Lewis Pugh

Endurance Swimmer & @UNEP Patron of the Oceans. Follow @lewispughfdn for more on our work.

[Lewis Pugh @LewisPugh]

Today is World Oceans Day.

Take a deep breath and join me underwater for a moment, surrounded by these extraordinary creatures.

The ocean is full of wonders. Let’s keep it that way.

#WorldOceansDay

[Lewis Pugh @LewisPugh]

For nearly 40 years, I’ve swum in some of the world’s most extreme and fragile waters to draw attention to places that are rapidly changing, and to safeguard their future.

That’s why I’m delighted to be joining @11thHourRacing as an ambassador.

We believe that sport can inspire people to take action to protect nature.

[Lewis Pugh @LewisPugh]

Why do some people achieve their dreams while others fall short?

The English Channel offers a fascinating clue.

Last week at the Brilliant Minds conference in Stockholm, I spoke about the four moments when swimmers are most likely to give up.

Most surprising of all, some fail when France is already in sight.

Dreams rarely die because they are impossible. More often, they die because people are unprepared for the predictable moments when every dream is tested.

[Lewis Pugh Foundation @LewisPughFDN]

One ocean.

From coral reefs to polar ice, from kelp forests to the open sea, the ocean connects us all.

On World Oceans Day, we celebrate the beauty, diversity and wonder of the ocean.

#worldoceansday @UNEP @UNBiodiversity @theGEF
🎥 Lewis Pugh Foundation

[UN Environment Programme @UNEP]

Happy #WorldEnvironmentDay! 

Join us in celebrating our planet and recognizing the power we all have to protect it.  

Every voice matters. Every move counts. Join the movement. 

Together, let’s act #NowForClimate for this generation and the next.

[Lewis Pugh @LewisPugh]

There are few sights as beautiful as this. Happy #WorldPenguinDay from East Antarctica 🐧💙🇦🇶

🎥: Ben Callahann

[Lewis Pugh @LewisPugh]

Wayne Gretzky once said,
“I don’t skate to where the puck is. I skate to where it is going.”

My friend Slava Fetisov had to defend against him. Imagine that for a moment. The greatest attacker in the game … and you have to stop him.

Slava told me it was never about reacting. It was about reading the game. You had to sense where the puck was going next and get there first. If you were late, even by a second, it was over.

I think about that often.

The world feels unsettled at the moment. A lot is changing, very quickly. In my work, timing has always mattered.

In 2007, I realised that Arctic sea ice was melting fast, so I went to the North Pole and swam across a patch of open water.

A few years later, it became clear that we needed proper protection for our oceans, so I swam the length of the English Channel to call for 30% of the world’s oceans to be protected.

And when river pollution became impossible to ignore, I swam the length of the Hudson River.

None of these swims were random. They came at moments when the world was just beginning to pay attention.

Looking back, I realise how important that was.

These days, I sometimes see campaigns that remind me of what Slava described. Good people working incredibly hard, but focused on where the problem used to be, not where it is going.

When resources are limited, that is a risk we cannot afford.

Slava understood that on the ice. I have had to learn it in the water.

Timing matters.

📸 Lewis Pugh Foundation
(Playing ice hockey with Slava in Antarctica. It’s safe to say he got to the puck before I did.)

[Lewis Pugh @LewisPugh]

After 40 years of swimming, I’ve learnt that risk is rarely a simple choice between safe and dangerous. More often, it is a choice between two different risks.

Take a tanker crossing your path in the middle of a long swim. You have two options.

You can stop and wait, treading water for several minutes, getting cold, and swimming on through the churn it leaves behind.

Or you can go for it, lifting your pace and swimming hard to get safely in front while the water is still calm, at the cost of a burst of energy when you may already be tired.

Neither option is easy.

There's no time for debate. No committee meeting. A decision has to be made, and trusted.

In my world, that responsibility sits with the skipper of the support boat.

The ocean doesn’t forgive poor judgement, which is why the most important decision is made long before the swim: who you trust to make the call.

📸Kelvin Trautman

[Lewis Pugh Foundation @LewisPughFDN]

Most of what is changing in the ocean isn’t visible.

Heat, chemistry, and declining oxygen levels.

The surface rarely tells the full story.

#acidification #climate #oceanscience

📸 The Lewis Pugh Foundation

[SwimTrek @SwimTrek]

What do you swim for? 🌊
In his latest article, ocean advocate and SwimTrek Ambassador Lewis Pugh shares how every stroke can support something bigger - protecting our oceans 💙
https://t.co/yvecp0JGbv

[Lewis Pugh @LewisPugh]

The reason many people give up is that they look at how far they still have to go, instead of how far they’ve already come.

Change that perspective, and suddenly the journey feels possible again.

[UN Environment Programme @UNEP]

Calling all ocean champions!

The 2026 #EarthChamps nomination is now open until 15 April.

This year’s award will spotlight those helping to protect and restore ocean health.

Submit your nomination: https://t.co/l4L8iGTMTB

[Lewis Pugh @LewisPugh]

When a challenge feels overwhelming, stop thinking about the whole distance. Focus on the next stroke.

📸 Kelvin Trautman

[Lewis Pugh @LewisPugh]

If you believe it will work out, you’ll see opportunities. If you believe it won’t, you will see obstacles.

[Lewis Pugh @LewisPugh]

You’re exchanging a day of your life for today.
Choose wisely.

[Lewis Pugh @LewisPugh]

“The UN is a living promise – a promise that despite our differences, we will solve problems together.”

I couldn’t agree more with @UN Secretary-General @antonioguterres.

[Lewis Pugh @LewisPugh]

At the start of every year, people set fitness goals. I think that's a very good thing.

But if a goal can’t be measured, it’s hard to know if you’re making progress.

One simple fitness test I’ve used for decades is the Cooper Test: a 2.4 km run, done as hard as you can. Long enough to hurt. Short enough to push through.

If you try it this weekend, do let me know how it goes.

[Lewis Pugh @LewisPugh]

The two most powerful words in 2026: "I can!"

[Lewis Pugh @LewisPugh]

New Year Thought:

The paradox is that big dreams are often easier to achieve than small ones.

Because big dreams ignite passion - in ourselves and in others. And passion draws people in. It inspires them to help, to share the journey, and to believe in what’s possible.

Here’s to bold dreams in 2026. And to those who keep us going.