LONG DISTANCE swimmer Mark Blewitt will be ensuring his ambitions do not sink when he takes part in a gruelling 21-mile Lake Windermere race next week.

Mark, who travels to Rossendale every week to train with Haslingden Swimming Club, will be attempting to break his own breaststroke record on the two-way Windermere course on August 20.

Four years ago Mark finished the challenging Lake Windermere course, which involves completing two lengths of England's longest lake from Ambleside to Fellfoot and back, in a time of 14 hours 22 minutes.

He is hoping to beat that time but admits training for this year's event has been difficult.

The fearless swimmer, who was diagnosed as diabetic 25 years ago, will brave the icy waters with his trusted crew by his side in a boat to supply him with hot drinks and food.

Mark, 37, formerly of Accrington, who is married to Andie, and has two children Ellie Mae and Max, said: "To be in the water for hours on end will be tough as it's extremely cold and there's nothing you can do to warm up apart from drink warm fluids.

"During my last race I had 21 litres of hot glucose drink on board to restore my energy levels.

I know it's going to be especially tough this year as I've not been able to train as much as I would have liked to."

The extreme swimmer decided to take up swimming to get fit.

Mark, who now lives in Preston, added: "I was very unhealthy and decided to go swimming once a week and now I'm taking part in some of the world's toughest swimming challenges."

Mark was recently honoured with the British Long Distance Association Breaststroke trophy for swimming 22 miles of a Scottish loch using the stroke.

He has previously completed the 28-mile swim round Manhattan Island, New York and to add to his impressive list of achievements he swam the English Channel in 16 hours 20 minutes in 2002.