Competitive swimmer Fiona O’Donnell-McCarthy, on the last day of her two week Thailand holiday, arrived at the island via speedboat.
“I had the strongest urge to just jump in the water and swim,” she said.
When told by staff that one of the activities she could do was to kayak around the island, she asked if she could swim it. Staff told her that no one had done that before, and she replied, “Well, I will be the first. If you can kayak around the island, I can certainly swim it!”
Fiona was cheered in by the hotel team and plans to return again next year, bringing her swim team with her.
“I’m not comfortable swimming in cold water and the temperature in Phuket is perfect for open water distance swimming.”
Fiona has been a swimmer all her life, and started competitive swimming at age seven. She received a scholarship to Stamford University, and nowadays continues her passion for swimming by being involved in a group in San Francisco called Masters Olympic Club.
Fiona had also completed many open water swims including winning the 2010 championship in Lake Del-Dal California.