Paulo Sousa still doesn't know if he will be able to gather the necessary money to pay his entry for the Double Crossing of the Straits of Gibraltar by swimming, which he hopes to be able to do in June or July next, but he is still preparing for this long adventure. And within the scope of this rigorous preparation, the athlete from Portimão already knows, at least, that, on March 11, he will be in Guimarães to swim 12 hours in a row.
Paulo Sousa has just been invited to participate in the event «2012 minutes to swim», promoted by the association Tempo Livre in the municipal swimming pools of Guimarães, within the scope of the events of the European Capital of Culture.
On March 10th and 11th, several swimming teams and the general population will have a lane available for 2012 minutes (34 hours), and Paulo Sousa was invited to swim in a second lane in the pools, during the last twelve hours, between 7:02 am and 19:02 pm that Sunday, without interruptions, with only short breaks for supplies without support on the wall.
Paulo Sousa thus intends to carry out a good training session for the great challenge he intends to undertake, the Double Crossing of the Strait of Gibraltar.
Paulo Sousa, 39 years old, has the dream of being the first portuguese to swim across the Straits of Gibraltar… and back. But this dream, in addition to the enormous physical effort involved, costs 3100 euros, necessary to pay for your registration with the association that has the exclusive right to organize these challenges and the trip and stay.
To try to raise this money, the swimmer from Portimão launched a public subscription, through a crowdfunding site, PPL, where anyone can contribute amounts starting at 5 euros and still receive a reward.
Paulo Sousa called his project «A National Challenge – Double Crossing of the Strait of Gibraltar 2012». So far, no other Portuguese swimmer has managed to complete this double crossing by swimming the dangerous strait that separates Europe, in Tarifa (Spain) and Africa, in Morocco.
In total, with round trip and deviations caused by the currents, it will be around 40 kilometers in continuous swimming. «It's a bit tough!», admits the swimmer and senior sports coach from Portimão.
Don't think that Paulo Sousa is a novice in these things. In 2010, with three other Portuguese companions, he successfully completed the crossing of the Strait of Gibraltar, between Spain and Morocco. At the time, Paulo was already 38 years old and was, therefore, the oldest Portuguese person to achieve this feat.
This time the challenge will be doubling – going and coming back, taking between nine and ten hours, always swimming.
The swim crossings of the Strait of Gibraltar they can only be done with the authorization of an entity – the Asociación Cruce ado del Estrecho de Gibraltar (ACNEG) – and after making an entry, which costs around 2900 euros, but includes all the logistics of the race, from two support vessels that accompany the swimmers on the crossing, to the medical team ready to take action if necessary, to fundamental licenses.
«These double crossings can only be made in two months of the year, in June or August. It has to do with the chains. ACNEG, depending on the expected general tides, decides which will be the best month. And then I will have a 15-day window, in which I will have to go to Tarifa and be available to make the crossing, when there are conditions for that».
To ensure that he will be in shape if and when he manages to gather the money and sign up for the crossing, Paulo Sousa has been dedicated to training. And they are, in his words, "a training madness". He swims four to six kilometers every day, in a swimming pool and in the sea, as well as running 15 kilometers five times a week. And, on weekends, he still does 40 kilometers of sea kayaking.
With 27 days left to finish his fundraising campaign through the crowdfunding site PPL, Paulo has already managed to raise 450 of the 3100 euros he needs. «I put in a period of 70 days to raise the money. If you do not succeed, at the end of that time, the money raised will be returned to those who have contributed in the meantime. That's how these things work».
For this reason, Paulo Sousa asks for everyone's support and guarantees that “raising the money is almost more difficult than making the double crossing”.
To help, just go to the PPL website where the project is hosted «A National Challenge – Double Crossing the Strait of Gibraltar 2012», register on the site and then choose the amount to donate (payments will be made by ATM).
Those who support the project are not left empty-handed: in addition to the joy of helping the athlete to fulfill his dream, each supporter will receive rewards, depending on the amount donated. It could be the disclosure of your name on social networks, as well as in the final video of Dupla Travessia, a cap from the swimming association O2, a t-shirt (exclusive) about Dupla Travessia do Estreito Gibraltar 2012, a video of Dupla Travessia or even, in the case of a company or institution, the placement of the company/institution's flag at departure and arrival. In addition, the swimmer will wear an advertising t-shirt whenever interviewed in the media.
From €5 to €700, there are many ways to help Paulo Sousa win the nearly 40 kilometers of the double crossing.
And on March 11, in the scope of Guimarães European Capital of Culture, the Algarve athlete will be there prepared to spend 12 hours swimming non-stop and thus publicize his project.
Comments