Charity Open Water Swim in the Cotswolds - Race, Challenge & Taster
From Lechlade & District Lions Club
- Date Sat 1st August 2026
- Time 09:00
- Location Lechlade
- Price £15.00 - £35.00
- Races 5 races
- Distances 5km
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Charity Open Water Swim in the Cotswolds - Race, Challenge & Taster
Sat 1st August 2026
Event summary
Get ready for a splashing good time at the Charity Open Water Swim in the Cotswolds, organized by the Lechlade & District Lions Club on Saturday, August 1st, 2026! Set against the stunning backdrop of Bowmoor Lake in Lechlade, Gloucestershire, this exciting event promises a day of fun, fitness, and community spirit. Participants can choose from a challenging 3k race for seasoned swimmers starting at 9:00 AM, or join the 3k, 2k, or 1k sponsored challenges at 10:30 AM, perfect for those looking to raise funds for charity. For newcomers to open water swimming, a unique 250m taster session will also be available!
With the event limited to just 150 participants on a first-come, first-served basis, don’t miss your chance to take part in this fantastic occasion hosted by Olympic Medal swimmer Cassie Patten, who will share her expertise and inspire swimmers of all levels. Entry fees are £35 for the main events and £15 for the taster session, with all proceeds supporting Alzheimer’s Research and local charitable causes. Join us for a memorable day of swimming, camaraderie, and making a
With the event limited to just 150 participants on a first-come, first-served basis, don’t miss your chance to take part in this fantastic occasion hosted by Olympic Medal swimmer Cassie Patten, who will share her expertise and inspire swimmers of all levels. Entry fees are £35 for the main events and £15 for the taster session, with all proceeds supporting Alzheimer’s Research and local charitable causes. Join us for a memorable day of swimming, camaraderie, and making a
Charity Open Water Swim in the Cotswolds - Race, Challenge & Taster
Sat 1st August 2026
Organiser's Description
** Last few spaces remain **
Lechlade & District Lions Club's eighth Open Water Swimming Race & Challenge will be held in Bowmoor Lake, Lechlade, Gloucestershire, courtesy of the Bowmoor Sailing Club.
For the sixth year running, we are delighted to announce that Olympic Medal swimmer, Cassie Patten, has agreed to host the event as well as sharing some of her experience and knowledge.
Bowmoor Lake is the best open water location in the Cotswolds, it is fed by an underground stream and is managed to minimise weed growth.
We start at 9-00 with a 3k race for experienced open water swimmers. At 10-30 we have a 3k, 2k or 1k sponsored challenge to help raise money for charity. Uniquely we have a 250m taster for those new to Open Water Swimming!
The event is limited to 150 participants on a first come, first served basis.
The entry fee will be £35 for all the day’s events apart from the taster session, which is £15.
Funds raised will be used to support Alzheimers Research and local charitable causes.
Lechlade & District Lions Club's eighth Open Water Swimming Race & Challenge will be held in Bowmoor Lake, Lechlade, Gloucestershire, courtesy of the Bowmoor Sailing Club.
For the sixth year running, we are delighted to announce that Olympic Medal swimmer, Cassie Patten, has agreed to host the event as well as sharing some of her experience and knowledge.
Bowmoor Lake is the best open water location in the Cotswolds, it is fed by an underground stream and is managed to minimise weed growth.
We start at 9-00 with a 3k race for experienced open water swimmers. At 10-30 we have a 3k, 2k or 1k sponsored challenge to help raise money for charity. Uniquely we have a 250m taster for those new to Open Water Swimming!
The event is limited to 150 participants on a first come, first served basis.
The entry fee will be £35 for all the day’s events apart from the taster session, which is £15.
Funds raised will be used to support Alzheimers Research and local charitable causes.
Races
-
3 Km Race
£35.00
CLOSED -
3 Km Challenge
£35.00
CLOSED -
2 Km Challenge
£35.00
CLOSED -
1 Km Challenge
£35.00
CLOSED -
250m Open Water Taster
£15.00
CLOSED
Course Details
The course is a 1 km lap at the East of the lake. Racers will compete over 3 laps and the "Challenge" swimmers will swim 1, 2 or 3 laps as is their wont.
The taster session will run alongside the bank of the lake in relatively shallow water.
Reviews
- 5
- 4
- 3
- 2
- 1
4.0
11 reviews
Very poorly organised this year. The venue is amazing, the food is delicious, there was plenty of boat/kayak cover. However, the organisers started it all late, we weren't allowed to swim until 10.50am and by 11.30am, they were trying to get everybody out of the water! Who can swim 2 or 3 km in 45 minutes! It was crazy! We won't be coming back. We really enjoyed the event last year and I swam 3km, getting out at around 1pm. We told all our friends and 15 of us came this year expecting a really good event. We were sadly very disappointed! We are all in training to swim 5km at the Dock2Dock Race in September, so we were all signed up to swim 3km at Bowmoor. We were all disappointed that we weren't allowed enough time to do it. I took Annual Leave for this event, drove for an hour and a half to get to Lechlade and stayed 2 nights at Bridge Campsite for this event. I won't bother next year, it's not worth it. How do we apply for a refund?
This is a lovely venue, and had all the makings for a brilliant swim, but was let down by poor organisation. A team of us booked to do the 3km swim, because we were using this as a training event for a 5 km event later in the year.
We arrived as advised in plenty of time for a 10:30 start, but the event then didn’t start until about 10:50. We then discovered that they needed to get people out of the lake by midday, so we’d only managed 2km before they kicked us out just after 11:30. This was incredibly frustrating, and could have been avoided if they’d started the longer events a bit earlier, or even on time. I wouldn’t go again unless the organisers can promise to do a better job next year, and ensure swimmers can swim the distance they signed up to do.
Whilst a great event in a superb location, I was disappointed by the cut-off time for the challenge swim, set at one hour from the start for 2 laps. I'd entered the challenge even hoping to challenge myself to complete 3K not to have to swim the 1st 2 laps faster than ironman pace. I can understand the cut-offs but please at least advertise them and make them realistic for those people who entered the event in the spirit I think was intended
What a little gem of a organised outdoor swim yesterday. This was the first time I have swum in a organised race/challenge and I was quite nervous. Lovely friendly volunteers, clear instructions helped. Nice venue with changing and shower facilities. Volunteers on hand every step of the way to support. Lovely touch was a helping hand to get out of the water after my 2k swim and a round of applause. Would definitely do again.
Location
Bowmoor Sailing Club, Lechlade GL7 3DT, UK
Charity Open Water Swim in the Cotswolds - Race, Challenge & Taster
