English Channel tragedy: Memorial held for Ellesmere triathlete Nick Thomas
A memorial event has been held to honour Shropshire triathlete Nick Thomas who died during an attempt to swim the English Channel.
Friends and family of Mr Thomas held a minute's silence by the side of the Mere at Ellesmere last night, one of the training venues for his endurance events and where he ran weekly outdoor sessions for fellow swimmers.
Mr Thomas's daughter Sarah, 18, said the Mere was his second home.
She said the tribute was followed by a memorial swim, a mile long lap of the mere by some of the swimmers.
Some of those who ran with Mr Thomas on Friday evenings ran to the mereside while others cycled there.
The silence was led by fellow triathlete and former neighbour, David Elson, who urged people to use the time with their own memories of Mr Thomas.
The multi-ironman triathlete was only the 19th person to complete the Arch to Arc challenge, cycling from Mable Arch to the south coast, swimming the channel and then cycling to the Arc de Triomphe in Paris two years ago.
Mr Thomas died on August 28, his 45th birthday.
He was pulled from the water close to the French coast after almost completing his non wetsuit channel swim challenge, an event he had been training for for a year.
