Open-water swim no. 29 in the books for Macarine

Ingemar Macarine (left) and Frank Lacson raise their hands after completing a 10-kilometer open-water swim from Grande Island in Bataan to Olongapo City.
CONTRIBUTED PHOTO

Ingemar Macarine, this time with a partner in Filipino triathlon legend Frank Lacson, conquered open-water swim number 29 after successfully swimming through Subic Bay from Grande Island, Bataan to the Driftwood Beach in Olongapo City yesterday.

The 10-kilometer swim was done to raise awareness about the importance of having clean seas. It started at 7 a.m. and was completed in five hours and 17 minutes.

For Macarine, also known as the “Pinoy Aquaman,” it was his 29th successful open-water swim and second with Lacson as his partner.

Macarine told Cebu Daily News that the seas favored them yesterday with just a swarm of jellyfish midway making the swim a bit difficult.

“What we did was we swam very fast to avoid getting stung by the jellyfish,” Macarine said.

The 39-year-old Macarine and 54-year-old Lacson first partnered last year when they swam 10k in Subic Bay.

Lacson is known as the “Father of Philippine Triathlon.” He is the first Filipino triathlete and the inaugural champion of the Philippine National Triathlon Championships in 1992. He has already finished 143 triathlon races in his career.

The swim was part of Macarine’s preparation for his second attempt to cross the English Channel on Aug. 14 in United Kingdom.

Last year, Macarine failed to accomplish the feat due to bad weather.