PINOY AQUAMAN. Lawyer Ingemar Macarine is the first person to swim solo, unassisted, and nonstop from Bugtong Island in Pio V. Corpus town to the Barangay Matayum lagoon in Cataingan town, Masbate province. He finished a distance of 10.5 kilometers in four hours and 22 minutes on Saturday (June 24, 2023). (Courtesy of Ingemar Macarine)
BUTUAN CITY – Long-distance and open water swimmer Ingemar Macarine of Surigao del Norte became the first person to swim solo, unassisted, and nonstop from Bugtong Island in Pio V. Corpus town to the Barangay Matayum lagoon in Cataingan, all in the province of Masbate.
The open water swim took place Saturday and in time for the “Bagat Dagat (Meet and Celebrate)” Festival.
In a phone interview on Sunday afternoon, Macarine said the swim covered 10.5 kilometers which he finished in four hours and 22 minutes.
Locally known as the “Pinoy Aquaman,” based on the fictional American superhero, he had already finished 37 long-distance and open-water swims in the country and abroad.
“I had some difficulties during the Masbate swim especially when a strong current caught me off guard about 1.5 kilometers away from the lagoon,” the 47-year-old Macarine said.
Speeding up, he added, was also difficult as the strong wind caused turbulence approaching the lagoon area.
“With strong will and determination I succeeded,” Macarine said.
He added that he made the open water swim to promote the festival and tourism industry of Masbate and at the same, campaign for marine conservation and a healthy lifestyle.
His longest open water swim was 24.65 kilometers from Siliman Beach in Dumaguete City, Negros Oriental to Tambisan Port in San Juan, Siquijor in 2017, lasting for 11 hours and 21 minutes.
He also had two open-water swims in 2016 and 2017 in the United Kingdom and six in the United States.
“I was unsuccessful during my crossing of the English Channel from the UK to France in 2017 with a distance of 21 miles. I was not able to endure the cold and freezing water,” Macarine said.
Macarine is a lawyer by profession and currently serves as prosecutor in Bohol province.
He was born in Placer, Surigao del Norte, and grew up in Surigao City where he studied until high school. (PNA)
