Australian swimmer Ashleigh Webb has done it again —making history! She’s recently become the first woman to swim Ireland’s notoriously tough Baltimore to Fastnet Rock ocean swim in under 5 hours. Webb finished the required swim in a remarkable time of 4 hours, 57 minutes, 57 seconds. Now, she waits for official ratification from The International Irish Long Distance Swimming Federation. This stunning achievement highlights her athletic talent. It further highlights her commitment to breaking the stigma surrounding mental health.
The recent long distance swim helped to raise funds for The Kallan Lodge Library. Webb’s created this charity, in honor and loving memory of her dear friend, Kallan Lodge, who unfortunately lost her battle with mental illness by suicide at the age of 21 in 2011. The event was dubbed the “Do Something Swim,” reflecting Webb’s belief that action is crucial in supporting those with mental health struggles.
A Record-Breaking Achievement
Ashleigh Webb’s 2019 swim from Baltimore to Fastnet Rock was a once-in-a-lifetime feat of swimming career. As she made her way through the water, she could hardly put into words her hopefulness and grit.
“The waters were perhaps the stillest and smoothest I’ve ever swum in,” she wrote after finishing her swim. I continued to tell myself to be ready for an abrupt shift as I cleared the harbor entrance and the protection of the inlet.
“As soon as we exited the harbour and the ocean sort of opened up, I could feel that I was going with the tide,” she noted, describing how the changing conditions affected her performance.
Now that she’s completed the swim, Webb is one of an elite group of swimmers who have tackled this difficult route and emerged triumphant. Her accomplishments go far beyond what’s written in record books.
Advocacy Through Swimming
Now an advocate Webb leverages her sports accomplishments and growing profile to advocate for mental health awareness and resources. In her young life, Ward had founded the Kallan Lodge Library with Lodge’s parents. Its mission is to bring literature and music libraries to young people who are confined to mental health institutions. In addition, the charity has now established places in four hospitals across Australia to help serve at-risk and needy teens.
What struck her most, she said, was how much people wanted to support the Do Something Swim. They don’t consistently act on that information to create change. So these people with mental health struggles, all they can do is something—and that’s exactly what Webb doesn’t want them to do.
Her advocacy work dovetails with her lived experiences and underscores her competitive swimming pursuits. “My something is I can swim … so I’ll swim to do something about making these kids’ time in the facilities just that little bit comfier, and hopefully allow them to dream big for themselves,” she added.
Support and Future Challenges
Here’s the short but inspiring livestream of Webb’s support team, and her celebrating her historic win. Her father Mitchell Webb watched her journey from Newcastle, bursting with pride as she achieved her goals. “You see her in tough times and hard times, and she just has this incredible strength that she has to pull herself through,” he remarked.
As Ashleigh Webb looks back on her recent big win, the fellow in demand for more things to come. The next swim on her calendar is the Dal Riata swim between Scotland and Northern Ireland. Even with these tremendous physical challenges that come with long-distance swimming, she does not waver. “Well, don’t tell her she can’t do it because she’ll prove you wrong,” Mitchell Webb quipped about his daughter’s determination.
