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Coral Reef Swim Draws Top Athletes

Swimmers at Buck Island hit the water for the start of the 23rd Annual Coral Reef Swim. (Image by Steve Simonsen Photography)
Swimmers at Buck Island hit the water for the start of the 23rd Annual Coral Reef Swim. (Image by Steve Simonsen Photography)
From left, Ricardo Valdivia of Miami, Rob Jones of Charlottesville, Virginia, and Bob Halk of St Croix chat about the sea life they spotted while swimming from Buck Island to the Buccaneer Hotel in the 2018 Coral Reef Swim. (Anne Salafia photo)
From left, Ricardo Valdivia of Miami, Rob Jones of Charlottesville, Virginia, and Bob Halk of St Croix chat about the sea life they spotted while swimming from Buck Island to the Buccaneer Hotel in the 2018 Coral Reef Swim. (Anne Salafia photo)

Swimmers from the Virgin Islands, the United States, the U.K., Trinidad and beyond – 93 in all – dove into sea at Buck Island early Sunday for the 23rd Annual Coral Reef Swim.

Sometimes called Buck to Buc, the five-mile course ends at the Buccaneer Hotel’s Mermaid Beach.

“We capped the five-mile race at 100 people, and we sold out. We had a wait list,” said Vicki Locke, director of marketing and sales at the Buccaneer. Not all entrants actually made it to the race. “The guy from India did not show up,” she said.

Ricardo Valdivia of Miami took top honors, completing the swim in 1:53:56, while Rob Jones of Charlottesville, Virginia, finished second with a 2:01:12 time. Although Valdivia had never competed in the Coral Reef Swim before and had only signed-up on Columbus Day weekend, Jones has participated for the last five years, coming in second twice.

“I like to swim in pretty places. We call this a destination race,” Jones said.

Kayakers in colorful boats patrolled the flat calm seas. Swimmers reported seeing a sea ray and a turtle en route.

The Coral Reef Swim includes two shorter races: a two-mile course from Pull Point that counted 57 competitors, and a one-miler from Shoys Beach with 46 swimmers.

Racers emerged from the water to cheers, applause, the sounds of steel pans, Gatorade and a big fluffy towel.

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