He’s gone and done it again – Malta’s youngest endurance swimmer has completed a gruelling 100km swim challenge aimed at raising funds for abandoned animals and raising awareness about plastic pollution.

“I want to send a message to anyone who feels like giving up, whether they are obese or not,” Jake Vella said at the end of the challenge. 

Jake is the young Maltese triathlete battling a rare condition called ROHHAD NET (Rapid-onset Obesity with Hypothalamic dysfunction, Hypoventilation and Autonomic Dysregulation) where his hormones make it extremely difficult to lose weight, no matter how hard he trains.

Having already served as an inspiration for Maltese people through his discipline and determination overcoming previous challenges, he’s now upped the ante and completed the 100km challenge after being inspired by Wave of Change’s Neil Agius, who recently broke a world record in a staggering 52-hour swim across the Mediterranean.

Now, Jake has officially broken his own record, having swum the longest continuous distance he had ever swum in his life.