TORONTO, Ontario -- April  2008.  Fitness is a family affair for Toronto firefighter Shaun Chisholm.    Eight years ago, along with his wife and father,  Shaun completed the Ironman Triathlon in Lake Placid New York.  This August, his family will again be with him, only this time they'll be cheering him on from boats as he attempts to swim across Lake Ontario, raising funds for the Burn Unit at the Hospital for Sick Children along the way.

Shaun has been officially making plans for the 50 km swim since last September, but in many ways he has been preparing for it all his life.  At age nine he finished a two-mile swim at summer camp and then repeated the feat for his incredulous family when they arrived to pick him up.  That same determination now sees him through six-hour training sessions in Toronto pools up to four times a week.

Weather permitting, the 40-year-old father of two will enter the lake from Niagara-on-the-Lake on the evening of August 15, swimming more than 50 kilometers in cold and treacherous water through the night until he reaches Toronto's Marilyn Bell Park the following afternoon.  Supporting him in his effort will the Solo Swim Ontario (www.soloswims.com), an organization committed to providing advice prior to and during a long distance swim and to ensuring the safety of swimmer, pacers and crew.  Shaun's crew will include four firefighters from the station in Leaside where he works.  Shaun's wife Allison, also a firefighter, will provide health monitoring and feeding.

As one of the oldest male swimmers ever to attempt the swim, Shaun's strength and endurance will be put to the test.  High winds and currents can force a swimmer to proceed in a direction up to 40 degrees off of a straight-line course.  If successful, the swim will take from 18 to 26 hours to complete.

The Sick Kids Foundation is a natural choice of charity for both Shaun and his wife who routinely witness tragic emergency circumstances in their line of work.  The couple's interest goes beyond the professional, however.  Their firstborn child Liam was born two months prematurely, on September 11, 2001, giving them a close-up introduction to children in neonatal intensive care on a day in history when emergency services were at the forefront.

For further information, or to arrange for an interview with Shaun Chisholm, contact shaun@swimforkids.ca

Photos of Shaun are available below