EVENT UPDATE

Hi Everyone,

Unfortunately, today we are left with no option but to postpone Swim the Gold Coast to a later date in 2021.  We’re devastated about this and we know you will be too.

There is currently some very large swell battering the Gold Coast and the peak is forecast to arrive this Saturday.  This is also creating very dangerous conditions in the Gold Coast Seaway and Tweed River for boats and there have been several rescues over the past 24 hours.

There are multiple sites you can use for your own reference, but here is one that provides a quick reference for both wind and swell predictions:

https://www.seabreeze.com.au/weather/wind-forecast/qld-gold-coast

This morning we have spoken with City of Gold Coast Lifeguards, QLD Police, QLD Ambulance and Volunteer Marine Rescue – they are our key support services for this event.  There is no doubt among our partners that the worst is yet to come and that it will be unsafe for the event to operate on Saturday May 29.

A key consideration in how we assess conditions for this event, is how the conditions effect everyone involved and the role they play in the event.  Even if the forecasted conditions did not eventuate in full this week, it would still be unsafe for all participating boats and swimmers – this includes all of our support services who’s role it is to respond to emergencies on-course.

We realise many for you are on the Gold Coast already and this decision comes too late to change any travel plans.  As much as we would have liked to make a decision earlier so you were not inconvenienced, we had to wait until today so we could assess actual conditions against the forecast, then compare that with the model expected for this weekend.  We always want to give an event every chance to continue, but at this point we know the likelihood of conditions improving is extremely low.

Over the next few days we will contact every participant and advise of the process from here, including a new date.

Please stay safe if you are on the Gold Coast and observe all extreme weather warnings if you do plan to go near the coast.

Regards

John Guise

Race Director | World Series Swims