In a bid to raise awareness about dementia and Alzheimer’s disease, a group of swimmers will be swimming 13 kilometres from Meia Praia in Lagos to Praia da Rocha in Portimão on Saturday, September 1.
The group will be led by Susana Novais Santos, the Portuguese champion of open water swimming, and features other athletes like Paulo Sousa, Tomás Metcalfe, Brian Fortune and José Faustino.
The swimmers will take off from Meia Praia at 8.30am and are expected to arrive at Praia da Rocha around midday.
The initiative is part of the ‘Amigos na Demência’ campaign, which aims to raise awareness about mental health diseases like dementia and Alzheimer’s and change the way people think about these mental issues.
“This charitable swim and this gesture of Susana’s are great example of how we, as citizens, can be ‘friends in dementia’. All we need to do is be willing to learn a bit more about what it is like to live with dementia and then use that knowledge in some kind of way that helps people with dementia,” said José Carreira, president of the Alzheimer Portugal association.
For more information about the campaign, visit www.amigosnademencia.org.
