Watch: ‘I Felt Cold From The Inside Out’ – Neil Agius Describes ‘Intense’ Nights Of 140KM Swim
Olympian and world record breaker Neil Agius described the “teeth-chattering” cold he experienced while swimming for 60 hours around Malta.
“I was cold from the inside out,” Neil explained at a press conference earlier today when detailing the hypothermia he suffered.
Last weekend, Neil completed a superhuman challenge officially breaking the world record for the longest unassisted ocean swim. This was no easy feat.
Neil battled rough seas, freezing nights and pitch-black darkness, yet still admitted to being at home in the water.
He decided to do the swim in September this year to avoid jellyfish, however, with that came longer nights and cooler skies.
“I got very cold, very quickly,” Neil said, describing the first night.
Although the water was warm, the air was so cold that when he breathed it in, it chilled him from the inside out. This created an incredibly tough mental challenge as he carried on with his swim. Despite consuming hot food and drinks to warm up, nothing seemed to work.
“I was just trying to keep one stroke ahead of the other and hoping that the sunrise would come and help me get through the cold,” he said, showcasing the impeccable mental strength it took to complete this monumental swim.
After the first night came the second, and he had to brave the extreme discomfort again – this time after being awake for 38 hours. Thankfully, the air temperature was slightly warmer, making the cold a bit less intense.
Still, Neil admitted that he felt the cold continuously throughout his swim.
As he pushed forward, worries piled up in his mind: battling the cold, concern over whether or not he’d hallucinate, stress about not yet reaching the halfway mark—all while staying focused on his technique to push through.
“I was focused on being as efficient as possible for as long as possible.”
Besides rendering him hypothermic, the 11-hour-long nights were so dark that he wasn’t even able to see his own hand in front of him. The support team following him in a boat had to ensure that they sat in the same place because any movement could have disoriented him.
“At that point, I didn’t know who was who, I couldn’t recognise anyone.”
Yet amid the difficulty, there was immense beauty. Neil described the strength he drew from seeing the moon beaming above him.
Yet amid the difficulty, there was immense beauty. Neil described the strength he drew from seeing the moon beaming above him.
“The moon was so bright, it was giving me a lot of strength and power to keep the focus and to keep moving forward.”
During this morning’s press conference, Neil admitted that he will now be shifting his focus away from swimming, with plans to open a Kaizen Hub with his partner Lara Vella.
They aim to create a space offering yoga and breath work workshops to share the knowledge they have gained through these difficult challenges.
How do you push through mental obstacles to achieve your goals?
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