“I set out to break a World Record – and nearly broke myself” Greg Whyte’s Thames swim film launches

Professor Greg Whyte set out to recreate the 2011 Thames swim he completed supporting David Walliams – but in a World Record time. It was a challenge that saw him pushed beyond his limits and now you can watch the film.

Olympian Professor Greg Whyte is no stranger to a tough challenge. His background might be representing Team GB in modern pentathlon, but for the over a decade he has become best known as the coaching brains behind many Comic Relief challenges.

In this role he’s supported Davina McCall in an epic triathlon, helped Zoe Ball cycle 352 miles and climbed Kilamanjaro multiple times. It was one challenge that he’s perhaps best known for though – supporting David Walliams in his Channel and Thames swims.

Back to the Thames

Fast forward eleven years to 2022 and supported by a number of brands, including 220 Triathlon, Greg decided to head back to the Thames with a very good cause in mind.

“One person drowns every twenty hours in the UK,” said Greg. “Tragically, many of these people are children and young people, and with swimming pools across the country closing at an unprecedented rate, that figure is surely set to rise. So I decided to do something about it.

“The goal – 125 miles of open water swimming down the Thames, in a Guinness World Record time of just 4 days. The aim of this monumental challenge was to help raise awareness of water safety and drowning prevention by raising funds for two lifesaving charities: the RLSS and RNLI.”

Watch the film online now

We could tell you how the challenge went as 220 Triathlon were on the support crew and there to witness the challenge first hand. But it may be enough to tell you we witnessed some epic swimming, raw sewage, a lot of vomiting and a man pushed to – and then beyond – his limits.

Along the way we met some wonderful swimmers and supporters, saw donations of over £30,000 for the RNLI and RLSS (and counting) and raised awareness of drowning prevention.

Watch the film Whyte Water: A Swim To Save Lives on YouTube now.

Plus if you would like to donate, watch to the end to find a QR code to use. If you do nothing else though, please spread the message and encourage others to watch the film and raise awareness of the issues it raises in support of the RLSS UK and RNLI.