GUWAHATI:
Ace swimmer Elvis Ali Hazarika on Saturday announced that he will make an attempt to cross the North Irish Channel next year and the English Channel in 2023 with his partner Rimo Saha.
Under this new mission Mission Aparaajay, Hazarika will also spread awareness and appeal to the international community the contribution to the flood-affected people of the state.
The swimmer will strive to cross the North Irish Channel with his Bengali partner in September 2022.
“My relay partner Rimo Saha and I are going to attempt to cross the North Irish Channel in September next year,” Hazarika said addressing a press conference at Guwahati Press Club here.
The swimmer will swim from North Ireland to Scotland on the North Channel on September 17 and from England ro France in the English Channel during the middle of the coming year.
The mission of covering 42 km of the North Channel in just 13 hours and 38 km of the English Channel within 10-12 hours will be very challenging.
It will be Hazarika’s second attempt to cross the English Channel after he had fallen short by about last 10 km in his first attempt in 2018.
Saha has earlier successfully crossed the English Channel.
Hazarika had become the first swimmer from Assam to cross the Catalina Channel in the US in 2019.
SM Developers, a Guwahati-based business house, has come forward to help the swimmer who is all set for Mission Aparaajay.
SM Developers CMD SK Jain, MD Vikas Agarwal and VP Bhaskarjyoti Bhuyan assured the internationally renowned swimmer of all assistance and support for Mission Aparaajay.
Hazarika will also participate in the 800 km relay to Gujarat-Goa-Mumbai later this year or early of the upcoming year apart from the North Channel and the English Channel under Mission Aparaajay.
The 42-year-old swimmer has been able to win 6 Gold, 7 Silver, and 5 Bronze at the international level while 134 Gold, 43 Silver, 15 Bronze at the national level and 128 Gold, and 12 Silver medals at the state level so far.
Recently in March this year, Hazarika was able to set a record by swimming 200 km in just 53 hours from the Gateway of Mumbai to the Gateway of India of the Arabian Sea.