Lewis Pugh, the UNEP Patron of the Oceans who has pioneered swims in the most challenging environments on earth, including the Antarctic, the North Pole, the Red Sea and the Himalayas, today became the first person in history to swim the full length of the Hudson River unassisted. Mr. Pugh began his swim high in the Adirondack Mountains on August 13 and finished just after 10 am today, Wednesday, September 13, 2023.
The Hudson River Swim highlighted the critical importance of river health to the health of the world’s oceans and the overall global environment. Mr. Pugh will address the United Nations General Assembly next week to discuss the swim and the need for river restoration worldwide.
“If we want healthy oceans, we also need healthy rivers — it’s that simple,” Mr. Pugh, 53, said. “For the past month I’ve got to know the Hudson River intimately. I swum her length and met many wonderful people. It’s been a privilege and it feels like I’ve made a life-long friend with this river. Before, it was a dumping ground. But then in the 1970’s New Yorkers said enough was enough. You started cleaning the Hudson, mile by mile. And town by town. Yes, more needs to be done. We must continue to be vigilant. And we can never become complacent when it comes to protecting the environment. But the Hudson gives hope to people around the world.”
Mr. Pugh made the swim “unassisted,” as all his swims are, meaning he traversed the length of the river wearing only a Speedo, cap, and goggles. The challenges of the swim included navigating through white water rapids, powerful river currents, and swimming through sewage runoffs during heavy rains.
“Refuse, sewage, chemical and plastic waste don’t just pollute rivers and harm the species that live in them; these contaminants are carried on to the sea where they do more damage,” said Inger Andersen, Executive Director of the United Nations Environment Programme. “Just as we must keep our own arteries unclogged for our health, we must keep the planet’s arteries unclogged for its health.”
“Clean and healthy rivers are an essential yet often overlooked part of global efforts to restore ocean health,” said Carlos Manuel Rodríguez, Chairman and CEO of the GEF. “This is such an important reminder of why we need to pay close attention to the health of freshwater systems and prioritize ecosystem management in all our connected waterways as we work towards nature and climate targets.”
“Lewis Pugh stands atop the Pantheon of the world’s endurance swimmers, with every stroke he takes focusing our attention on the environment,” said Steven Munatones, former head coach of the USA open water swim team. “Mr. Pugh’s range is unprecedented, from the tropical waters of the Maldives to the inhospitable North Pole, Lewis has pushed himself like no other, all to inspire government leaders and the citizens of the world to be proactive stewards of our marine environments.”
“We are delighted to continue to be supporting Lewis as he sets out to tackle the scourge of water pollution and biodiversity loss in our rivers and oceans. The Hudson River Swim, which finished just ahead of New York Climate Week this month, elevates the importance of the related issues of freshwater, clean air and the conservation of our marine habitats, all vital for the prosperity of our planet,” said Michelle Scrimgeour, CEO of Legal and General Investment Management (LGIM).
More information on The Hudson River Swim is available at: https://www.lewispughfoundation.org/ and www.lewispugh.com.
ABOUT LEWIS PUGH
Lewis Pugh was the first person to complete a long-distance swim in every ocean of the world. He pioneers swims in the most vulnerable ecosystems on Earth to campaign for their protection. In 2007 he became the first person to swim across the North Pole and in 2018 the first person to swim the entire length of the English Channel. He is also the only person to have swum the 217-mile / 350-km length of the River Thames (in 2006) and the only person to have swum down a river underneath the Antarctic Ice Sheet (in 2020).
In 2013, Mr Pugh was appointed UNEP Patron of the Oceans. In 2016, he played a pivotal role in creating the largest Marine Protected Area in the world in the Ross Sea off Antarctica. The Lewis Pugh Foundation has helped protect an area of ocean larger than Western Europe.
Mr. Pugh is from Plymouth, UK. He worked as a maritime lawyer in London before becoming a full-time ocean advocate.
ABOUT THE LEWIS PUGH FOUNDATION
The Lewis Pugh Foundation works for the preservation and conservation of our oceans for a peaceful and sustainable future. To date LPF campaigns have helped protect over 850,000-mile² / 2,2 million km² of ocean. Their aim is to help fully protect at least 30% of the world’s oceans by 2030.
ABOUT UN ENVIRONMENT PROGRAMME (UNEP)
The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) is the leading global authority on the environment. UNEP’s mission is to inspire, inform, and enable nations and peoples to improve their quality of life without compromising that of future generations. In 2013 Lewis Pugh was appointed the first UNEP Patron of the Oceans.
ABOUT THE GEF
The Global Environment Facility (GEF) is a family of funds dedicated to confronting biodiversity loss, climate change, pollution, and strains on land and ocean health. It was established ahead of the 1992 Rio Earth Summit and includes 185 countries in partnership with international institutions, civil society organizations, and the private sector. Since its inception, the GEF has reinforced the link between clean and available water, healthy ecosystems, and human development, and helped developing countries adhere to international environmental conventions. Over the past three decades, the GEF has provided more than US$23 billion and mobilised US$129 billion in co-financing for more than 5,000 national and regional projects.
ABOUT LEGAL AND GENERAL INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT (LGIM)
Legal & General Investment Management is one of Europe’s largest asset managers and a major global investor, with assets under management of US$1.4 trillion. LGIM works with a wide range of global clients, including pension schemes, sovereign wealth funds, fund distributors and retail investors. For more than 50 years, LGIM has built its business through understanding what matters most to clients and transforming this insight into valuable, accessible investment products and solutions.
