LIFEGUARDS in Newquay completed their RNLI 200th anniversary swimming challenge at Waterworld on August 2, beating their initial time by more than 20 minutes.

The lifeguard team wanted to play their part in marking 200 years of saving lives at sea for the RNLI while raising vital funds to allow that work to continue. The challenge also served as an opportunity for lifeguards to come together and celebrate the milestone.

The challenge was to swim 200 underwater and 200 freestyle lengths in under an hour and the lifeguards completed the total 10km challenge in an extraordinary 38 minutes.

The lifeguards also raised a fantastic £240 which will go towards the RNLI and will help fund the work of the lifeguards, who are now in the full swing of the busy summer season, patrolling beaches daily from 10am to 6pm.

RNLI lead lifeguard supervisor for Newquay, Lewis Timson said: “I am very proud of the team and the service, Friday was a great evening and the lifeguards excelled themselves. There was a great atmosphere and team spirit and it was just the boost we needed heading into our busiest week of the year.”

In total 40 RNLI lifeguards took part in the challenge and Senior RNLI Lifeguard, Agustin Lanzavecchia said it was a great occasion to be a part of.

Lewis added: “It’s very rare that we all get to meet up and so to spend Friday evening together and complete this challenge with fellow lifeguards was a really cool experience to be a part of.

“I think also we set out to achieve the target in under an hour so to beat that time by 20 minutes is great but I think it is a testament to our fitness and training that we do throughout the season in the sea and on the beach which allowed us to achieve such a good time.

“Furthermore, the opportunity to celebrate the 200th anniversary of the charity by completing this challenge was a wonderful motivation and finishing it will give us a big boost going forward into our most intense part of the summer.”