A County Durham man has completed a solo open water swimming challenge for a cancer charity, after the event he had originally entered was cancelled. Adam Dovaston, 20 and from Sedgefield, swam a mile on his own in Ellerton Park lake on Sunday to raise money for Teenage Cancer Trust, which is supporting his girlfriend Nell Wright and other young people facing a cancer diagnosis.
Adam Dovaston had been due to swim a mile by taking part in the Great North Swim in Windermere earlier this month, but high winds led to his slot being cancelled. Undeterred, a week later, Adam visited the lake at Ellerton Park in Yorkshire and completed his mile in a solo swim. Along with Nell and other family and friends, Adam’s local county councillor Chris Lines was on hand to witness the swim and verify that he completed the full distance. With a strong and steady breast stroke, Adam finished his swim in an impressive time of about 49 minutes.
Adam Dovaston comments: “I just wanted to do something to give back to Teenage Cancer Trust for supporting Nell and others. I was really disappointed that the Great North Swim was cancelled, but I felt like that I should do the swim anyway, to show to everyone who has supported my fundraising that I was committed to the task and able to complete it. And I will be taking part in the Great North Swim next year too!”
Through his swim and other initiatives, Adam has so far raised over £3,320 for Teenage Cancer Trust and his JustGiving page is still open for donations at www.justgiving.com/fundraising/adam-dovaston.