The Boltion News
A Bolton lawyer has raised thousands of pounds to help people in Ukraine after swimming the Strait of Gibraltar.
Chris Murray, 52, has raised more than £3,800 for Ukraine Charity after swimming a perilous 15km journey between Spain and Morocco.
The partner at Manchester’s largest law firm Clyde & Co is no stranger to taking on extreme challenges, he has previously traversed the 21-mile-wide English Channel.
However, the Strait of Gibraltar is considered one of the world’s most difficult long-distance open water swims, with participants having to cross one of planet’s busiest waterways, contend with complex currents and tides and navigate marine life such as orcas, jellyfish, and sharks.
Safely crossing the Strait is entirely weather dependent, with Chris, from Heaton, a partner specialising in catastrophic injury and large loss in the firm’s UK casualty practice, having to abandon his original plan to take on the challenge last year after it was cancelled due to unsafe conditions.
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Speaking about his challenge, Chris said: “The first two hours were by far the hardest, when the swell and tankers churning the water made it feel like you were inside a washing machine at times.
“And even though my support boat was on hand in the event of an emergency, it was psychologically demanding knowing the Strait was 900m deep – five the times the depth of the English Channel.
“However, while the swim was personally challenging, I knew that at no point was my life ever truly at risk.
