Meet our Guides
Alessandro Mancini
Swim history before SwimTrek
Born in Rome, I started swimming since my early years at Circolo Canottieri Aniene (most awarded swimming team in Italy with many Olympians) where I was a swimming instructor during my university studies. I’ve been swimming competitively as breaststroker for a long time both as teen and master. I did my first Open Water competition about ten years ago and I loved it! I moved to Australia where I swam in Port Phillip Bay with lots of animals but thankfully I’ve never met a Great White! Currently living in Ibiza which is a dream location for the open water swimmers.
Locations guided on
I took part of a memorable Swimtrek in the Greek Cyclades few years ago and since then I’ve been dreaming to be a Swimtrek guide. Since I moved to Ibiza, I’ve been guiding groups around the amazing coastline of the white island.
Most memorable swim moment
During the summer 2008 I swam the Sicily Strait, pretty much a MUST for an Italian swimmer, and I will never forget the incredible color of the deep blue water. And the old ladies clapping their hands from the balcony of the houses built right on the beach where we arrived.
Top swimming tip
Swimming for me is all about relaxation and gliding. Enjoy every single stroke, get lost in the blue. If your muscles are relaxed and your consciousness gets into a meditative state, your swim will be incredibly enjoyable and efficient.
Interesting fact
I’ve been working for major sport events for almost 20 years. In Rio 2016, I was the Mixed zone Manager at the Olympic Aquatic Center for Swimming and Waterpolo competitions. I was lucky enough to witness live the last sensational strokes of Michael Phelps.
Alex Balman
Swim history before SwimTrek
I started swimming at my local club at the age of 8, progressing through the squads and achieved over all county/regional age group champion at the age of 14 and became a national open qualifier by 15. I left my club at the age of 17 due to the pressures of college and working life and didn't return to the pool until I'd finished college and settled into a full time job, at this stage I was swimming for pleasure alongside running and rock-climbing. The years rolled on till at 32 I started longing for some direction to training and started looking at open water swimming. I decided to enter the Epic 1 mile swim in Ullswater and managed a respectable 10th in the Male open category, this good result spurred me on and I entered several events over the following years. As some of the events required SASA membership I joined a local club and found myself back in the pool and entering Masters swimming events.
I started coaching swimming in 2013 and now spend a lot of time coaching a local club and progressing my qualifications. I also enjoy sailing with my local yacht club and provide safety boat cover for the Dinghy races with boson responsibilities for the safety RIB.
Most memorable swim moment
Winning a bet with my swimming coach (he said I could never make the qualifying time) and competing in the Scottish Open Swimming championships in 2012.
Top swimming tip
Technique is key when swimming and even more so when training for distance swims. When you start out try to not be so concerned with pushing out the laps and spend some quality time working on your stroke technique. The biggest improvement I see that people can make is getting the catch position just right, your fingers should be the lowest point of your arm followed by your wrist, elbow then shoulder. Aim for this at the start of the catch and keep your elbow high throughout the whole stroke.
Interesting fact
I have a brewery in my garage and grow my own hops.
Amy Taylor
Swim history before Swim Trek:
I have been swimming regularly from the age of four. As I progressed, I competed at county level. This led me onto volunteering for my club at the ages of eleven to seventeen as a swimming coach. Eventually in 2016 I became a qualified swimming teacher and have since taught a plethora of water activities including swimming, water polo, rookies lifeguarding, snorkelling and kayaking. Additionally, I have completed many open water swims including costal swims in Menorca and Mallorca, Lake Windermere in a time of 5 hours and 38 minutes (in May - freezing!) and the English Channel as part of a relay team and as a soloist. In 2016 at the age of seventeen I advertised on social media, and then recruited and organised a six-man relay team which successfully crossed the Channel in a time of 13 hours and 31 minutes. The following year I successfully completed a solo crossing, in a similar time of 13 hours and 49 minutes. I completed my solo swim in aid of the charity Meningitis Now (Meningitis was a disease I suffered with as a child, resulting in me having to relearn to walk as well as permanent hearing loss in one ear.). With a combination of organising my own fund-raising events as well as the generous donations from family, friends and strangers I raised a total of £4,310.06.
Locations guided on:
Ionian Explorer
Most memorable swim moment:
It would have to be a tie between the moment a jelly fish got into my swimming costume during my solo English Channel swim or the shear relief of finally arriving on French soil after 13 hours and 49 minutes of continuous swimming.
Top swimming tip:
Swim whenever and wherever you can! (as long as it is safe)
Interesting fact (about yourself):
I attended the Channel and Long-Distance training camp with Swim Trek as a guest for my 18th Birthday, with the intention of training for my relay English Channel swim. During that week was the first ever time I had swam in open water and therefore, I was very apprehensive about the two-hour qualifier. However, I ended up completing a six-hour swim during that week, enabling me to qualify for a solo English Channel swim!
Anna-Carin Nordin
Swim history before SwimTrek
I have been swimming my whole Life. I started swimming for a swim club at 6 years old and my longest time out of the water has been during a long and nasty cold or the 3 weeks after giving birth to my son Erik, I just love swimming. After my son was born I started my journey as an open water swimmer. I did a WC race in Copenhagen before I went to Dover. From there I started on my Seven Oceans journey. From 2010 to 2013 I was the first female to finish the Seven Oceans and second person in the World. In 2018 I got nominated to the International Marathon Swimming Hall of Fame.
Most memorable swim moment
When I completed the Seven Oceans with the North Channel swim in 2013.
Top swimming tip
Have everything ready; your favourite swimsuit, goggles and swim hat ready to go. An extra pair of your swim gear in your bag/ boat. Sun cream if necessary and maybe some Vaseline to prevent jellyfish stings. Sunglasses to protect your Eyes and even have dark swim goggles and light ones if you are going to swim in the dark.
Interesting fact
I'm going to build a house by the sea this summer!
Anna Wardley
Swim history before SwimTrek
I love the freedom and calmness that comes with swimming in the sea especially over long distances – it gives a rare and precious opportunity to switch off and enjoy being in nature. I took up swimming when I was 31 with a mission to swim the English Channel. I didn’t make it on my first attempt less than a year later, but being pulled out and hospitalised with hypothermia and exhaustion after 14 hours taught me more about myself than any other swim I’ve done since. I made it across the Channel on my second attempt and went on to swim various international stretches including the Strait of Gibraltar and the Hellespont Channel. In 2012 I embarked on my Five Island Swim Challenge which included solo swims around Jersey and Portsea, and culminated with a 56-mile swim around the Isle of Wight. My latest project, the Balearic Swim Challenge, to swim between the Balearic Islands and the Spanish mainland ended abruptly in May 2016 when I was rushed ashore from the Menorca Channel in a lifeboat after being stung unconscious by jellyfish. After ten years of endurance swimming during which time I’ve raised around £70,000 for charities, I’m now focusing my energies on coaching and helping other people to reach their potential both in and out of the water.
Locations guided on
Mallorca LDT. I enjoy being part of the Mallorca LDT team as I love to support others in achieving their goals and pushing themselves to exceed their own expectations. I also enjoy sharing my experience of organising my own swims and logistics, fundraising and sponsorship, learning from unsuccessful attempts and helping people to find their own way of preparing for challenging swims.
Most memorable swim moment
A memorable moment was finishing my swim around the Isle of Wight in September 2013 surrounded by a flotilla of boats and cheering crowds, I was the fourth person to complete the feat and the first in almost three decades, and it was an incredible feeling for all the hard work to pay off. Overwhelmed by relief when I finally punched Ryde Pier to mark my finish after swimming non-stop for over 26 hours, I nearly broke my hand and came out with something deemed so explicit by the TV crews that they had to chop it out of their broadcasts!
Top swimming tip
For long distance swimmers I always say keeping a sense of humour is a priority. If you can’t laugh at yourself eating rice pudding out of a Ziplock bag in the pitch darkness in the middle of a lengthy stretch of water with waves breaking over your head then you should probably take up a different sport.
Interesting fact about you
I swam two lengths of Windermere topless after the elastic failed in my swimsuit at the beginning of the swim and as a result I hold the record for the first Topless Double Windermere!
Benjamin McIvor
Swim History Before SwimTrek
Back in the day, I swam competitively for the Sussex and Internationally for England. It’s safe to say swimming has been in my blood since I was a youngster and still find it hard not to dabble with the occasional race here and there!
Nothing beats the rush of competition and fast swimming!
Nowadays I tend to be seen more on deck than in the water, coaching the up and coming age group swimmers and master swimmers for Brighton Swimming Club.
Locations Guided On
Bosphorus Continental - Istanbul, Durdle Door - Jurassic Coast, Latitude Festival, Lycian way - Turkey & St Kitts & Nevis.
Most Memorable Swim Moment
Swimming the English Channel with the SwimTrek office was one of the most memorable moments to date for me as this was a childhood dream. However, I will never forget the time whilst representing Great Britain in South Africa where not only did I win a bronze medal, but I had the opportunity to swim against competitors and dolphins alike.
Top Swimming Tip
Consistency provides opportunity, opportunity provides a swimmer with the chance to achieve anything. Humans are creatures of habit so what we do repeatedly and what becomes a habit, is what we do instinctively in times of fatigue and pressure.
Interesting Fact
I struggle with the concept of shoes...Flip flops for me all year round!
Bruce Allender
Swim history before SwimTrek
I had the privilege of learning to swim at the Colombo Swimming Club in Sri Lanka and enjoyed the tropical ambiance. Good fortune continued with an adolescence in Perth, Western Australia, swimming in the river, ocean, and pool playing water polo, club swimming, life saving and SCUBA diving. Along the way I qualified with a Diploma from the RLSS, and as a competition swimming event official. I kept swimming with masters swimming in the USA and back in Australia, despite the encumbrance of a corporate career. Now with the flexibility of project consultancy work, I compete, coach and train coaches of masters swimming in Melbourne and still officiate at swim meets. A work-life balance that works for me.
Locations guided on
Three seasons working in Croatia, Turkey, and on the UK Corryvreckan, Lake District, Seven Sisters and Brighton tours and programs.
Most memorable swim moment
SwimTrek just makes life better. All the trips have been memorable, because of the people, the good times in and out of the water, and the locations. One particular memory at the Corryvreckan whirlpool I was informed by a guest this was the first time she had swum in the sea. I swam along with her and we both made it comfortably.
Top swimming tip
To really enjoy open water swimming you just need two things: a positive attitude – I can do this, I have prepared for it; and swim goggles that are comfortable, ones that don’t leak and that are pre-tested by you. They are your best friend, so wash, clean and love them (and bring a spare).
Interesting fact
I am always open to new experiences and new people, just about anywhere but preferably with a pool or beach nearby.
Cliff Golding
Swim history before SwimTrek
In the autumn of 1991 I decided I wanted to swim the Channel. This was an odd decision as I was a skinny marathon runner with no previous experience as a swimmer save for a bronze certificate. Six attempts and five years later I finally succeeded. I did it again in 2003 and, in the six years until that second swim, I swam round Jersey three times, Lake Zurich three times and Windermere twice. I am running marathons and ultras again but have dusted off the Speedos and am back in the pool.
Locations guided on
2018 will be the eleventh year I have guided on the LDT tours and I have guided on the 10km weeks since they started in 2016. I have also guided on the Greek Cyclades in 2018.
Most memorable swim moment
Walking out onto Wissant Beach in France 13 hours and 17 minutes after I had walked into the sea off Shakespeare Beach in Dover to finally become a Channel swimmer. It remains my most memorable and most empowering moment in open water swimming.
Top swimming tip
When you think you can't, you can. When you think you are at the end of your ability and endurance, you aren't. Swim, swim and swim some more until you run out of sea or lake. Then you may stop and bask in the glory of your achievement.
Interesting fact about you
I write, I make art, I juggle, I used to ride a unicycle for fun, whilst juggling (but I also fell off a lot - so I don't do it anymore!)
Dionne Tatlow
Swim history before SwimTrek
Growing up I always gravitated towards water activities and spent the majority of my summers at the lake, and then taking swimming lessons throughout the winter. I began recreationally lane swimming during my undergraduate degree and then started training with a Masters team in Toronto while in Chiropractic College. During my time in Toronto I completely fell in love with swimming and have since immersed myself in all facets of the sport; from treating swimmers, coaching, organizing a local race, and of course, spending endless hours in the water myself!
Most memorable swim moment
Perhaps my first SwimTrek swim! In the Aeolian Islands we swam along the coast of Vulcano and I couldn’t stop smiling. The scenery was gorgeous, the water was unbelievably blue, and the group was a lot of fun. I got out of the water and the only thing I managed to verbalize was “I’m so happy, just so, so happy!” I said it so much that it became a running joke throughout the trip!
Top swimming tip
One-armed and balance-driven drills are very effective. They do a fantastic job of highlighting and correcting asymmetries in strength and mobility while engaging the core; all of which are very important factors for efficiency and injury prevention.
Interesting fact
I live 236km from the nearest pool, but only 30m from a big, beautiful freshwater lake. It makes for a long winter with a lot of driving, but in the summer I can swim home from work!
Edmondo Paciocco
Swim History Before SwimTrek
I have been swimming since I was a child in the sea every summer. I learned the fundamentals in the open water and then I mastered my technique in a swimming pool, joining a group of master swimmers for 2 years in my home town, Chieti in Italy. Even though I played basketball for 14 years, the love for the water and team sports made me play water polo for a Scottish university were I currently study Sport Science and work as a swim teacher, lifeguard and sport assistant. In 2015 I joined the ASD Swimtrekking, which is an open water swim club settled in Rome and I have been guiding a group of guests in Itacha, Greece for 9 days with Francesco Cavaliere. As a guide I was in the water, swimming along the coastline of Itacha with the guests/swimmers and I fell in love with the variety of sea plants and the underwater ruins that we found along the way.
Locations guided on:
Tremiti Island, Italy.
Most Memorable swim moments:
I was swimming in Itacha and suddenly I saw a moray hiding in a rock hole looking at me without moving. I thought it was going to eat me at some point because we were staring at each other for a while but nothing happened so I was pleased at the very end…
Best Swimming tips:
1) If you are tired, just stop, relax, and take some time to explore the surrounding areas. Never push yourself in the open water unsupervised. We are nothing compared to the power of the sea. - Darth Vader.
2) If you see a jellyfish...don’t panic!
Interesting facts about myself.
I’ve been dancing professionally for 3 years . When I was 19 years old I won the gold medal at the Italian National Championships of Caribbean Dance, in Rimini. If I hear the music I can’t stop!
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