A charity swim organised by a Royal Gibraltar Police officer last Saturday has raised over £5,000 for the Animals In Need Foundation (AINF).

The event saw 28 police officers and 21 members of the public join forces at the Gasa Indoor Swimming Pool to swim laps of the pool.

Armed with swimming caps and goggles, a relay of fundraisers swam from 9am to 6pm to raise the funds.

In total, the swimmers covered a combined distance of over 35km – which would have taken them from Gibraltar to Morocco and back.

Event organiser and police officer Tania Moreno, who works in the RGP’s Resource Management department, said: “We would like to say a huge thank you to everyone that took part in some way at our second annual sponsored swim event. 

“The day was a huge success and we managed to raise some much needed funds for our doggies. It was such a fun event and there are so many people to thank, but a special mention to the Gibraltar Sports and Leisure Authority, the staff at GASA and the helpful and friendly lifeguards on duty.

“A huge thank you to each and every participant and to every person who has kindly contributed and sponsored. A special mention to 11-year-old Charlie Balloqui who raised the most funds – a whopping £600 on his own – thank you for being so kind.

“And of course this could not have been possible without the support of the Animals in Need Foundation Team. A special thanks to my colleagues for going the extra mile for us too.

“We had experienced swimmers, the not so experienced ones, the floaters, the mystery swimmers, the ones who collected money and could not come and the supporters who came in for a chat or to donate.

“Thank you to all on behalf of our dogs.”

Tania, who has been volunteering at the Gibraltar-based charity for the past five years, explained that it currently looks after more than 50 abandoned dogs.

The funds will be used for kennel and vets’ fees, medication, dog food and obedience training.

AINF works with shelters, pounds and other charities, both local and international, to save abandoned and unwanted animals.

For more information visit www.ainfgib.com