Braving the current: South African paraplegic athlete conquers the Robben Island swim - and some ‘dark moments’

The weather conditions during the swim were initially described as “perfect” but deteriorated as the morning progressed, according to Alwyn Uys and his swimming trainer, Keith Jansen. (Photo: Nelis Engelbrecht Photography/Light Lounge Studio)

By Victoria O’Regan

18 Dec 2020

Alwyn Uys endured the ocean currents and completed a gruelling 8km swim from Robben Island to Bloubergstrand last week, making him the first paraplegic athlete to complete the crossing. Braving the currents of Table Bay proved to be challenging, and he admits there were some ‘dark moments’ amidst the ocean swells.

Alwyn Uys became the first paraplegic in the world to swim from Robben Island to Bloubergstrand in Cape Town, South Africa. (Photo: Nelis Engelbrecht)

Thirty-year-old paraplegic athlete, Alwyn Uys is known as a trailblazer in his field. In June 2019, he became the first paraplegic South African to complete a half Ironman, and earlier this year, he went on to become the first male para-athlete in the world to do the virtual Comrades in a racing wheelchair, on 14 June.

On 11 December, Uys braved the swells of Table Bay and took on the 7,687m swim from Robben Island to Bloubergstrand, becoming the first paraplegic athlete to successfully complete the crossing.

In December 2014, Uys nearly died when he was involved in a motor vehicle crash, and became paralysed from the waist down. He would never have considered attempting this swim or completing the Ironman before his crash, he said.

Other categories of people with disabilities have completed the Robben Island to Bloubergstrand crossing before, such as quadriplegic athlete Pieter du Preez, in 2017.

Alwyn Uys’ swim took approximately 3 hours and 3 minutes. (Photo: Nelis Engelbrecht Photography/Light Lounge Studio)

Inspirational Uys

“Inspirational”, that’s how renowned British-South African swimmer Lewis Pugh described Uys’ swim, which took place last Friday. This crossing, for Pugh, an able-bodied endurance swimmer, is a difficult feat. “It’s always challenging, I’ve never done an easy Robben Island swim,” said Pugh.

“The Robben Island swim always throws something at you… But your first Robben Island swim is always special. That moment when you put your feet down and you feel sand, is a beautiful feeling,” says Pugh.

Pugh was the 50th person to ever complete the Robben Island to Bloubergstrand swim, at the age of 17, in 1987. “You can now, on a good day, get 50 people doing it – it’s become that popular,” says Pugh.

The crossing, which took Uys three hours and three minutes, was mentally unlike anything he had done before and “completely unique” in its challenges.

“In the ocean, you are at the mercy of all the elements,” said Uys.

Uys, who grew up in the Eastern Cape and now resides in Durbanville, and his trainer, Keith Jansen, were first scheduled to attempt the swim together in December 2019, but due to poor weather conditions, it never took place, Jansen told Daily Maverick. A year on, Uys completed the swim across Table Bay with Jansen in the support boat.

“I think it was in our favour that it got postponed. At that time we didn't see it that way. But I think it definitely played into our favour,” said Jansen.

Alwyn Uys (30) became the first paraplegic South African to complete the Robben Island to Bloubergstrand swim on Friday, 11 December 2020. (Photo: Nelis Engelbrecht Photography/Light Lounge Studio)

Weather conditions

For Uys to safely attempt the swim – without risking hyperthermia – the water temperature needed to be higher than 15°C, Jansen explained. And on the morning of 11 December, the conditions were perfect.

“The water temperature was 16°C when we jumped in, which was absolutely fantastic. It was a little bit of an overcast morning and there was no real wind,” he said.

The boat departed from the Oceana Power Boat Club in Granger Bay to Robben Island, at about 6am that Friday.

Jansen, who has been Uys’ trainer for a little over two years, accompanied Uys in the support boat to monitor and feed him every 30 minutes.

“When we started, [Uys] was swimming at about one minute 50 seconds per hundred metre, which is really good for him,” said Jansen.

But, within the first kilometre of swimming, the swell picked up and the current became stronger.

“I thought I’d be okay, but there was a strong current and I had to fight against [it] the whole time,” said Uys. The side-on current forced him to swim further than expected.

Alwyn Uys’ swimming trainer, Keith Jansen, pictured at one of the feeding intervals during Uys’ Robben Island to Bloubergstrand crossing. (Photo: Nelis Engelbrecht Photography/Light Lounge Studio)

Against the current

“I’ll be honest with you, there were some very dark moments,” said Uys. At around 5km, when the current was at its strongest, he felt as though he was not making any progress. The current was putting pressure on his one side, pushing him away from the shoreline and forcing him to work harder against the swell.

“It literally felt like I was standing still at one point. And that’s very demoralising,” he said.

The weather and water conditions turned in the last 1.7km towards the finish, said Jansen. And for a while, Uys was swimming parallel to the beach. “I couldn’t even feed him for that last hour and a half because every time we would’ve stopped, we would have lost about 80 to 120m,” said Jansen. “So he just had to fight along and push through it.”

Uys said once the “two rock islands” at Eden on the Bay came into view, he knew he was almost at the shore. It was then that he was told that he needed to swim his hardest for the next two minutes, in order to get past the rock formation, otherwise he would need to change direction because the current was too strong. But before he knew it, Uys could feel the waves, propelling him toward the beach, where he was surprised with a large crowd of supporters.

“The next moment I’m sitting on a carpet, and I had to ask myself, ‘did I just do this?’” he said. “It was so surreal at that moment, I think I sat for a good 15 minutes, just taking it all in.”

On the horizon

His next goal is to complete the full Ironman, in 2021. But he is not yet done with swimming.

“I have an idea that there’s a lot more swimming coming.

“I’ll focus on Ironman for the moment, but I am thinking of another swim. I really enjoyed the swim. It was something so unique,” he said.

Uys is also currently involved in filming a documentary about his life, including the build-up to and his successful crossing from Robben Island to Blouberg. “The documentary is really about my life story… and everything I went through from a young age; the adversity I faced becoming paralysed… and the pinnacle of it is doing this swim,” said Uys.

The documentary titled, Against All Odds will be available in late 2021. DM

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