The Blue Mile

Hundreds of people took part in WWF’s Blue Mile on Sunday 4 September, to raise awareness and funds to help preserve our marine and freshwater environments. The event, which was officially sponsored by Ecover, saw hundreds of people swim, kayak or stand-up paddle board one mile around Stoke Newington Reservoir in London – and at other events across the country.

Celebrities including BBC presenter Paul Rose, three-time round-the-world sailor Conrad Humphreys and organic entrepreneur Jo Wood, with her son Tyrone, took part in the event, as did our own CEO David Nussbaum.

Conrad Humphreys, the creator of the Blue Mile – who swam, kayaked and paddle-boarded his way around the reservoir on Sunday – said:

“Sport is intimately connected to nature, and for some athletes it’s the relationship with the environment that inspires and motivates us.

“As Jacques Cousteau once said, “People protect what they love” – and it’s a love for the environment that we need to engender throughout our communities.

“The challenge is to move people beyond awareness and find the mechanisms to involve more people with our blue environment. WWF’s Blue Mile is one way to connect people and their emotions with water.”

Diver Paul Rose, presenter of ‘Oceans’ and ‘Britain’s Secret Seas’ for the BBC, swam his Blue Mile, and said:

“The oceans are the least understood ecosystem on the planet, and one of our most precious. They deserve our respect and protection. I’ve been diving in our waters since 1969 and I have seen first-hand that some areas have significantly less marine life than they used to. It’s not all doom and gloom though… -

“WWF’s Blue Mile is a fantastic way of getting people to engage with our marine and freshwater habitats and a fun way to help protect these vital environments.”

Organic entrepreneur Jo Wood, who also took part in BBC’s Strictly Come Dancing, completed her Blue Mile in a kayak, and said:

“Our beautiful blue planet is being threatened. Marine and freshwater habitats are being challenged every day by the serious issues of pollution and climate change. WWF’s Blue Mile is the perfect opportunity for us to take on a challenge ourselves and enjoy our seas, rivers, lakes and waterways, while doing something pretty unique to help preserve them.”

WWF CEO David Nussbaum, who kayaked his Blue Mile, said: “We’d like to thank everyone who took part in the event, or came along to show their support. It was a huge success.

“The UK is home to an amazing array of marine and freshwater species, but just 2% of British waters are currently under official protection.

“WWF believes we can all do more to help protect our fragile water habitats, and the Blue Mile is an excellent place to start.”

Please click on the links below to access your timed result from the Blue Mile 2011.

• The Blue Mile (Swim) Results
• The Blue Mile (Triple Challenge) Results
• The Blue Mile (Kayak) Results
• The Blue Mile (SUP) Results
• The Blue Mile (Rescue) Results
• The Blue Mile (Volunteer) Results

Blue Mile Corporate Challenge 2011

Please find your official Blue Mile wave time below. This list will be updated every couple of days, so please allow some time for your name to appear if you have only just registered. This information has been sent to you along with a copy of our Blue Mile Information Pack. Please remember that you must sign in on the day at least 30 minutes before the start of your wave. You will be provided with your swim hat (if applicable) and timing chip at this stage.

We hope the training and fundraising are going well and look forward to seeing you on the day.

Contact us if you have any questions:
info@wwfbluemile.org.uk
02392 312008

Swim Wave 1 – 09:00

Lucy Alexander
Rachel Alexander
Maryam Amjad
Gary Anderson
Sam Ashken
Hannah Banting
Charlotte Crick
Amber Danks
Grace Dooley
Bel Ingham
Jonathan Knott
Patrycja Korzec
Sarah Lucas
Helen McCulloch
Carly  Nunn
Fiona  O’cleirigh
Justin O’cleirigh

Swim Wave 2 – 10:00

Soo-bee Appleton
Nicholas Appleton
Penelope Armand-smith
Bridget Atherton
Stuart Athol
Ailsa Auchnie
James Bainbridge
Katie Beerling
Juliet Benton
Samuele Bottega
Mary Bragg
Kate Brunning
Zandra Carrington
Paul Cook
Heather Cooper
Andrew Craig
Kristian Davey
Emily Davis
Kieran Dawkins
Cathy Dunning
Elizabeth Dunningham
Nicky Dutton
William Ramesh Esmieu
Ian Exton
Darren Finch
Sonja Fischer
Matthew George
Debi Ghosh
Julia Gillick
Ruth Gladwin
Sarah Gordon
Rosemary Gordon
Michael Graham
Jane Greene Pettersson
Lucienne Harrington
Matt Harrison
June Hart
Peter Heslin
Heather Heslin
Trish Kelly
Ian King
Julia Knight
Line Langebek
Heather Lannin
Julie Law
Pierre-julien Loriquet
Karine Malagu
Grant Martin
Niall Mcaskie
Chris Mcconnachie
Lindsay Mcdermott
Elizabeth Mcginity
Poppy Mcnee
Emma Mead
Pete Nichols
Andrew Palmer
Sherleen Pang
Rachel Pavitt
Gemma Phillips
Jillian Pomroy
Beverley Rand
Simon Reberga
Hannah Riches
Niel Robbins
Kate Rodgers
Mauricio Schonenberger
Toby Simpson
Bertie Smith
Ed Sowerby
Kim Taylor-mcfarlane
Rebecca Thomas
Louise Thomas
Toby Trembath
Effi Vandevoorde
Tom Watson
David Wyn Watson
Julian Widdows
Ben Wilkinson
Karim Ziane

Swim Wave 3 – 11:15

Rachel Butler
Kim Burgon
Thomas Cadman
Radu Ciortan
Steven Dooner
Owen Frankish
Joy Grover
Mette Holm
Susan Mcdowell
Jonathan Ratcliffe
Paul Rose
Amanda Rowell
Richard Royal
Emily Smith
James Swift
Jon Trevor
Ivan Trompowsky
Nicky Tume
Katie Ward
Phillip Whitehead
Tim Whitehead

Triple Challenge – 12:15

Charlotte Belhoste
Mike Besant
Victoria Bloom
Jeremy Carne
Robert Davidson
Rupert De Renzy-martin
Derfogail Delcassian
Joey Donovan
Ellie Duncanson-hunter
Peter Frankland
Matthew French
Susie Hailey
Conrad Humphreys
Ryan James
Rob Lewis
Fiona O’cleirigh
Annabel Pribelszki
Matthew Robbins
Fay Rushby
Dharmjit Sandhu
Craig Scudder
Tracey Smith
Katia Vastiau
Gavin Weeks
Steve Whitmore
Blades Williamson

Kayak Wave 1 – 14:00

Nupur Bedi
Claire Boothby
Nuala Casey
Adrian Cockle
Henry Cooke
Hara Charalampopoulou
Charlotte Crick
Daisy De Cooman
Rudy De Vis
Guy Dulake
James Elliott
Jodie Gray
Suzanne Holmes
Alexander Matthews
Nila Matthews
Daniel Miles
Mhairi Miller
Rebecca Moran
Carly  Nunn
David Nussbaum
Matthew Oughtred
Jessica Peek
Pete Rosier
Rachel Richards
Claire Ruocco
Vicky Saunders
Paul Van Schalkwyk
Joyce Irene Standing
Jo Wood
Tyrone Wood

SUP Wave 1 – 14:45

Gareth Abramson
Bertrand Beghin
James Bloor
Jenny Brothers
Charlotte Crick
Dirk Develter
Alicia Doherty
Anthony Edwards
Sarah Goddard
Clarissa Goodwin
Jeanne Heunis
Simon Lewis
Philip Malmberg
Harry Mcdermott
Jennifer Morgan
Carly  Nunn
Paul O’connor
Matteo Santoro
Ulrike Wessollek

Today marks exactly one month from our flagship Blue Mile event taking place at Stoke Newington Reservoir Centre in London. We’re very excited here at Panda House and hope you’re getting excited too!

There’s still time to register and raise lots of funds to help our vital work with the worlds precious marine and freshwater environments.

And it’s not just about doing the mile on the day…here’s what else you can expect at our London extravaganza on 4^th September:

• Exclusive Blue Mile and WWF merchandise and goody bags
• Music and workshops from Weapons of Sound – The Original Junk Music Band.
• Exclusive stand-up paddle-board demonstrations from Naish and Active360
• Exciting guest speakers.
• Magical synchronised swimming displays.
• Incredible stalls and exhibitions, including event sponsors Ecover.
• Lots of activities such as face painting to keep the whole family entertained.
• You can even complete your Blue Mile without getting wet on one of our state of the art Aqua Blue Concept 2 rowing machines.
• Eco-friendly and delicious catering.

If you can’t make it to our London event, don’t panic! We can help you organise your own Blue Mile at a time and place that suits you, with our exclusive fundraising packs you receive upon registration…who knows, your event could be bigger and better than ours!

We’ve already heard about some fantastic ideas, from fancy-dress kayaking to paper boat racing – prizes for the most creative event! We send you all the tips and materials you could possibly need.

So if you don’t want to miss out on all the fun, register now for the London event or to organise your own challenge.

Hope to see you there!

The Blue Mile Team

WWF is proud to announce that Ecover are the official sponsors of this year’s Blue Mile event. Aiming to raise vital funds to help protect the world’s marine and freshwater environments, the Blue Mile is an exciting sponsored activity asking people to cover one mile, either in or next to water. Ecover, who have been producing ecological products for the last 25 years, have teamed up with WWF to encourage people to either organise their very own Blue Mile challenge throughout the summer or participate in WWF’s flagship London event in September.

Triple round the world sailor, Conrad Humphreys who launched the Blue Mile will be taking part in the “Triple Challenge” which involves a one mile swim, stand up paddle and kayak.

Conrad said: “I’m thrilled that Ecover have become the official partner with WWF’s Blue Mile. They are an organisation whose core values closely mirror the ethos of the event and I hope that their message of “Powered by Nature” will encourage everyone to choose a more sustainable approach to our blue environment.”

Ecover have previously worked with WWF to help raise awareness to the natural environment and have a solid environmental programme. With global projects specifically aimed at water conservation, Ecover are committed to making sure their products have a minimum impact on our marine and freshwater environments.

Tobin Aldrich, Head of Fundraising at WWF-UK said: “WWF’s Blue Mile is an exciting event for all ages to get involved in, whether you organise your own event or take part in the more challenging London event, you can help raise funds to protect our marine and freshwater habitats. We are especially delighted that Ecover have come on board to be the official sponsor for the challenge.”

Ecover spokesman, Rudy De Vis said: “We are really proud to sponsor the Blue Mile campaign – it’s a project that we truly believe in and we are excited to be working with WWF to raise awareness of this crucial issue. The protection of our environment and waterways is a growing area of concern throughout the world and action needs to be taken. We support this wholeheartedly, so much so that Ecover teams will be taking part in the challenge on the day.”

TO TAKE PART: If you want to make a big splash then you can take part in WWF’s Blue Mile London event on Sunday 4 September, at Stoke Newington West Reservoir. Open air one mile challenges will be available to all who take part in swimming, kayaking and Stand Up Paddle Boarding. Participants can register to compete in any of the events or complete the ‘ Triple Challenge’ and sign up for all three. To find out more about WWF’s Blue Mile event and how to take part please visit: wwf.org.uk/bluemile or call 02392 312008

Choose to organise your own sponsored Blue Mile event at your local swimming pool, lido, school or community sports group or if you don’t fancy getting your feet wet, you can simply get family and friends together and do a sponsored walk or run along your favourite riverbank or beach!

The Blue Mile

Registration is now open for WWF’s brand new fundraising event. Take to the water for the Blue Mile event and swim, paddle, kayak, or simply take a stroll or run along your favourite river, lake or beach and help raise vital funds for WWF’s global conservation work on water. You can either organise your own Blue Mile event over the summer or take part in our flagship London event in September.

The UK has 20,000km of coastline containing diverse marine life and habitats, from deep sea corals to dolphins, so it’s a worrying fact that just two per cent of Britain’s oceans are protected, and only one per cent globally. The world’s rivers, aquifers and wetlands are also under increasing pressure due to over-use, pollution and the effects of climate change. WWF’s Blue Mile is an opportunity to enjoy our amazing seas, rivers, lakes and waterways whilst doing something unique to help preserve them.

You could choose to organise your own Blue Mile event at your local swimming pool, lido, school or community sports group.  Alternatively, you don’t even have to get your feet wet – simply get friends and family together and enjoy a mile long walk along your favourite beach, lake or river. Or you can make a splash by taking part in our flagship Blue Mile event on Sunday 4 September, at London’s Stoke Newington West Reservoir, where open air one mile swimming, kayaking and stand up paddle boarding challenges will be held.  Participants can register to take part in any of the events or complete the ‘Triple Challenge’ and sign up for all three.

Blue whale, New Zealand

Here at WWF, we’re delighted to be launching The Blue Mile – in this our 50th anniversary year. A year when we’re asking people up and down the UK to join in, and help change the world for the better – so we’re hoping you’ll take to the water and make a splash for some of the world’s most vulnerable wildlife and people.

We think The Blue Mile is a fun, active and positive way you can help the world’s seas, lakes and rivers. You take to the water either swimming, kayaking, or whatever takes your fancy. And we put the money you raise into water projects for some of the most vulnerable wildlife, places and people – both here in the UK and around the world. This work is essential. The survival of loads of species, availability of drinking water and livelihoods are at stake.

We’re just finalising the arrangements for our London flagship event on the 4th September and we’re working hard to prepare the fundraising packs to get you all started. We’ll keep you regularly updated with news throughout the spring and we really hope you will join us for a dip!