Tough Job Snorkelling Dirty Bogs

Newcastle Herald

Wednesday August 28, 2002

according to Linda Barnier & Ben Doherty

WITH flippers, snorkel and determination, Philip John from south-Wales beat an international field of competitors yesterday to be crowned World Bog Snorkelling Champion.

To cheers from bog snorkelling enthusiasts, John, above, took 1.45 minutes to complete the course ? a 60m-long and 1.2m-deep trench cut in a peat bog outside Llanwrtyd Wells in mid-Wales.

The 90 competitors who took part in the 17th World Championships were allowed snorkels and flippers, but according to the rules could not use conventional swimming strokes.

`It has been a very good day. We have had competitors from the US, Russia, Australia, Ireland and, of course, Britain,' organiser Gordon Green said.

`It's an unforgiving sport. You get bitten by insects, very dirty, smelly and you are wet all day,' said Julia Galvin, a competitor from Ireland who in 1999 was runner-up in the woman's race.

`The best bit is having a warm bath at the end,' she said.

© 2002 Newcastle Herald

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