She Won the Junior, Women's and Overall Titles at the World Bog Snorkelling Championships by a Third of a Second

Bog snorkelling asks competitors to wear a snorkel and swim two lengths of a water-filled trench cut through a peat bog, covering 120 yards in total. Recognised swimming strokes are not allowed: entrants kick with their feet, may use only a form of doggy paddle, keep their hands and arms under the surface and breathe through the snorkel with their faces in the water.

The 40th World Bog Snorkelling Championships were held at the Waen Rhydd bog at Llanwrtyd Wells in Powys, mid Wales, on 30 August, as part of the town's Bogfest weekend. A total of 201 competitors took part.

Emily Hall recorded 1min 27.97sec to win the junior female, women's and overall world titles. Sweden's Adrian Sandstrom had set an early time of 1:28.30 that looked unbeatable for much of the day, and he finished 0.33 seconds behind Hall to take the men's title. Eve Stewart-Brown was runner-up in the women's competition, and Hall's younger brother, William, won the junior male title.

Sandstrom finished third in the men's event in 2024, when he was also the first junior male and the first international male.

The fastest time on record, 1:12.34 set by Neil Rutter in 2023, was not threatened. Webbed gloves are banned under the rules. Louise and Shawn Palmer won the fancy dress prize for the fourth time.

The championships were first held in 1985. Organiser Bob Greenough said the event had grown into an international competition while remaining rooted in the local community of Llanwrtyd Wells.