Rhys's story

I am 16 years old and have just completed my GCSEs, and I have a passion for swimming that began at the age of three. Now, I am ready to take on an incredible challenge: swimming the English Channel! After a year of dedicated training, the day is almost here, and I feel a mix of excitement and nerves as I prepare for this monumental swim.

I am aiming to raise £2,000 for COSMIC, a charity that plays a vital role in supporting neonatal and paediatric intensive care units at St Mary’s and Queen Charlotte’s Hospital in London. COSMIC helps patients and their families during some of the most challenging times in their lives. They enable a dedicated team of nurses and doctors to provide care for hundreds of babies and children in intensive care. The charity also funds essential state-of-the-art equipment for these units, offers training for health professionals, and supports research into life-threatening diseases.

As part of the COSMIC Rays 2025 team, we will be participating in a Relay Channel Swim from Dover to Calais on July 3rd, 2025. There are six swimmers in our team, each taking turns to swim for one hour at a time until we reach our destination. We will face various challenges along the way—swimming in darkness and encountering jellyfish among other hazards—all while wearing only our swimming costumes, caps, and goggles.

I kindly ask for your support in this endeavor. Any donation you can make would be greatly appreciated; even just one pound can make a difference! If you are a taxpayer, please tick the box so that the tax man can contribute as well—it won’t cost you anything extra!

Together, we can help COSMIC continue its invaluable work!!