Great Salford Swim
Mid-May's Great Salford Swim is live on the Beeb
Two of the country’s leading mass participation running and swimming events are to be staged on the same day for the first time – and they’ll be live on TV.
The British Gas Great Salford Swim and The Bupa Great Manchester Run, which will together attract over 40,000 participants, are to be screened live on BBC television on Sunday 15 May.
The British Gas Great Salford Swim was first staged in September last year and saw 2,000 people race the one-mile distance at Salford Quays, situated smack bang against Manchester United’s Old Trafford football stadium.
Now the swim has been brought forward to the same day as the run with live coverage of both events to be screened on BBC Two.
As well as the age-group race, the event also boasts elite men’s and women’s races, which in the past have featured world-class stars such as British Olympic silver medallist Keri-Anne Payne and world 5k champion Thomas Lurz of Germany, who won the inaugural British Gas Great Salford Swim.
Colin Hill, head of Great Swim, said: “The inaugural swim in Salford proved an enormous hit with swimmers last year, partly because of the unique nature of the course, which took in two different docks as well as the canal that links them.
“The swim is being staged on the same day as the run and the atmosphere around Manchester and Salford will be amazing. It’s also going to be incredible to see our Olympic hopefuls swimming on live television alongside world class running events.”
Swimmers set off in a series of “waves”, each comprising of up to 300 swimmers, staged approximately every half an hour.
For more details and online entry visit www.greatswim.org
Matt Baird
Editor of Cycling Plus magazine 
