Epic Swimmers ready to take on Taupo

More than 700 swimmers are set to converge on the shores of Lake Taupo this weekend for the 8^th annual edition of the Epic Swim.

The event, hosted by Swimming New Zealand, has continued to grow and attract participants from around New Zealand and the globe each year since it began in 2010.

This year is proving no different with numbers already surpassing previous year’s and participants coming from as far as Germany, Austria, England, Tahiti and Australia.

Along with the stunning backdrop and pristine waters of Lake Taupo participants are drawn to the event as it caters for all ages and abilities.

From the age of five years old participants can get a taste of open water swimming with distances starting from 100m and going up to the gruelling Epic Epic Swim of 17.5km and age categories right through to Masters.

With eight event categories to choose from it’s the perfect event to just be able to give open water swimming a go or to really challenge yourself.

The Epic Swim is also run in conjunction with the New Zealand Open Water Championships and for the first time this year will also be run with the New Zealand Secondary School Open Water Championships, giving the recreational swimmers a great opportunity to see the country’s top open water swimmers in action.

The championship events will add around another 100 swimmers to the weekends line up.

Racing starts at 8am Saturday 14 January with the 1km Mid Epic and finishes up on Sunday with the final two races, the Masters 2.5km Classic and NZ 5km Championships, from 9am.

Late registrations can be made at the Great Lake Centre, Taupo from 3-8pm Friday 13^th January and at race day registration.

All are welcome to come along and check out the event based in front of the Taupo Yacht Club.

Epic Swim event categories: Mini Epic 100m (5-10yrs), Minor Epic 500m (9-16yrs), Mid Epic 1km (10yrs+), Epic 2.5km (12yrs+), Epic 5km (12yrs+), Epic 10km (13yrs+), Epic Epic 17.5km (13yrs+), Masters 2.5km Classic (25yrs+).