Swim Cape Town

20/10/2026

The Ocean Connects Us All....

We are saddened to hear of the tragic passing of East London Swimmer Janine Lochrenberg earlier.

Whilst we sadly never got to meet Janine in person we had been in contact with her on a number of occasions. Janine was always friendly and very helpful in connecting swimmers travelling up the coast and sharing her local knowledge of swimming in East London and the Eastern Cape.

We send our sincere condolences to her family, friends and the East London Open Water Swimming community.

Rest in Peace Janine

💔 A Heartbreaking Loss to Our Ocean Family 💔

It is with immense sadness and heavy hearts that we share the tragic passing of our fellow open water swimmer and dear friend, Janine Lochrenberg, who lost her life in a fatal shark attack this morning.

Janine was a treasured member of East London’s open water swimming community, and her loss leaves an enormous hole in our ocean family.

She was never one to seek the spotlight, preferring to quietly go about doing what she loved most — swimming in the ocean. But behind her gentle, unassuming nature was someone who contributed so much to our swimming community, always there, always willing, and very much a part of the heart of our group.

The ocean was Janine’s happy place. It was where she found her joy, and where so many of us were fortunate enough to share special moments with her.

We will remember her beautiful smile, her gentle kindness, and the quiet but meaningful presence she brought to our swimming family.

Our hearts go out to Janine’s family, and especially to her beloved partner, Barbara, during this unimaginable time. There are simply no words.

We are deeply grateful for the outpouring of love, messages and support from the wider ocean community.

Rest peacefully, Janine. You will be so very missed, and you will always be part of our ocean family. 🌊💙🩵

17/09/2026

A HUGE thank you to all the Fish Hoek Surf Lifesaving members and safety volunteers both on the water and on the shore for the 2026 Fish Hoek Mile open ocean swim

14/09/2026

28/08/2026

Our annual Simon's Bay Mile Women's Day Swim once again hosted a donations drive of hygiene products. Happy Valley home were the recipients of the collection this year. A sincere thank you to the swimmers for supporting the donations drive and giving so generously.

Thank you to Scott Tait from Swim Cape Town for this generous donation from the Simon's Bay Mile, Women's day Swim of personal hygiene products. Check out the Fish Hoek Mile coming up on September 12, also in support of Happy Valley HOME.

14/08/2026

The Simon's Bay Mile Women's Day Swim introduced an Elite wave in 2026 with these Women enjoying their own race at the end. Once all the swimmers from Wave A to D had completed their race Simon's Bay was cleared for the Elite wave to contest the Overall Event title, with Prizemoney incentive along with the Category titles up for grabs.

The Elite wave comprised of swimmers with Mile times between 19 and 25 minutes. On the day a field of 21 Open Women and 4 Juniors contested the Event title with an impressive start list that included 2 x Olympian Michelle Weber, fellow Olympian Nikki Mocke, South African Lifesaving Captain Nicola Harcus and pioneering Ocean swimmers Carina Bruwer and Sarah Ferguson.

The slightly cooler conditions on the day with temparatures recorded between 12.5 and 13.5 saw many of the Elite Wave opt for their wetsuits.

Once the race got underway it was clear from the start that the Elite Wave was going to provide a race to remember. The pace from the outset was relentless with Michelle Weber and Nicola Harcus leading the way around Simon's Bay closely followed by 15 year old Mikalla Laubscher.

As the swimmers headed back on the long straight from the South African Navy dive school Michelle and Nicola were driving hard back to the finish cheered on by fellow swimmers and spectators lining the Simon's Town Jetty. As the two swimmers rounded the Jetty and headed into the Marina. they were inseparable and fighting hard for the most direct line for the beach finish. As the swimmers approached the beach, Nicola put her lifesaving skills to great effect as she got up early to dolphin dive ahead of Michelle and clear the water to claim the win in dramatic fashion.

An incredible race by two Women at the very top of their sport.

Top 10 Overall
1 Nicola Harcus
2 Michelle Weber
3 Mikalla Laubscher (15)
4 Tarryn Stanford
5 Sarah Mocke (14)
6 Jessica Hayes-Hill
7 Nikki Mocke
8 Marizanne Grundlingh
9 Maya Laubscher
10 Caitlin Barnes (14)

Category Winners
Queen of Simon's Bay (Open) Nicola Harcus
Princess of Simon's Bay (Under 18) Mikalla Laubscher
Royal Matriarch of Simon's Bay (Over 65) Jean Degenaar

With thanks to The Simon's Bay Mile Women's Day Swim race partners - Maurten, Coral Wetsuits, The Flowery, Mad Wave, Ocean Freedom, Button Wear, Sam Swimwear, Watsu Cape Town and Fable Designs

All photographs by Barbara Cole

14/08/2026

The Simon's Bay Mile Women's Day Swim 2026 - Waves A to D (album 3 of 3)

On the day swimmers were seeded according to the times they provided when they entered. Wave A included swimmers with Mile times from 26 to 35 minutes whilst B to C was from 35 to 45 minutes. The las Wave D had swimmers with times from 45 minutes onwards.

Our timekeepers on the day were Finish Time who provided the professional solution to our swim's needs.

Since the Simon's Bay Mile began in 2021 we have sought to promote inclusivity and recognise the needs of our swimmers. Therefore the use of snorkels and short fins are permitted at ALL of Swim Cape Town's swims as is seen in some of the photos taken on the day.

14/08/2026

The Simon's Bay Mile Women's Day Swim 2026 - Waves A to D (album 2 of 3)

14/08/2026

The Simon's Bay Mile Women's Day Swim 2026 - Waves A to D (album 1 of 3)

14/08/2026

The Simon's Bay Mile Women's Day Swim 2026 - Pre Race

In 2026 we welcomed the introduction of an event expo that featured our race partners Mad Wave, Maurten, Coral Wetsuits, Sam Swimwear, Button Wear as well as our official coffee suppliers on the day Blakey's Beans

14/08/2026

The 2026 Simon’s Bay Mile Women’s Day swim presented by Swim Cape Town took place in Simon’s Town on Saturday 8 August. The swim had a record field of 244 Women entered this year with many doing their very first Ocean Mile 1.6km). South African Olympian and Event Ambassador Laura Strugnell shared how proud she was of how the Women Only participants have embraced the swim as their own and helped to grow it into one of the largest participation Ocean swims in South Africa.

The swim was brought forward to the reserve day for safety reasons due to the incoming cold front. Swimmers were greeted with near perfect weather, although a little cooler 13.5C water temperatures on the day. Swimmers were sent off in waves according to their predicted Mile times as they took in the sights and sounds, above and below the water, of picturesque Simon’s Bay. This year the faster swimmers with times between 19 and 25 minutes enjoyed the benefit of their own race at the end with prize money from Swim Cape Town being awarded to the Top 5. The ‘Elite wave’ of 25 swimmers featured 3 x Event Champion Carina Bruwer, Double Olympian Michelle Weber and South African Lifesaving Captain Nicola Harcus from Fish Hoek Surf Lifesaving Club as well as a number of rising Junior stars.

The Elite race began at a frenetic pace and didn’t slow down as they headed out around the swim course. Michelle Weber and Nicola Harcus broke away from a chasing pack and were shoulder to shoulder coming around the Simon’s Town Jetty and into the Waterfront. It was Nicola who put her Lifesaving skills to great effect with a couple of dolphin dives that pushed her ahead of Michelle before sprinting up the beach to claim the win and 2026 Simon’s Bay Mile Women’s Day Swim title. 17 year old Mikalla Laubscher finished 3rd with Tarryn Stanford 4th and 14 year old Sarah Mocke 5th, all were in wetsuits. The first skins swimmer was Maya Laubscher with Carina Bruwer 2nd and Sarah Ferguson 3rd, completing the skins category. The full results are available on the Event’s page on Finish Time.

https://results.finishtime.co.za/results.aspx?CId=35&RId=5891&EId=1&dt=0&adv=1

The swim once again organised a donations drive of hygiene products for Women in need that was generously supported by the swimmers and warmly received by Happy Valley Home in Simon’s Town for redistribution.

With thanks to the swim’s race partners Maurten, Coral Wetsuits, The Flowery, Mad Wave, Ocean Freedom, Button Wear, Sam Swimwear, Watsu Cape Town and Fable Designs

Top 5 Overall
1 Nicola Harcus
2 Michelle Weber
3 Mikalla Laubscher
4 Tarryn Stanford
5 Sarah Mocke

Top 3 Queens of the Bay Skins (Open)
1 Maya Laubscher
2 Carina Bruwer
3 Sarah Ferguson

Top 3 Queens of the Bay Wetsuits (Open)
1 Nicola Harcus
2 Michelle Weber
3 Tarryn Stanford

Top 3 Princesses of the Bay (Under 18s)
1 Mikalla Laubscher
2 Sarah Mocke
3 Caitlin Barnes

Top 3 Royal Matriarchs of the Bay (Over 65)
1 Jean Degenaar
2 Karen Gibson
3 Greta Allen