Thousands of people took on the 2025 edition of Swim Serpentine today (Saturday 20 September).
Among more than 4,700 people in the water were F1 presenter and Paralympic hopeful Billy Monger, and Angus Leckonby – who set a new world record for the youngest person with an intellectual disability to swim two miles in open water.
Swim Serpentine is the UK’s most iconic open water swimming festival, with participants taking on a range of distances – half a mile, one mile, two miles, or six miles – in the famous Serpentine Lake.
Earlier this year Leckonby, who is autistic and has verbal dyspraxia, became the youngest and fastest person with an intellectual disability to complete a marathon at the 2025 TCS London Marathon. The 23-year-old is taking on the record-breaking challenges to raise money for the Special Olympics.
Leckonby said: “I am feeling so proud of myself, it was a good swim. The hard work is swimming the big distance, but it was exciting. Swimming has helped me a lot, it has been good for me, and it was exciting to get in the water and swim around [the Serpentine].”
Monger, who suffered a serious racing car crash in 2017 which resulted in both his legs being amputated, took part in a one-mile swim before heading off to be part of the Channel 4 team presenting the F1 coverage of this weekend’s Azerbaijan Grand Prix.
The 26-year-old has set his sights on qualifying for the 2028 Paralympics in Los Angeles.
He said: “It was just nice to do an event where there is such a good atmosphere. As much as it is training and it serves a purpose, it is doing something where everyone has a smile on their face and is happy and excited to go out there.”
Former Blue Peter presenter Ayo Akinwolere also did the one-mile swim. He said: “It was kind of everything I wanted it to be. There was a moment in there when I looked up and went, ‘I am swimming in Hyde Park, this is nice!’ I have walked through here so many times and never thought I would be swimming in there.”
Melanie Barratt, a double Paralympic gold medallist who in August 2024 became the first blind woman to swim the English Channel, swam two miles and afterwards explained why the accessibility initiatives at Swim Serpentine are so important.
She said: “Accessibility is hugely important; I have had some events where I’ve just been told they can’t cater for me. Being registered blind, it is really difficult for them but it shouldn't be because everything should be as easy for me to do as anybody else.
“So, to come along to an event like this where I felt so welcomed – felt like I could get in and swim, enjoy it and have access to everything the same as everybody else – is so important for everybody.”
Ben Craddock, Event Lead of Swim Serpentine, said: “This was the eighth edition of Swim Serpentine with more than 4,700 people taking part.
“It says a lot about the appeal of this fantastic event that we get so many people coming back year after year, but, equally, we are seeing an increasing number of people come to Swim Serpentine to take on a swimming event for the first time.
“This is really pleasing as our ambition is to break down barriers and get more people active and participating in events like Swim Serpentine. Next year’s event is on Saturday 19 September and we hope to see the event grow further still in 2026.”
Among the attractions out of the water at today’s Swim Serpentine was the 'Splash of Trash' sculpture that highlighted community and conservation at this year’s event.
The sculpture, designed by Bridge Creative, showed swimmers diving into a pool of water – all of which has been created using river trash and reclaimed waste materials and aims to encourage people to care for open water swim spots, such as the Serpentine, and to dispose of rubbish responsibly.
Check out the full quotes from Billy Monger, Angus Leckonby, Melanie Barratt and Ayo Akinwolere.