Swimming for sight
As visitors to Bondi’s shores peruse the myriad sculptures on display this Sunday, blind marathon swimmer James Pittar will attempt his 12km charity swim from Bondi to Malabar.
The 42-year-old is going the distance on November 13 to raise money for the Fred Hollows Foundation, an independent and non-profit organization with the goals of ending avoidable blindness and improving indigenous health. He will begin the feat at 7am with the aim to finish by 11am.
“I’m doing this swim because I love swimming for charity, especially for The Fred Hollows Foundation” Mr Pittar said. “I’ve done swims for this charity since 2006.”
Mr Pittar said he is personally passionate about the Foundation’s causes.
“To be able to raise money for the two aims of The Fred Hollows Foundation, which are to have no one needlessly be blind in the world and that Indigenous Australians have same health standards and life expectancies as other Australians, is an honour.”
In 1998, Mr Pittar successfully crossed the English Channel on his first attempt. He has since completed some of the most difficult marathon swims in the world including the Manhattan Island Marathon Swim, The Strait of Gibraltar, New Zealand’s Cook Strait and the Catalina Channel.
“I haven’t done this stretch of water in Sydney yet … it’ll be nice for this swim to be very local and very public,” he said.
Mr Pittar suffers from a genetic disorder called Retinitis Pigmentosa, which causes a degeneration of the retina. He became legally blind at 16 and completely blind by his early 30s.
He said: “It would be fantastic if a small donation of $25 was made, that can give someone their sight back in a developing country”. Donations are accepted via the web page at www.everydayhero.com.au/james_pittar_5.
By Georgia Fullerton
