28 Jul 2025

Eastleigh Swim Club Masters swimmer Kate Steels has taken on one of her most ambitious challenges yet – completing a 21.5km swim from Baltimore to Fastnet Rock in Ireland, with hopes of setting a new ladies' record.

Setting off at 5:26am in near-perfect conditions, Kate swam through fluctuating sea temperatures – dipping to around 12°C – and completed the swim in an impressive 5 hours and 18 minutes. If ratified, this will be a new female record for the distance.

“The final few hundred metres seemed to take forever... but one last stroke and I touched the rock. Hurrah!”
– Kate Steels

Accompanied by her partner, also registered with Eastleigh Swim Club, Rory Fitzgerald as her support swimmer and Ger Kennedy as boat pilot, the swim was a team effort – with sightings of dolphins, seals, sunfish, and even a minke whale adding to the magic of the day.

Kate had spent nine days preparing at the Cork Distance Week marathon swim camp, and thanked Eastleigh Swim Club coaches for their role in helping her train for such epic endurance events.

“I’d like to thank everyone who’s supported me over the years and especially the excellent coaches at Eastleigh Swim Club who continue to help me train for open water marathon swimming.”

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Rory and Kate Race the River Lee

Not stopping there, Kate and Rory also took part in the 1,800m River Lee Race in Cork shortly afterwards, proudly representing Eastleigh Swim Club. The race featured a fast 1,500m downstream leg followed by a gruelling 300m upstream push into the tide.

• Rory won his age group and placed 9th overall in the ‘skins’ (non-wetsuit) category.

• Kate finished 2nd in her age group and 4th overall in skins.

With nearly 400 swimmers competing – around half in wetsuits – it was a tough and memorable event for both.

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You can read the full Hampshire Chronicle article online here:
Swimmer hoping to set new record on 21km swim in Ireland

Well done to both Kate and Rory for their incredible achievements in Ireland – continuing to inspire swimmers across the club and beyond!

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