatic tumor after a 2023 ski accident.

Those experiences have given Merhige an even deeper appreciation for what patients and families endure during serious health crises and strengthened her commitment to using her swimming to help others.

“Swimming for me is easy compared to what those with cancer have to go through,” noted Maya. “If I can help raise funds that help fund critical cancer research through Swim Across America, and help find more and better cures through swimming, I’m going to do just that.”

The funds raised by Maya Merhige for Swim Across America go directly to support pediatric cancer research and patient care at UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital Oakland Research Institute and UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital San Francisco Survivors of Childhood Cancer Program.

Nationally, Swim Across America has raised more than $150 million for cancer research since its founding in 1987. The nonprofit organization has supported the research and clinical trials of several immunotherapy treatments that have led to the FDA approval to treat numerous types of cancer, and supports more than 60 cancer research projects annually at leading cancer institutions across the country.

To support Maya’s Oceans Seven journey and fundraising efforts for cancer research through Swim Across America, visit swimacrossamerica.org/maya.

SWIM ACROSS AMERICA – NASSAU/SUFFOLK IN THE NEWS

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Read or watch local stories featuring the Swim Across America-Nassau/Suffolk community to learn about their impact. Learn more about the event and beneficiaries at swimacrossamerica.org/ns.

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Swim Across America in Glen Cove, Long Island | Full Coverage | CBS New York