Airman sets new record; swims across Palk Strait below 29 hrs

Roshan Abeysundara, an airman from the Sri Lanka Air Force swam from Mannar to Danushkodi, India and returned to Mannar this morning (11) in 28 hours 19 minutes 43 seconds, setting a new record, the SLAF said. 

Roshan started swimming from the Uruthota jetty in Talaimannar to Danushkodi at 2.00 am yesterday and returned to the point where had started this morning.

Abeysundara renewed the National open water swimming record twice within a short time period. He created a new record by swimming a 25km distance from Matara to Koggala on January 3, 2021, clocking a time of 10 hours and 37 minutes and went on to renew the record by swimming a distance of 49mm from Matara to Hikkaduwa and back to Unawatuna on 27 February 2021 with a timing of 23 hours and 10 minutes.

The SLAF said Abeysundara’s passion for swimming has led him on the path of entering the Guinness Book of World Records, as he swam to renew Kumar Anandan's 50-year-old record which was set in 1971 by swimming the Palk Strait in 51 hours. But Roshan swam from Mannar to Danuskodi, Rameshwaram in India and back, covering a distance of 59.3 km.(Darshana Sanjeewa Balasuriya and Romesh Madushanka)