Swimarathon 2026

Rotary Club of Bury St Edmunds Swimarathon 2026

Event sponsor: The Ridley Godfrey Foundation

Teams are swimming in support of the following charities

100% of the monies a team raises goes to the charity it is supporting

Eager Beavers   SANDS

Sands provides a safe, understanding and caring community for anyone touched by pregnancy or baby loss. We work to improve maternity and bereavement care, discover why babies are dying and reduce inequalities in healthcare.

Rotary Splashers   Jess Grant Celebration

Jess Grant Celebration is aiming to improve the well-being of children suffering from medical conditions by supporting the provision of music therapy in hospitals and hospices in Suffolk and Cambridgeshire.

Freedom Church Charities Gt Barton

In support of our Community Cafés and Christians against Poverty

Family team

Supporting family member to attend 2027 World Scout Jamboree in Poland

Citizens Advice

In support of work of Citizens Advice, West Suffolk

Family team – the Merpeople

In support of My WiSH (Rainbow Ward)

Samaritans

In support of work of Samaritans, West Suffolk

Abbeygate Sixth Form College Staff and Student teams

In support of My WiSH (Rainbow Ward)

Bury St Edmunds Abbey Rotary Club

In support of My WiSH Charity which enhances the care received by patients at the West Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust

Bury St Edmunds Sea Cadets

In support of BSE Sea Cadets

Team Jaunters and Team Jog

In support of Guide Dogs UK

Swimarathon 2026 – ‘how it works’

The Rotary Club of Bury St Edmunds organises the event.

The costs of running the event is covered by our Event Sponsor – The Ridley Godfrey Foundation -  to whom we are all extremely grateful.  

Teams. We invite Teams of 4 to swim for a local charity of their choice, with a guideline of a maximum of 3 teams per charity to ‘spread’ the benefit across our community.  Some teams have in the past secured their own lane sponsorship from local companies. 

Family Teams. We welcome family teams.

Youth Teams. The local Primary and Secondary schools/colleges receive invitations, as do other Youth organisations.  

End Polio Now. Teams are invited to swim for Rotary's End Polio Now initiative, with 2:1 match funding available from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. 

Polices, Insurance details and Paperwork.  All can be downloaded from this Club Website, or emailed from Robert Davie:  rdavie593@btinternet.com

Booking the Lanes: we can accommodate up to 30 teams (six lanes, five sessions of 40 minutes). You can book a lane when you send in your entry form. 

Lanes 1 and 6 have steps. Priority use of these two lanes will be given to those with accessibility needs. 

Team Organisers: each team appoints its own Team Organiser. The Team Organiser does the team ‘admin’ and is responsible for the collection of the Team’s sponsorship money and its safe delivery to their charity.

Swimarathon 2026 – the detail