Russel Raath's Robben Island Backstroke Record
Russel Raath · Robben Island to Big Bay, Blouberg, Cape Town · 2026
On 7 April 2026, Russel Raath became the first person to swim the 7.4-kilometre crossing from Robben Island to Big Bay in Blouberg entirely on his back - a route that has been swum many times over, but never before in backstroke. He made the crossing through 13°C water wearing only a Speedo, escorted by support boats across the open water of Table Bay.
Visio Productions documented the swim from the water and the air, pairing aerial drone footage that captures the sheer scale of the crossing - a lone swimmer against the vastness of Table Bay, with Robben Island and Table Mountain framing the route - with close, on-the-water coverage of the stroke itself: the reach, the splash, and the exposed, repetitive effort of swimming blind on your back for hours in freezing water.
The resulting film and photography set is as much a record of endurance as it is of the swim itself, capturing both the historic achievement and the physical toll of an open-water crossing nobody had completed this way before.
Credits
- Director of Photography & Editor
- Rudolph de Girardier
Gallery
