Turks and Caicos, July 4, 2025 – Grace Bay once more delighted swimmers at the 15th annual Turks & Caicos “Race for the Conch” Eco-SeaSwim on June 28, 2025. The 2.4-mile, 1 mile, and 1/2-mile events drew 75 participants from the US, Canada, Barbados, and Mexico along with 35 TCI swimmers. Another 16 youngsters under 10 years and undertook part in the 100-meter swim.
Each race saw several outstanding open water swimmers competing for conch trophies in near perfect sea conditions. Other swimmers
wanted to challenge themselves while enjoying the experience of gliding through the inviting turquoise waters. As before, the start and finish took place on the beach in front of Rickie’s Flamingo Cafe.
Local swimmers once more showed they could compete with the best. Sean Walters and Asher Soderquist (just 10 years old) picked up extraordinary 2nd and 3rd places respectively in the 1/2 Mile Men’s Division. Isaac Farley secured a splendid 3rd place in the 1-mile Men’s Division, while Lex Olerenshaw grabbed a superb 3rd place in the 2.4-mile Men’s Division. Several other TCI swimmers placed among the top 5 or 10 in each event.
Orrin Meyer from the US turned in a blistering time of 51 minutes, 15 seconds to win the 2.4-mile (Ironman distance) Men’s Division, just over 10 minutes faster than 2nd place male finisher—his father, Jay Meyer. The Women’s Division swimmers in the 2.4 mile were no less impressive with Samantha Peck from the US coming in 1st with a smashing time of 1 hour, 2 minutes, 31 seconds. She was followed by Nathalie and Carrie Trantner.
Ari Henson won the 1-mile Men’s Division followed by Ryan Williams. while the Women’s Division was won by Julie Henson followed by Mary Mackley and Mary-Anne Savage.
In the 1/2-mile Men’s Division Garry Mahon from Barbados took 1st, while Celia Wolf took 1st in the Women’s Division followed by Stella Lord and Cara Stein. Race organizers Ben Stubenberg and Chloe Zimmermann could not be more pleased with the wonderful turnout, especially the increasing numbers of TCI swimmers in the race. Stubenberg said, “It is so gratifying to see how the race has progressed over the years. We love welcoming the new swimmers, as well as reconnecting with the swimmers who return year after year. No venue can match Grace Bay for open water swimming.” Zimmermann added, “We are thrilled at how the race generates so much enthusiasm among participants who all push themselves to go the distance and do their personal best.”
Unsurprisingly, “The Race for the Conch” is consistently listed as one of the top 100 open water swim races in the world by the World Open Water Swimming Association.
Stubenberg and Zimmermann take seriously the second part of the event name, “Eco-SeaSwim” by asking that all swimmers use reef-safe sunscreen devoid of harmful ingredients. To help ensure that request, organizers have partnered with one of the top reef-safe sunscreens in the world, Caribbean Sol, and made it available to all swimmers on the beach.
In addition, the organizers strive to use local services and products. These include conch medals for everyone carved by Stanford Handfield,
conch trophies created by Lucie Stubbs, T shirt designs by Alizee Zimmermann, T shirt printing by Wise Solutions, and Proud of My Island goodie bags created by Sammy Kildegaard and Emiliano Otin.
Stubenberg and Zimmermann praised the tremendous support of 20 volunteers on the beach and in the water. “They are the backbone of the event’s success,” they stated. “We could not do this without them or our generous sponsors and providers.” They include: Experience Turks & Caicos, Grace Bay Club, Ocean Club, Projetech, Whole Health, Atlantic Aviation, Hartling Group, Surfside Ocean Academy, Silver Palm Charters, Finishing Touch, Natural Trade Distribution, Visittci.com, Gabriel Kulcsar, Big Blue Collective, Got-U-Covered, Jafooe Computer, DJ Dayhoh, Caribbean Bottling Company, Caicu Naniki Tours, and Marco Travel.
The organizers also want to give a big shout out to the TCI Department of Environmental and Coastal Resources, TCI Marine Police, Provo Ambulance Service, TCI Red Cross, Big Blue Collective, and the TCI Regiment for their essential safety support.
The “Race for the Conch” is a registered TCI nonprofit. Proceeds from the race going to Provo Children’s Home, Red Cross, TC Reef Fund, and Project Inclusion Turks & Caicos.
The next “Race for the Conch” will take place on Saturday June 27, 2026.
More information about the race can be found on their website www.ecoseaswim.com