Robert McGlashan to do a cold water swim Saturday at Cherry Beach in support of mental health charities

By AUNALYA TURNER

Robert McGlashan, a Toronto lawyer and world-renowned open water swimmer, will do a one-kilometre cold-water swim at Cherry Beach on Saturday, Nov. 30, to raise money for local mental health charities.  

The water temperature in Lake Ontario at Cherry Beach is expected to be around five degrees Celsius, and McGlashan will swim the kilometre without a wetsuit. The swim is expected to take between 20 and 40 minutes, and will begin at 10:30 a.m.  

The Swim for a Change event at Cherry Beach took place for the first time back in 2018 and has grown within the community over the past five years to become an annual event with more than 100 people showing up to take part last year in support of men’s mental and physical health.

This swim is part of a series of three swims McGlashan does in three different countries aimed at raising $35,000 for mental health charities, including the Canadian Mental Health Association (CMHA). 

The first swim was completed across 18 kilometres in Lake Windermere, England. Lake Windermere, is known for its strong currents and 15-degree Celsius waters. This swim is part of the Stillwater 8 – a list of eight iconic lake swims, including Lake Ontario, Lake Titicaca, and Lake Tahoe, among others. 

In November’s temperatures, swimming is the ultimate cold plunge. McGlashan will face challenges such as limb weakness and the effects of the cold on his breathing. Safety personnel will be on-site Saturday in case of an emergency. 

This is not McGlashan’s first extreme swim. He was the first Canadian to complete a double crossing of the Strait of Magellan, enduring waters as cold as 6°C. 

In May of next year, McGlashan will swim around Angel Island in San Francisco. The 16-kilometre swim will navigate heavy marine traffic, challenging cross-currents, and pass by the famous Alcatraz Island. 

All funds raised will be split between MIND (UK) and CMHA, with McGlashan’s law firm, Reeves Richarz LLP, matching donations up to $10,000. 

The Swim for Change is an initiative McGlashan established to raise funds for charity through open water swimming. To date, Swim for Change has supported a variety of causes from animal welfare to mental health. For more information, please visit the website at https://swimforchange.ca/

McGlashan, co-founder of Great Lakes Open Water Adventures, is a celebrated open water swimmer and 2019 World Open Water Swimming Man of the Year. He is also the founder of the Cold Crusade, a series of extreme swims in freezing temperatures.