Juniors Alejandro Candela, from the Nadamás Swimming Club, and Verónica Navarro, from the Hospital Perpetuo Socorro Triathlon, were proclaimed this Saturday winners of the ‘XXIV El Río Swimming Crossing’, which had the participation of 630 swimmers, who had to cover the 2,600 meters distance from Bajo El Risco beach (Famara) to the Caleta de Sebo dock ramp (La Graciosa).
It is the first time that a swimmer from Lanzarote has won this event since the Cabildo of Lanzarote took over its organization in 2008 through the Island Sports Service. Alejandro Candela - current champion of the Cabildo de Lanzarote Swimming Cup in Open Waters - used a time of 34 minutes and 29 seconds to cross the finish line; 15 seconds less than the second classified, Víctor González from Valladolid (Pisuerga Triathlon Club), and exactly one minute from the third classified, Airam Carretero from Gran Canaria (CN Carucagua).
For her part, Verónica Navarro from Gran Canaria re-edited the triumph achieved last year, thus accumulating her third victory in the Crossing, by imposing herself in a very tight final against the Lanzarote child Sara González – from CN Nadamás and current champion of the Cabildo de Lanzarote Swimming Cup in Open Waters - to the point that the two swimmers completed the test with an identical time of 36 minutes and 45 seconds. Third was Saray Afonso from Gran Canaria (CN Las Palmas) with a time of exactly 37 minutes.
As usual, the festive atmosphere characterized the El Río Swimming Crossing, which took place without incidents and with a certain current caused by the wind. And like every year - with the exception of one - since it has been held, it has had the participation of the British-born and Canary Islander swimmer, Tony Mitchell, who at 85 years old completed the test as did the octogenarian Ricardo Armas. Special mention also deserve the winners in the adapted categories Andrés Martín, Antonio Muller and Ricardo Fernández. The complete results of all categories can be found at http://www.lanzarotedeportes.com/tnelrio/resultados, from the official website of the Island Sports Service.
The awards ceremony was attended by the president of the Cabildo of Lanzarote, Pedro San Ginés, as well as the Minister of Sports of the first Island Corporation, Patricia Pérez; the mayor of La Graciosa and councilor of the Teguise City Council, Alicia Páez, and the Sports Councilor of this municipal corporation, José Alberto Umpiérrez. It also had the outstanding presence of the bronze medal in weightlifting at the Rio de Janeiro Olympics, Lidia Valentín.