Gondolier plans Channel crossing
Taking his rowing skills to the limits, a Venetian gondolier plans to row across the English Channel tomorrow to promote research for rare diseases.
Vittorio Orio, 60, was on his way to Dover today, the starting-off point for his 21 mile trip across the channel to Calais.
He hoped to shove off tomorrow (Thurs) if weather conditions permit.
The trip is expected to take about 12 hours, but Orio said favourable winds might cut the trip in half.
He said he wanted to draw attention to the need to better fund research for rare diseases, particularly one that affects the muscles around the spine which has afflicted a boy in his home port of Venice.
Orio took his 36 foot gondola outside Venice’s famous canals last summer for a similar reason, rowing down the Rhine to promote the Baschirotto Institute for Rare Diseases in Vicenza.
Although he boasts of his singing skills, Orio said he has no plans to demonstrate them while rowing the English Channel.
